Zagat Survey Discussions

Hi folks,

Just want to warn you of our bad experience at Cheesecake factory in Burlington. Do not go there as the folks running the place are extremely rude!

We were a party of 17. We reached the restaurant at 5:15ish in the evening when we were told that there is a 2 1/2 to possibly 3 hour wait. We were asked to come to get the buzzer later. At around 8:30 pm which is over the 3 hour limit we asked the status of the table and were told that we had to wait 15 more minutes. At about 8:50 pm we asked again and were told that we would still have to wait 10-15mins to get the table. This is ####! We had waited over 3 hours to get a damn table. When we asked to speak with the manager. The assistant manager came to us and was extremely rude. His name is Jason Spieler.. he basically told us to f*** off and that we were just 5 minutes over the 3 hours so we should wait and not complain about it? That guy as so rude that he did not even wait for us to respond. He just walked off. We left! We had 3 small toddlers in our group and could not wait any longer plus we did not want to be humiliated by some lowlife assistant manager at a chain restaurant.

This is certainly not the way you run a restaurant. First of all they do not allow reservations which is the most stupid thing ever. Second when they give you a time they do not stick to it and when you complain to them about it they are hostile, arrogant and extremely rude.

Folks, Cheesecake factory has become too popular for their own good. It is people like us who go there that makes them popular. The management there seems to have forgotten this and they have gotten extremely cocky and arrogant. I believe its time to boycott this chain restaurant. There are many other restaurants in the area that want our business. We should consider going there instead.

Sorry, but what ARE you thinking? You choose, arguably, the busiest chain restaurant in existence, where you wait an hour for a table for 4...and you stroll in there with SEVENTEEN!?
Think about the logistics of a group of 17...for one long table you need 7 four seat tables, does cheesecake even have an 8 person round table? if so you need two of them adjacent. they probably have ONE area of that cheesecake factory that can accommodate a group that large.
So cheesecake has to start tying up tables as they free up, to save them for the party of 17...that just aint gonna happen. Something tells me if you called the day before and told them you were coming with 17 they would have been able to accomodate you at 5:15, or told you no thanks.
But frankly, if cheesecake is the extent of your imagination...you say you know of many other restaurants that want your business, surely one of them takes reservations. 17...sheesh.

I agree a party of 17 with toddlers in tow would be problematic to seat without a reservation; there are plenty of other decent restaurants in Burlington that probably would have been more accommodating.

But I had to laugh at the timing of this complaint. I had lunch at a Cheesecake Factory in one of the area malls (I know, I know, but I was Christmas shopping! There was nowhere else to go!) Anyway, I requested a sandwich without cheese or mayo - of course it came dripping with both. So I just quietly asked them to redo it, no big deal; I was in no hurry.

Next thing I knew, the manager came over to my table, pulled up a chair, plopped himself down, leaned forward, and said in a tone of deathly seriousness, "Tell me what's going on with your sandwich." I almost died laughing, first because it was just sooo inappropriate for him to plunk down at my table, second, because was so worked up about the whole thing. Then he evidently decided to punish my server for the error, because a new waitperson marched over and announced that *she* would be taking care of me now.

Good grief! It was only a sandwich! 

sheese cake factories are good for people watching and typical chain restaurant food . best place to sit is in the bar. don't get too excited about the large salads, as they are almost all lettuce. good martinis, though.

Totally agree with TS6745.
Seventeen, c'mon.

The error was that Cheesecake Factory even entered into a conversation with you. They absolutely should have said, "I am so sorry, but we are not going to be able to help you this evening."

I have to be honest, I have had nothing but positive experiences at all the Cheesecake Factory's that I have visited. From Mass to Florida to Cali, the food has been awesome and the service just fine.

Are they busy? Yes, they are
Can it become frustrating? It sure can

But that is the price of eating at a very popular place

As far as the reservations? I agree with you...they should take them...it would make things a heck of alot easier.

Just my thoughts

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Lucky to be where I am

I agree with EdwardM1290 - I too have had nothing but good experinces. I also enjoy their food. It's great for sharing. Good cocktails. Great for after work - especially with their bar menu.

Ohhhhh wow... I was randomly reading through reviews of CF online and came across this review, and the manager's name is VERY familiar to me. I briefly worked as a hostess at the CF near me in Freehold, NJ, and Jason Speiler was my manager. I was literally cracking up when I read this because I could totally see him doing this!

I see that the location you visited was in Massachusetts; the CF near me opened pretty recently, around the holidays, and I started working there not long after in March/April. It could just be a crazy coincidence, but maybe he was transferred to our location, and either way he was definitely not a good manager and a total jerk!

I only lasted maybe a month before I was fired. Yeah, I made some mistakes but I never could have been considered an "awful" or even a "pretty bad" employee. Whenever I messed up, I always made sure to cover my tracks as best as I could and always apologized and acted respectfully, but no matter how well I tried, Jason always had a patronizing air about him. Once, I had a family wedding to go to on a Saturday but was scheduled to work...I called Jason the Monday before requesting off, and he bitched and moaned and carried on about how unacceptable that was. My friends at other restaurants were like, "Um, that shouldn't be a problem." I would come in for follow-up interviews and he wouldn't be there, he could barely carry out a basic interview and asked the most menial questions, etc. etc. He seemed to not really know what he was doing, but was so cocky and stuck-up- perhaps a cover-up for inexperience? When I was fired, I was actually relieved and practically ran out of the building. 

I'm a young female college student... that doesn't give you the right to treat me like trash on the bottom of your shoe. Yeah, I'm a student and a hostess and you're the manager, but I'm actually going to be making something out of my life in a few years, but you'll still be the manager of a sub-par chain restaurant. Go you!

