The Cheesecake Crust

I went to The Cheesecake Factory today for the first time in something like twelve years. Maybe ten years. I've only ever been to the one in Marina Del Rey, and the only thing I've ever had there was this pasta they used to have called Straw and Hay, and it was green spinach fettuccine and regular egg fettuccine with some kind of cream sauce and chicken sausage. I really liked it, and I didn't go to The Cheesecake Factory very often, so I would always get that. The last time I went to one of these restaurants, I was in my early 20's and with single girlfriends on Valentine's Day. What the hell were we thinking? Everyone else was coupled up in super straight pairings, and were acting sickly sweet, and although everyone had reservations for particular times, the wait was excruciatingly long. Especially watching the blowsy ex-frat boys try to cheer up the pissy, skinny ex-cheerleaders they were all with, as we all waited something like an hour and a half for tables. That was the end of me and The Cheesecake Factory, till today!


They no longer have the Straw and Hay, but I had some other equally rich pasta dish, and then DD and I shared a piece of strawberry cheesecake. I love cheesecake, and I remembered the Cheesecake Factory cheesecake fondly. Well, the weird thing about it was that the crust, although delicious-tasting, was oddly wet and glossy, and I think cheesecake crust should be crumbly and dry. The slices seem larger than they used to be, and they're now served with an enormous puff of real whipped cream. I fought off the desire to slap a spoon into the puff and watch the whipped cream hit the people I was dining with, but it kept entering my mind! I wonder who makes the best cheesecake in San Francisco? I've heard only good things about Zanze's Cheesecake, and now I can't wait to try it out! The quest for the most delicious cheesecake seems at odds with the quest to exercise more and eat better, doesn't it? That could be a problem.