The Cheesecake Factory

Last time Laura and I went to The Cheesecake Factory our waitress was a complete disappointment.  She had an attitude and gave terrible service, I think that may have been the reason why I chose not to write a review for that experience.  The food was terrific but the service left me feeling like what I might have to say about the place would be a little biased.  This weekend made up for any bad feelings I may have had left over and then some.

Our server was overly pleasant and agreeable, anything we even mentioned thinking about ordering she would enthusiastically claim was the best choice!  "Right on" was how she acknowledged almost anything we had to say and the way she described the specialty cheesecakes when it came time to order desert was right out of a commercial.  Not to mention she reminded Laura of one of her favorite students from last year.  Let me step back to the beginning though.

As I stated in my last review of the Macaroni Grill, the very best Fried Macaroni and Cheese I've ever had comes from The Cheesecake Factory.  I've tried it anytime it's on the menu and no one even comes close.  The four plump balls of deep fried mac and cheese that were served to us right after we finished our bread basket were absolutely delightful.  The creamy marinara sauce they come served over is a perfect balance as opposed to some other sauces which in the past have ruined what could have been a great appetizer.

When I ordered my Shiner Bock Wild Rabbit IPA our server as expected proclaimed that it was her favorite,  I feel like I could have ordered a Budweiser and gotten the same response though.  The first of my beers was a 22 ounce the second only 16 ounces as I was fine with the smaller glass towards the end of the meal.  The only complaint I can think of was that each beer I was served was about a half inch from reaching the top of the glass.  Whether the bartender didn't know to siphon off the foam and fill it to the top or our server spilled some on the way to us I don't know.

As for our food, I ordered the Chicken Bellagio, Crispy Coated Chicken Breast over Basil Pasta and Parmesan Cream Sauce Topped with Prosciutto and Arugula Salad, and Laura went with the Four Cheese Pasta, Penne Pasta, Mozzarella, Ricotta, Romano and Parmesan Cheeses, Marinara Sauce and Fresh Basil. Both of our meals were perfect and served to us in a very timely fashion.  I was shocked with how much chicken and pasta came on my plate.  I actually left about a quarter of the chicken to be packaged to bring home and the next night had a full dinner left over.

Laura got much of her meal wrapped as well, which was a full dinner last night and still leaves enough for a ample lunch today if she so chooses.  So not only was the food delicious, but the portion sizes were well worth the "price of admission".  Any visit to The Cheesecake Factory can't be completed without enjoying a piece of their namesake.  So at the end of our meal I went with The Original Cheesecake and Laura got the White Chocolate Raspberry Truffle.  We both tried each others pieces and each of them were just as perfect as you would expect from a place whose sign proudly exclaims "Cheesecake"!

I forgot to mention the reason for our visit was yet another celebration, I have been training to start a very prestigious job which had me taking tests at the end of each week all month long.  If I hadn't passed any of the tests, I would be finding myself looking for a new job.  This Friday I completed my training, passed my test and am eagerly awaiting Monday to start taking my true responsibilities on.  I can't think of a better place than The Cheesecake Factory to have celebrated such a wonderful accomplishment.

The Cheesecake Factory

Macaroni Grill and Italian Restaurant

It's fun to draw on tables, as a matter of fact the best part of last nights dining experience was drawing with crayons on the table.  Besides that the food was just mediocre and the server seemed semi incompetent, mumbling words barely distinguishable from grunts.  The 20 minute wait before the meal made me feel as if we were in store for a fine dinning experience, but by the time the meal was over all I could think was that this supposedly "fancy" chain of restaurants fell short of expectations.

Laura didn't like her Eggplant Parmesan in the least bit, the slices were way too thick and they didn't even have the decency to skin the eggplant before breading it. Our Mac & Cheese bites were "okay" but most certainly didn't come close to Cheesecake Factories version.  Now that I look back somehow I forgot to write a review for the Cheesecake Factory a few weeks back!  What a shame I guess we'll have to go back again sometime soon.

It'll be quite a pleasure to experience true fine dining again as The Macaroni Grill is only exquisite to the masses who can normally sustain themselves on Big Macs and Subway.  They go out to a place like this to feel like they are eating an extravagant meal but in reality they are fooling themselves with just average food in an establishment that tries to decorate itself above it's actual abilities.

The Chicken Marsala I ordered was alright.  I've had better from a deli I used to work at and my cousin who cooked it for the family during Christmas one year.  If a hole in the wall deli in New York serves better Chicken Marsala than The Macaroni Grill then I really can't bring myself to give them a good review.  If I had walked in to a place I had never heard of before that I had no expectations for than I might have been more willing to say a few nice things, but in reality last's nights dinner left me with nothing but left overs.

