The falling snow was illuminated by the Barnes and Noble’s lights which masked the deceptively large building known as the Cheesecake Factory. I got out of my mom’s car and stared up at the horizon as the night sky and building tops merged into one.

The doors that could be made of lead pulled open, and I walked in. Walking up to the front, my mom asked for a table for two, as I, a socially incapable person, cannot ask myself. We were told it would be about an hour-long wait.

Luckily, we could peruse the mall’s endless corridors all the way to Starbucks. . . great.

Barnes & Noble was where we went, as my mom needed a book.

The hour wait was over fifteen minutes earlier than advertised. We come back and were seated immediately. The first thing I did was scour the twenty-ish page menu for the drinks, but I already knew what I was getting: the Factory Hot Chocolate.

The order was put in, and the drink came back out in a short amount of time. The glass cup⁠—not a mug⁠— was a good size; it was comparable to your average water cup. The hot chocolate was pleasantly warm and not too hot; it had a rich taste to it. In a way, it was comparable to Hershey’s chocolate syrup.

Our server came back, and I asked questions about the menu items that I had narrowed my choice down to. My questions were answered clearly and quickly.

I, as someone who loves good fried chicken, got their Crispy Fried Chicken Sandwich. It was your generic sandwich with two pieces of chicken, cheese, coleslaw, tomatoes, pickles, and mayo on brioche. I opted out of the condiments except for the cheese. 

The order came out in about fifteen minutes, and it looked well cooked. The bread was not a brioche; despite that, it still had a stiff crunch to the outside and was airy on the insides. As for the chicken, the breading was, for the most part, to my liking. It had a satisfactory crunch which when pierced led to juicy chicken that my teeth glided through like butter.

The taste of it was all good and well, but it needed a bit more seasoning. This could be due, in part, to the lack of coleslaw; however, it only needed a little salt and pepper to make up for the slightly dull flavor.

What was unexpected was a side of fries with the sandwich. They were nothing spectacular, but they did have a fine amount of salt on them. I often find myself needing to add salt to my fries, but these fries were a surprise, a welcome one.

I did not finish the sandwich in favor of saving room for dessert: cheesecake. I chose the Salted Caramel and the Toasted Marshmallow S’mores Galore.  

The Salted Caramel was just as the name implies. The caramel was in a thin, viscous layer on top of a smooth and creamy cheesecake. It was cool to the touch and had a side oh whipped cream.

The S’mores Galore was bursting with chocolate flavor. The hot chocolate was rich, but this is the Bill Gates of chocolate flavor. The rougher cheesecake was garnished with a marshmallow paste and whipped cream with honey graham cracker. There seemed to be a thin layer of fudge before the crust of the cheesecake.

Alone, the chocolate was overwhelming, but with everything in one bite, the flavors compiled into the finest of confections. 

All in all, the meal was filling and delicious. The restaurant was clean and had a regal air to it which made for an enjoyable setting to eat alone or to go on a date. I would absolutely recommend the Cheesecake Factory to anyone who likes food or desserts.