The Cheesecake Factory

Worst experience at Cheesecake Factory ever. We arrived at 1030am Sunday when they opened at 10 am. So not a lot of patrons at that time. While I waited at hostess stand, I saw at least 6 servers just waiting for tables to work. It was to be a table for 3, including my 83 y/​o mom. I requested an outdoor seat in the shade. The hostess took us outside with no regard for my mom’s slower pace. She tried to shove us into a sunny spot. I refused. I asked to go into shaded area, she said no servers. (Despite 5 or 6 just hanging out — waiting to work a table).
Then she walked us back to hostess booth, again going way too fast for an 80 + y/​o person. Then hostess slunk back into an office. Said she would ask if I could be seated in the shaded outdoor area.
She returned. With bitch face on. She walked us out to the outside seating area and told us to pick any table.
10 minutes later. I called the Cheesecake Factory we were at. I asked to speak w a Mgr or Asst Mgr. I was talking w one… Joey. I told him we have been waiting for service. He said he’d send some one out and he would be out too. Still waited.
Finally a sever greeted us. Took drink order. Waited and waited again.
It was coffee. Finally coffee arrived via a runner. (As is typical at Cheesecake Factory) but no creamer and we had ordered creamer w our coffee order. Still waited for creamer as our coffee got less and less warm. Finally my sister went into bar and got cream from bartender.
Still no Joey… As he had said, I’ll be right out.
Finally placed food order.
But other couple who came in and ordered AFTER us, got their food before we did.
The only thing that mellowed me out and stopped me from verbally shredding them to bits was the fact I had 2 mimosas by the end of my meal.
My sister had to ask for grape jelly twice. She was given strawberry jelly.
I just don’t know how much more they could screw up the service or my impression. But then our food arrived. Her omelet was rubbery and had minimal filling. No salt or pepper on tables.
Earlier Joey the Mgr, said he would come ck on us again. We were waiting to tell him of the epic fail in service and quality. HE NEVER RETURNED even though HE SAID HE WOULD!!!
We finally asked for him to return. Explained politely our disappointing experience and asked him to take off the charge for my sisters omelet. He did.
This was the absolutely worst experience at CCF ever. I will NEVER go to this one again. I encourage all who read this to go anyplace else. There are lots of options at short pump. Heck even fast food would have been a better experience.

Great ambiance but way overpriced for one small slice of cheesecake. Waitress was professional and nice. A little dark in there and the floor was very slippery as in I was sliding on grease or spilled food. I would recommend shoes and a caution wet floor sign. Accident waiting to happen.

I read some of the other reviews and I get the complaints about the service since I agree that can ruin a meal. However, I’ve never had service issues here and the food is as great as any other Cheesecake Factory. The menu is very large, with a wide variety of food, and some yummy combinations. If you cant find something to eat here there is something wrong with you. They even have gluten free stuff for you intolerant people. My friend and I usually get their salads since they are huge, delicious, and satisfying. Of course looking at their over 15 cheesecakes is essential. Last time we had the tuxedo cheesecake which was to die for. Highly recommend if you are a short pump, want a delicious quick lunch, and want to splurge a bit on calories.

I was so excited to try this place! I was hearing about it for years when I lived in Las Vegas, so when I got to Richmond, my cousin took me. I ordered the arugula salad which was «meh», and the crab cakes which were pretty okay. Not disgusting, but not flavor packed.
The two stars are for the awesome cheesecake!!! I’ve tried many flavors, visiting just for the cheesecake. Definitely worth a try!

I love Cheesecake Factories and this place was as good as the entire chain. Service was great, the only thing I disliked was that I had my birthday here, and I had I think 8 people coming, 3 of us were there, but they wouldn’t seat us until 4^th person came which was really annoying cause they could’ve made more money from us buying drinks while we waited the 20ish minutes for the rest of our party. Also we didn’t have a really nice setup for 8 people, and one of our persons had to sit on the end whcih we didn’t think we’d mind at the beginning but after the dinner was over we all decided we didn’t like that after.
All our food was really good, and as usual comes in huge servings that are amazing.

Everything started great, I was at the bar, nice bartenders. Good cold Piña colada. And then at the end of my salad, I bit into a peanut. I am so allergic to them. I had to run into the bathroom after spitting out my food and rinse my mouth. I had to run out of the Restraunt to go to the doctors. I’m at the doctors now. I paid 30 $ to get poisoned. I’ve never had this problem before at any other Cheesecake Factory. This is unacceptable.

I have eaten at several Cheese Cake Factories in my life time but this is perhaps the worst one yet… I don’t know who the chef is today (4−6−16)
but there is such a thing called «seasoning – salt and pepper would be a start»…Gordon Ramsey would tell you to «hang up your apron» and Donald Trump would tell you «YOUR FIRED»!!
Please people save your money you’re only paying for the name.

