We left Vancouver at 6 am on our guys road trip heading to Portland. This was my first trip to Portland, luckily there was only a ten minute wait at the border crossing. In total, the drive from Vancouver to Portland was about 6 hours. When we arrived, we checked in to the hotel and dropped off our bags and headed to the Woodburn Company Stores to do some outlet shopping. After a long day, we were hungry and the guys recommended going to Cheesecake Factory for dinner. I didn’t mind going because I haven’t dined there before. Besides, they are only available in the USA.
The establishment gave me a high end Italian feel because of the high and grand decorated ceiling, giant marble columns and colorful glass. The waitress came by quickly to introduce herself and show us the menu. We placed our orders quickly.
Ray ordered the Chicken Madeira served with sauteed chicken breast topped with fresh asparagus and melted mozzarella cheese. The dish is covered with fresh mushroom Madeira sauce and served with mashed potatoes. This dish was highly recommended by the waitress. The chicken was very tender, soft, and moist because it was mashed by a mallet. It was seasoned very well and Ray really enjoyed the dish.
John ordered the Spicy Chicken Chipotle Pasta. The dish had honey glazed chicken, asparagus, red and yellow peppers, peas, garlic and onion in a spicy chipotle parmesan cream sauce over the pasta. The dish had some interesting flavors; sweet, salty and spicy. John said that it was very good!
Victor ordered the Garlic Noodles. It contained fresh asparagus, shittake mushrooms, oven roasted tomatoes and parmesan in a delicious garlic sauce over spaghetinni with shrimp. Victor said that it was quite tasty because the spaghetinni was cooked perfectly and the light garlic sauce balanced the dish very well.
Steve ordered the Kobe Burger. It had American Kobe beef with sauteed mushrooms and onions on a toasted brioche bun with fries. The server asked, “How you want your burger done?” I heard from friends that you have a choice on how the burger is cooked, but this was my first time hearing it at a restaurant. I would definitely have order it well-done because its ground beef, but it wasn’t my burger. Steve requested that the patty be medium rare. It came out well-done and dry. The meal turned out to be very unappetizing.
I ordered the Thai Chicken Pasta. The dish has sauteed chicken, julienne carrots, green onions and a spicy peanut sauce served over linguine topped with bean sprouts. I was a little disappointed when my dish arrived because of the richness and thickness of the peanut sauce; I was thinking of having a lighter dish, so I’m not sure why I chose this one. That said, there was nothing wrong with the dish by any means. The sauce was the most critical component of the recipe and the addition of bean sprouts was very refreshing. The dish was seasoned well and blended that ingredients together beautifully. I definitely recommend this dish.
How can you not order cheesecake for dessert at a place called the Cheesecake Factory? I ordered the white chocolate cheesecake with macadamia nuts. It was semi-soft and infused with macadamia nuts, topped with whipped cream. I also really enjoyed the crust of the cheesecake.
Overall, my first visit to the Cheesecake Factory was quite a pleasant dining experience.
Five Loaves Rating:
Value: 8/10
Quality: 8/10
Overall: 8/10
Verdict: Cheesecake Factory is not only for desserts, but their pastas and other dishes are also pretty good.
Cheesecake Factory
9309 SW Washington Sq Rd
Portland, OR 97223
(503) 620-1100