Macaroni Grill

The Steeping Room Restaurant & Tea Lounge

When Laura and I arrived in Austin on July 23rd the first thing I did was apply to every job on Craigslist which I was qualified for.  That meant an odd gauntlet from restaurants to tech support and a few random jobs in between.  The first week alone I had to have had 10 interviews, I went in to Frank on Colorado Ave,  I interviewed for a cafeteria position at a private school, 34th St Cafe, a place called 1st Shred, Longhorn Village, and multiple others that just blended in to each other.

I was offered positions at Frank and 34th St Cafe on the same day.  I ended up taking 34th St, going in for one day of training and leaving due to the mismanagement and a gross kitchen environment, not to mention the fact that they offered me one pay rate during the interview then lowered the offer the day I came in to start.  I was confident that if I was offered two jobs in my first week of interviewing that it wouldn't be hard for me to garner further offers as long as I didn't limit my options by getting stuck in a job that wasn't right for me.

In early August I went in to an interview at The Steeping Room, a small tea house that offers lunch and snacks that pair well with their massive selection of teas.  They offered me a job which would start on August 8th, but that didn't stop me from scheduling multiple interviews for August 7th.  I am always looking to advance myself and gain not just any employment, but the best possible employment.  My interview on the 7th went great but they had a hiring process that went on for over a month so I went in to work on the 8th at The Steeping Room ready to learn.

What I learned there will never leave me, their selection of off the beaten track Asian influenced cuisine astonished me.  One of the options I was responsible for making at my station was the Napa Rolls which were rice wraps filled with chicken or tofu. napa, carrots, cilantro, basil, mint, and scallions with a splash of rice vinegar served with Sriracha and "home made" peanut sauce.  I had the opportunity to try one and it was absolutely an amazing change of pace from crispy deep fried spring rolls that most places serve, it is hand rolled and completely health conscience.

The sandwich that made me a true believer though was the Roast Beef Chili Lime... ::drool::
The first time I was honored to have it was after a shift during my orientation with one of the owners.  I spent almost a half hour savoring every bite as I filled out paper work and went over the rules and regulations. Natural roast beef, feta spread, arugula, sauteéd chili lime tomatoes and caramelized onions made this sandwich something I had never tried before at any of the dozens of deli's and restaurants I have found myself in over the years.

Each and every morning shift I worked I also had the pleasure of scarfing down their version of an egg sandwich in between tickets.  Which for $3.95 comes with scrambled eggs topped with white Vermont cheddar and a your choice of spicy or regular on wheat or white bread.  I always went with spicy and added bacon to it.  The bacon they serve has nearly no fat and is thick and wonderful to consume to the taste buds if not the arteries.

Finally in my last week of employment with them I went ahead and gave the Turkey BLT a try, twice!  Not your run of the mill BLT, the natural Turkey and basil mayo really add something to what has to be the most bland sandwich on the menu.  But by bland I definitely don't mean bad in any way.  With selections that tempt and stretch the taste buds in so many different directions this sandwich is the option for those who are normally afraid to try new things.  It is the foot in the door to moving on to a much more diverse and eclectic way of eating.

After working for The Steeping Room for 3 weeks I was offered the job at which I had interviewed on August 7th.  A job that I truly deserve and have dreamed about for many years, which also gets me out of the kitchen.  Sadly I have to pay for my lunches, but fortunately I can afford to now.  I am more than pleased with the time I spent at The Steeping Room, not only because of the food but because of the great people I got to meet and the lengthy review I was able to write today.  If you find yourself in The Domain any time soon, The Steeping Room is right next to a Starbucks and a few doors down from The Apple Store, definitely give it a try and let them know that Frank sent you.

P.F. Chang's China Bistro

Let me start by saying, the food at P.F. Chang's is very good.  However the Wikipedia page description hits it on the head when they claim it is "Asian-themed American casual dining".  The 204 locations around the U.S., Puerto Rico, Mexico and the Middle East are to Chinese food what Olive Garden is to Italian food.  That's not to say anything negative about the food, just that if you are looking for authentic Chinese food you're best bet is to find the small greasy hole in the walls ran by actual Chinese people.

The first thing that threw me off was that our waiter was Caucasian.  This should have been a good thing as in the past I have always commented on how the Asian people who have served me are hard to understand and have no interactions beyond taking your order and delivering it as a faithful servant.  This white kid who took our order the other night was like any other waiter you would find at any casual dining restaurant in America.  He did a great job, however his eyes were a bit too wide to make me feel like we would be getting authentic Chinese food.  

When he came to take our order he recommended going with the four course meal for two selection to save a few bucks.  We went with his recommendation and ended up ordering Egg Drop Soup along with Hot and Sour soup to start with, as well as Spring Rolls as an appetizer.  Everything was top notch to begin with but slightly off from what we are accustomed to.  The meals we went with were the Sweet and Sour Chicken, which is my meal of choice to judge a Chinese place before moving on to the other entrees on later dates.  Laura went with the Garlic Noodles.