This place was hit or miss for me. I went in with a friend on a Saturday night with no reservation and ended up only having to wait 30 minutes for a table for two, which was a miracle considering how many people were waiting. We saw people turn away just after us when they were quoted an hour or more for three or more people. In the essence of full disclosure, I know that it’s pretty much mandatory to make a reservation for this place because I’ve been to the one in Virginia Beach which has 3 hour waits on a Saturday night. We just got lucky I suppose.
Anyway, the atmosphere is pretty bustling and we were seated and greeted pretty quickly. Our waitress was pleasant and helpful, even kidding with us that the menu is like a small novel. This is where the problems with this place start. When people are offered so many options, it is hard to make a decision on just one thing. The menu is probably 20 pages, which is excessive to put it politely. They also change the menu twice a year, so it only adds to the confusion for consumers.
I ended up with a crispy chicken costoletto, or in better terms, breaded chicken with asparagus and potatoes. Definitely not worth the very high price tag of $ 18… The cheesecake I ordered to go was delicious but very rich. I ended up only eating half before tossing the rest. They also don’t have any prices on the menu for their drinks or wine, which should be a red flag to customers that they are overpriced!
I think if you’re just looking for dessert to share, it’s a good idea to order for pickup and take it home, but the dinner fare here isn’t anything to write home about.

Papa Georgio was having his retirement party here so instantly you know I’m showing up. What I was met with though was savory, flavorful apps (short for appetizers) at first, but overly saucy and if I may take from another reviewer’s choice of word, «soupy» entrees. The food also had notes of unwashed hands, cumin, and nutmeg. The cheesecake made me gassy, a small price to pay for a decadent dessert. Better check my blood pressure though uh oh. I must say though, the service was great. Papa Georgio even did a line dance with our server, he’s a crazy guy haha LOL I can’t wait to retire… hopefully I get that raise on Monday, I wasn’t sure what Georgie meant by credit card roulette… I should go now

We came for the happy hour appetizers. They were absolutely delicious and ordered different cheesecakes to go. This is one of my favorite chain restaurants. I only sit at the bar because every time I sit in the dining area they take forever. That’s the only reason I gave it 4 stars. They’re kinda slow ! But never at the Bar… very friendly bartender.

It’s hot and cold. Sometimes they deliver and sometimes they don’t. But, when they fail, they fail big. We had a nice waitress — not overly attentive (it was 5pm mid-​week, it wasn’t busy). The kitchen failed miserably — didn’t make our app and when they did it was ½ cooked. My sandwich was a mess. Forgot my side. Nothing tasted bad but it was frustrating. And Cheesecake is NOT cheap (aka overpriced). So, I would have expected our nice waitress to do something to account for the kitchen’s major fails. Nope. Nothing. She smiled and dropped off our bill and ran. The place has had more bad days then good lately and the floor is slippery and the place smells sour. It needs a good cleaning, and a general refresh of staff and kitchen. They shouldn’t rest on their laurels — despite the fact that the people keep coming. More is expected of the chain.

I love the cheesecake factory so much I go every year for my birthday even though they’re always super crowded I don’t mind the wait. I always get the Fried macaroni and cheese for an appetizer. For an entrée I always get the monster burrito. The strawberry lemonade is also really good. The cheesecake that I’ve had so far include the Oreo cheesecake the tuxedo cheesecake and the red velvet cheesecake also the chocolate layer cake is really good.

Haha a review of Cheesecake Factory. Lol
I am originally from Los Angeles. Cheesecake Factory was like my college canteen where we had group projects and stuff. I had been to the 1^st Cheesecake Factory in the country, which happened to be in Hollywood. So I have a pretty good benchmark of what a Cheesecake Factory should look/​taste/​feel like.
This Cheesecake Factory location in Short Pump gets better and better in food quality. 3 years ago it was a lot less impressive. Keep up the good work.
Don’t get me wrong. I’m comparing this Cheesecake Factory location to the rest of the locations in the country, not to other restaurants in RVA.

I have to say, my hype for the Cheesecake Factory has died.
being from Toronto, the closet location to me is in Buffalo at the walden galleria mall, and I used to make trips out there just to eat. now It’s been a while since, but I always remembered the food to be decent.
I was in Virginia for a work trip and saw the Cheesecake Factory as we drove by and mentioned to my colleagues that I would like to stop in one day while we’re here.
1) Service: I was very unhappy with the way the server described every item on the menu identically «it’s a good portion, flavourful and my favourite»
2) Etiquette: I thought bringing around of waters for everyone was common courtesy. I asked for water with my drink and I was the only one who got a glass
3) food: like I mentioned — I remember the food being decent — but I really didn’t enjoy it. I came specially for the chicken samosas but even that doesn’t warrant a return. the starter sizes are HUGE and that too for a salad. I actually think it’s a total waste of food. like really how can someone finish all that food?
overall, an experience where I can’t say I will care to return like I once did, except to walk in and take cheesecake to go.

