Cheesecake Factory at the Grove

January 30th post

Ok sorry for the delay, I have been overloaded with mundane everyday life stuff. Anyhow this will get me caught up with January. This time we went to The Cheesecake Factory at The Grove, located on 189 The Grove Drive, Los Angeles . I have never been to The Grove, so it was a completely new experience. As far as location goes, this place is nice, reminded me of Fashion Island on Newport. The parking structure was huge, I felt like I was in an obstacle course driving up to the 5th floor though. We had the full BETZ team, along a few guest eatters. B brought her hubby, Mr V. E brought her teenage boy, Mr. R, I brought a special guest star Ms. V(no relation to Mr V), and she brought her daughter mini B:) Our advance scouts arrived at 8:30, to reserve for a table for 6(we didnt anticipate so many), and was told that the wait would be around 45 minute to 1 hr. I arrived by 9:15, and at 9:30, we were told it would be at least another 30 minutes...ouch! Luckily, there were plenty of shops around, and even a bookstore to pass the time. Slightly after 10 we were finally seated, however, they wouldnt let us put 8 people in their booth of 6, so B and her hubby had to sit by the bar and have their romantic dinner for 2.

As far as the environment goes, the lighting was perfect, dim but not so you can't see your food. It was not too noisy even though it was packed. We sat down and proceeded to order our drinks. Ms V had a pina colada, Z had her pinot noir by Chalone Vineyard, E and Mr R had soda... and mini B had a pina colada virgin, and I had a Long Island Ice tea. I have no idea what B and her hubby had, since they didnt mention it and sat apart from us. Everyone liked their drink, but Z said her pinot noir was a bit bitter, they probably opened a new bottle and didn't air it.

So on with the food. B had ordered Pasta Carbonara, but didn't tell me what Mr V had. E had Louisiana Pasta, but didn't tell me what Mr R had, so for this post, we will just pretend that Mr V and Mr R were Star Trek red shirts:) Z had Chicken Madeira, Ms V said she had Fettucini with Chicken and SD Tomatoes, and she shared it with mini B. I being the fat guy, had to order appetizer, so I ordered Buffalo Blast, and for my main course, I had Pasta De Vinci...mmmm

The reviews were mixed.

For B, who had Pasta Carbonara, her exact words were: It would have been better if it didn't taste too much like bacon. The bacon overpowered the sauce and chicken.

For E, who had Louisiana Pasta: I loved my dish, the bit of spice was just right. Overall delicious!

For T, who had Buffalo Blast and Pasta De Vinci: I think the appetizer was gross, the breast meat was soggy at best, almost like rot, but the dip was nice and I was hungry(when am I not hungry??) However, the Pasta De Vinci earned its name. The mushroom was done just right, and the chicken flavorful. Pasta wasn't lacking either, al dente!

For Z, who had Chicken Madeira: The mixture of ingredients (asparagus, melted cheese, mushroom and Madeira sauce) took a couple of bites to get used to. It was fine. The mash potatoes had the right kick and was delicious.

For Ms V, who had Fettucini with Chicken and SD Tomatoes: Tasty, creamy, perfect. Lots of food it was excellent. I finished my drink and that is rare so that means it was excellent as well.

So as you can see, the reviews this round were rather mixed. So overall

Location/Parking******************************For LA, its an A, B if you compare it to say...orange county? Fee base parking, but at least I didnt have to pay anyone to violate my car!

Environment*********************************would have been an A if we didnt have to wait so long, 1.5 hr is excessive by any stretch of the imagination, and they dont take reservations either. It definitely ruins the mood of things. Lucky for them, there are plenty of shops around, so B!

Drinks**************************************B-, cocktails were fine, wine selection was average.

Food***************************************this one is hard, but as an average, it would get a B-, maybe C+. Pick your dishes carefully!

Price***************************************it's not inexpensive, average I would say. B

Overall*************************************B/B- restaurant!