I tried a little of everything and as I said at the very beginning it was very good.  However it was not the crispy, large chunks of chicken, served with a side of sauce and vegetables that any normal take out Chinese place would serve.  It was homogenized for service anywhere in the country.  I could tell that every single P.F. Chang's in America serves this exact style of Sweet and Sour Chicken in the same way you can order the exact same Cajun Pasta from any Applebee's in the country.

There was very little authentic feeling to the food we were served at P.F. Chang's.  Once again, that doesn't mean it was bad, just not exactly the Chinese food I was looking for when we searched for our first Asian dining experience in Austin.  When we got our dessert though there was no mistaking how delicious it was.  We each got a shot glass, mine was called "The Great Wall of Chocolate" and Laura's was the "Triple Chocolate Mousse".  Both were exactly what we expected.

There's no question that next time we're in the mood for a fine dining Chinese experience that P.F. Chang's will be the first place we think of, however we are still in search for our take-out Chinese place to order from on any given night of the week when we don't feel like cooking.  It took us four or five attempts with pizza before we finally found the place for us, so I am sure that out search for authentic Chinese food will also be just as pleasurable and fun.

P.F. Chang's

The Melting Pot A Fondue Restaurant

"Oh my God" were the only words I could think before, and after eating at The Melting Pot last night.  Seventy eight dollars to feed two people, and that doesn't even account for the multiple beers I would have to drink to forget about how much we would be spending.  However I sucked in my cheap skate ways and told Laura that we could celebrate another wonderful Saturday together by sharing my first experience at a fondue restaurant.  The basic tenants of which are that there is a stove top at every table, which they place a pot on top of to cook your food right in front of you.

When we were seated the hostess asked right away if we had been there before, to which we replied that Laura had been with her brother on a few occasions but it was my first time.  When our server came over he  had already been informed of my new comer status and was very helpful and patient in allowing us time to choose our courses.  When asked if we were there to celebrate a special occasion I replied, "Yes we're celebrating it being Saturday" as Laura went on to say "Yes, we are celebrating a bunch of things".

We take the opportunity to celebrate every day, however the "bunch of things" she referred to were me getting hired at a very prestigious computer company here in Austin, her being 9 weeks away from giving birth and the both of us being excited over what a great day we had wandering the Zilker Botanical Garden and Art on 5th Galleries earlier in the day.  So we deserved a delicious dinner to celebrate such wonderful happenings.

When I say delicious it hardly gives credit to just how amazing everything we ate last night was.  We were completely enthralled from our first course of Traditional Swiss Cheese Fondue which was a mixture of Gruyère and Emmenthaler Swiss cheeses together with white wine (which we 86ed for obvious reasons), garlic, nutmeg, lemon and Kirschwasser to the grand finale dessert The Flaming Turtle, which they consider Fondue Candy. It’s an irresistible combination of milk chocolate, caramel and candied pecans flambéed tableside.

As for the cheese platter it came with apples, mixed veggies, and three types of bread.  A costumer next to us must have also been new because when he was told about the apples and cheese he proclaimed "What the fuck?!  Apples and cheese that sounds delicious!"  Which had us cracking up.  As for the chocolate fondue it was served with strawberries, bananas, graham and Oreo covered marshmallows, cheese cake, pound cake and rice crispy treats!  It was a smorgasbord of wonderful foods plated in a majestic manner which you then dipped in cheese and later chocolate, how have I never been here before?!

In between we ordered a Ceasar and Spinash and Mushroom Salad which were a tad small in quantity but made up for it entirely with the quality.  As for out entrees I went with a meal called The French Quarters and Laura ordered a simple side of raviolis.  I had no idea that when you ordered meats they came to you raw!  It became my responsibility to cook the meats in a oil concoction placed on the stove top.  When my eight little pieces of chicken, four pieces of steak and four Andouille sausage slices came out to me the first thing I thought was "That's all?"

After eating only half of them I was completely full though.  The entire process of cooking each piece gave my stomach ample time to register the food it was eating and let me know that I had surely had enough.  Even though when a steak or chicken breast is served to me normally I can eat twice as much, it has more to do with the speed at which I scarf it down that allows me to stomach so much food.  We also had a nice side of vegetables with our meal which we let sit in the pot and cook slowly throughout the meal.  Of course like I mentioned earlier I had to have at least two Fat Tire Amber Ale's with my meal and even with that all accounted for the check ended up being $85.

We spent an hour and a half slowly enjoying our meal and being thoroughly entertained by the entire process.  At any other restaurant I feel the urgency of the server to get us fed  and gone in order to move on to the next table of tippers.  However here our server was never in any rush to move us to the next course and we were given the full opportunity to enjoy our meal and our time together.  The $100 bill I slipped in to the check holder was well worth it considering the fact that I am hardly hungry 14 hours later as I write this review.  Well fed, completely satisfied and able to proclaim that I have been to a fondue restaurant in my life time!

The Melting Pot