Had lunch with colleagues here today. The good thing about The Cheesecake Factory is the variety of the menu so it’s easy to please a crowd. I tried the Tuna Tataki Salad… it was light and fresh with pretty straightforward ingredients: grilled tuna, pickled ginger, mixed greens, avocado and tomatoes with soy sauce and vinaigrette dressing. It was exactly what I wanted and came in below 500 calories. I was able to eat out with the gang without overindulging, which is super easy to do at this restaurant that features massive portions.

I am perplexed why this place is so busy.
Floors were dirty and slippery
Bathrooms not cleaned at all
Service was slow and boring
The food was a 2 star at best.
Ordered the chicken Marsala and it had absolutely no flavor at all. I was thinking they must have forgotten the Marsala sauce but if you focused you could taste a hint.
We have now been waiting for 30 minutes for our check and still no check.
Not one person in our party was impressed with their food. Even our kids barely touched their food and it’s mostly coming home to end up in the trash can tomorrow.
Great location, good atmosphere but not sure why this place has a good following.

I’m not sure how Cheesecake Factory only gets an average 3 stars here on Unilocal.I mean they pretty much do everything right. The food selection is amazing and what is even more amazing is that it is all good. Very good drinks and of course the deserts are hard to beat as well.
I take a star away because it is a chain and it can get crowded (a line pretty much through the holidays) and Richmond has such over the top great local restaurants.
But really — I mean the place is great there is no denying it!

We went to CF for a birthday dinner… with the intention of trying something new. I always get the same thing because I love it, but this time we stepped outside our box and tried the salmon. Im new to loving salmon thanks to another restaurant in NVA, that makes a Cedar smoked salmon. My daughter and I tried to talk the server into asking the chef to make it cedar smoked but she wasnt budging… told us to try the blackened instead and it was good. not as good as the smoky cedar but good nonetheless. The salmon comes with steamed broccoli and mashed potatoes. The broccoli was a little boring. it could use a sprinkle or two of some seasoning or butter. but if your trying to be healthy its perfect. The mashed potatoes were super chunky but delicious, clearly handmade. You cant really mess up the taste of a potato though can you?
I also tried the buffalo blast appetizer. ohhh myyy god Ive been missing out on these!!! they bring you these enormous fried buffalo triangle shaped bites that could fill you up as a meal. Theyre piled high on the plate and fried into a golden crispy bite… these are a new must-​have for me.
Honorable mention goes to the free bread they bring you. but not that horrible hard crusty white sourdough bread. you can break a tooth off on this bread. thumbs down! However… the pumpernickel bread is banging! I wanted to ask for a loaf to take home. its hot and buttery. My favorite bread. (Note: if trying to stay off bread DONT TASTE THIS BREAD lol)
Last but never least. you cant go to CF without getting a slice of cheesecake. I tried a new carrot cake one. it was yummy. so yummy I forgot to take a picture lol. It doesnt trump my all time fave vanilla bean but its a good runner up.
Overall… great new experience.

I have been visiting Cheesecake Factory going back to the B-​More harbor location and they always give you a lot of food and a great atmosphere for groups but it’s still a franchise. The Richmond location is a great spot and the service is always good here. Of course we ordered so much food and then packed it all up because we had to eat the cheesecake. Even with great service and a menu so big you need to be quizzed on, I give out a 3 because the food is just ok, not in a disappointing way but you know going in you will drop $$$ and your saying after the fact… that was ok but not great I think I’m one of the few that like the Cheesecake Bistro that used to be out Stony Point.

Not typically a big fan of chain restaurants, but we had some gift cards given to us about a year ago, and finally decided to wade through the endless line waiting to get into Cheesecake. I’m glad we did. We went for a late lunch, but I don’t think it matters when you go… you’re going to wait. We had the loaded tater tots for an appetizer, which were awesome. I had the classic burger, and my wife the baja chicken tacos. We both liked out meals very much, and it’s a TON of food. To the point that there was no way we were going to order cheesecake.
Here’s an idea for Cheesecake: put a scoreboard type sign on the outside of your building somewhere, and show the current average wait time. There are ALWAYS people sitting around outside your front doors waiting for their number to come up, and I would bet most people like me just drive on by, assuming that the wait is in the range of 1 hr. But if the «scoreboard» said the average wait was 15, 20 minutes or whatever, I would be inclined to swing in and eat. Just a thought.