This post was sponsored by The Cheesecake Factory (The Mall at Short Hills) who provided a meal for me to enjoy through the travel campaign with New Creative Media. We appreciate their support of Jersey Family Fun that allows us to share with families what Morris County restaurants we think your family may enjoy.
Our family restaurant review series returns with a visit to the Cheesecake Factory.
I admit it I’ve never been to a Cheesecake Factory. In my neck of Jersey we don’t have them and in all honesty, yes I love cheesecake, but I didn’t think I was missing out on anything. After all, living gluten-free kind of limits your options. So when I headed into the Cheesecake Factory at the Mall at Short Hills with Julia during our Wyndham Weekends, I figured I’d either be eating plain chicken or a salad. It is what it is, I thought. I opened up the regular menu and was not prepared for what I saw next.
What?
So I asked for the gluten-free menu. There were no strange looks from our waitress, Michael Ann. With a smile she brought it over. This was a waitress clearly trained well in customer service and in knowing her restaurant well enough to respond to my request without hesitation.
Now about that Cheesecake Factory gluten-free menu available, it’s not a regular menu with a handful of dishes that can be made gluten-free. Cheesecake Factory has a gluten-free menu that is 4 pages long with options for appetizers, entrees, and desserts. And if that wasn’t enough, there is a page with a gluten-free kids’ menu. Isn’t that incredible?!
Can you see my excitement?
You can view the Cheesecake Factory gluten-free menu in our Facebook album of pictures from our visit. Now poor Michael Ann, the first few times she came over to ask if I was ready to order I had to send her away. I was so overwhelmed and excited to have so many gluten-free options to choose from that I couldn’t pick what I wanted.
Finally, I made my decision and Julia made hers. I skipped the appetizer to save room for dessert. After all with so many gluten-free desserts to choose from, there was no way I was skipping out on that.
So what did I eat for my gluten-free Cheesecake Factory meal?
For my lunch I had pasta with chicken and sun-dried tomatoes. Again, living gluten-free I am still in search of pasta that tastes like pasta and not like plastic or cardboard.
This Cheesecake Factory gluten-free pasta was delicious! I ate every last bite. But my absolute favorite part of the meal had to be ordering dessert. The Cheesecake Factory has gluten-free Godiva chocolate cheesecake. I was not leaving the mall without having some.
Cheesecake Factory Gluten-Free Godiva Chocolate Cheesecake
One bite and I was in heaven….perhaps a gluten-free girl’s paradise. (A kids’ too, not long after I posted this picture to Facebook my nephews were at their local Cheesecake Factory devouring gluten-free desserts too.) Could I eat it all? Sadly no. I tried though. ;-) If there was anyway I could have finished that piece or taken it back to our Wyndham Hotel room, I would have. It was the best dessert I have had since going gluten-free 18 months ago.
From the looks of Julia’s plate, she enjoyed her meal too. You can read her review over at Wine in Mom. Our friend, Linda from Giggle, Gobble, & Gulps was also there with her family during our Wyndham Weekend. You can read her review here.
Visit our Facebook Gallery to see more Cheesecake Factory pictures.
Want to find more local family restaurants? Read our Family Restaurant Review series.
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In full disclosure, this post was sponsored by The Cheesecake Factory who provided a meal for me to enjoy through the travel campaign with New Creative Media. However, our opinions are honest and based on our experiences at the Cheesecake Factory in The Mall at Short Hills.