Why is it liked so much?
I have to tell you that my opinion of the Cheesecake Factory differs from that of my wife. I found the menu prices that of a more upscale restaurant, but the service very lacking.
The food I ate was good, but even with the variety of items on the menu, I found the choices lacking. I saw they had fish tacos and chicken tacos, but no beef tacos! While I ate everything put on my plate after ordering chicken tacos, I was still disappointed, because I really wanted beef.
I am a meat and potatoes type of guy so I really looked at their steak menu. I looked at the price of their filet mignon and it was somewhere around $27.00. OK, a good steak at a nice restaurant can cost some money, but that price did not include a salad with it, and there was no choice of a baked potato on the menu(only fries).
I love their cheesecake, and think this restaurant is a good place to go for desert though the service could be more prompt, and attentive. Don't you hate having to flag down a waitress to refill your drinks?
My wife (and many others) love this place so I will probably go back when I am not the one choosing. I hope by the time I go back though, baked potatoes become a choice on the steak menu. On the other hand, maybe I should just have desert.