I work at another restaurant now, a friendly, low-key one where the management treats me like a family member. One of my good friends works at a restaurant close by and said that a bunch of her coworkers quit and went to the CF when it opened, and none of them stuck around longer than 2 months, even though they were making really good money. Something tells me they got sick of the management, too.

So, as a consumer, it's interesting to see how *** managers affect you, too. Has anyone also noticed the gross amounts of schmoozing they make the staff do? I was given two HUGE books when I got hired about the "CF Experience"; I was like, *** this, I have papers to write! I'm only a freaking hostess. I was also chastised like a kid for not sucking up to the customers enough; if I was talking to them like normal or simply sitting them at their table and not kissing their ass and making b.s. small talk, I was considered to be "ruining" their experience.

Just as you're advising people to boycott eating there, I advise people to not apply to work there. Granted, Jason Speiler probably won't be your manager, but even so, you're treated more as a space-filler than an actual person and they push this "Cheesecake Factory Experience" schmoozy-corporate puke down your throat constantly, as if working for that crappy place is the end-all-and-be-all of your life. Stay away, my friends!

Agh sorry this is so long- this is just TOO FUNNY!

Oh, and one more thing... haha I can't believe the manager did that about the sandwich! Well, I guess I can, since I worked there... in training I was taught to basically bend over backwards for people. I understand that, as a hostess, I'm in the SERVICE industry and that's its my job to accomodate customers, but there's a difference between treating people with respect and competence and simply being a peon. I've found that people just want their stuff done right, and as long as it is, or if it's fixed easily if it isn't, they don't really care. Pulling out chairs for perfectly capable adults, chirping on and on about the weather and the menu as you bring people to their table, and doing things like the "sandwich bit" (all things CF trains people to do) actually turn people off and make them feel awkward more than anything else. I feel for your poor waitress, since I've been there; I just picture a poor girl being like whipped in the backroom or being fired or something.

I think I'm so talkative about it because I'm so happy to have escaped from the corporate world, and that I won't have to be doing this work once I get my CSW :)

Clearly you think very highly of yourself, too good to read a Restaurant Service Guide. Do you know why they have them? To keep service the same at each location. Otherwise people like you would decide what kind of service or what to say to customers, if I was your manager I would not care if you had a paper to write or if you were "making something of your life" customers don't care, management doen't care and I don't care. I agree that your manager sucked though, but come on you applied for that job. By the way starbucks, subway, the ups store, etc. all have lengthy service manuals and they are a pain, but it to keep service on target and customers happy.

absolutly right !!! by far the worst company i have worked for. the money is good/not great but not worth the hell the managment puts you thru. If dealing with the general public was not enough, the managment team is constantly tellin you how bad of a job your doing. never once was positive reinforcment implemented. the cockyness and arrognece portrayed by the managment team is absurd. your a resturant manager not a celebrity. I would strongly recomend not working for the company. through out my time with the company everyday yuo are told why u need them and they dont need you. they are always threatening your job at every step in the day. If you still are interested in working for the company make sure you are atleast a c-cup and a pretty face,bc thats is all that will get you some recognition. the managment staff is pathetic with the attention they give there female employess. the only reason why it isnt filed as harrasment is because they are given special treatment and free food. they run around like little puppies hoping for a treat in return for there free food. free food doesnt get u ass- so give it up.. its a job- not a life.they need to learn to seperate the two.. the food is great the resturant is nice but the managment sucks. nice place to eat, horrible place to work.

Connor,

I notice a trend in restaurants like CF, where management forgets the KISS principle. In its attempt to standardize service, employees are required to have scripted interactions with customers. Such interactions are annoying and detract from the dining experience because the employee sound more like an insincere telemarketer. Management should better vet employee candidates and take advantage of the employee's natural sincerity.

Actually, I was able to find out about the "inside scoop" of The Cheesecake Factory because my daughter worked at one of their Maryland locations for a month as a server and she said it was the worst nightmare ever! The things they make their servers do are rediculous! One morning she walked into work and they made her go home because her apron wasn't ironed enough to their standards! Also, they decided to have a $1.50 cheesecake day and didn't even bother to recruit more help or plan to organize the staff properly and all hell broke out. People were standing in line for over 5 hours just to get a pager! Then, when you got the pager you had to stand in another line to get seated and that was another 2 our wait! They were running out of cheesecakes and turning people away. The weird part about it was that the people would show up and stand in these lines just for a piece of cheesecake!!! My daughter was harrassed by the customers, screamed at be the other servers, threatened by one of the bus-boys for overloading his bucket with plates and when she approached the manager about all of this he just told her too bad, deal with it. Personally, I don't know what all the hype is about this restaurant because it isn't really that good. Their cheesecakes are good but for that matter I can make my own just as good too! Needless to say, my daughter walked out and never came back. 

Sweetie I know, my daughter worked at a Maryland CF location for about a month and the things she told me that they expect their servers to do and say is insane! They are so hard on them there and punish them for stupid things. My daughter showed up one morning, early, on a particularly busy day and they sent her home because her apron wasn't ironed to their liking!! Whatever. She quit too and is now happy somewhere else.

In Sept. 08 I had a fish taco at the CF in Natick, MA. I got a mild case of food poisoning, stomach upset, etc. Not serious, but the manager did not charge me for my meal. He did say the fish from their buyer is always fresh. However, I wonder about the way they handle food or the veracity of the fish monger. I have eaten many times at the Chestnut Hill CF and the food was always fine.