A bitter Cheesecake

Let's review:

A party of eight, including one very pregnant woman and one hungry
(and likely very bored) five year old, all willingly waiting 2 1/2
hours for a table and another 45 minutes for food? Are there no other
restaurants where you live?

I realize common sense is rare these days, but has it completely
vanished from the community of Virginia Beach? I'm utterly fascinated
by whatever group dynamics are in play in a situation where seven
adults would willingly wait two and a half hours for the Cheesecake
Factory's food, which is mediocre under the best circumstances.

As to whether or not the staff was rude, I have to be skeptical. I've
noticed that the current trend in customer service complaint letters
is that "rude" actually means "I didn't get what I wanted how/when I
wanted it" and rarely means actual poor treatment.

A party of 8 waiting 45 minutes for food? Nonsense!
I thought chefs had magical powers where the food arrives in 15
minutes flat.

Wow. I would have never waited that long to be seated...I would have
left after an hour, IF that.

Rather radical idea here.

The main reason to go to the CHeesecake Factory is the Cheesecake.

Go have dinner somewhere near and get the cheesecake on way home.

That's what we do when the Cheesecake Factory is crowded. Ours though
is in a huge mall so there's plenty of other place to go chow.

The one by us is supposedly going to open a cheesecake bar sort of
across the way from the main restaurant for people who just want to
have cheesecake. THIS IS A GREAT IDEA IMHO.

Funny story. When I saw the signs start going up for the Cheesecake
Factory I thought it was going to be a naughty club so to speak.

by the way...sorry if i make any typographical errors....for some
reason when i changed my font in notepad (i switched it to japanese to
see what it would look like) it altered my font on here as well...so i
cant really see what i have typed til after i posted it

why the hell would u wait that long? i would have just left and went
to a different resteraunt...

So, because you're preggers you have more right to be seated than I
do?? I don't think so...You are crazy to keep a 5 year old waiting 3
hours for food. I'm sure your little precious was wreaking havoc on
the rest of the customers in the meantime....You should have left.

Why, oh why, would you arrive at 6:15 and stay over two hours waiting
to be seated? Especially whilst pregnant and with a 5 year old no
less. I'll be darned if I have my toddler wait nearly half as long as
you did to eat. You should have hauled ass.

Personally, I would never wait an hour for a table. I would walk out
and go somewhere else. I also wouldn't show up with a large party
without calling ahead. Nor would I take out-of-town guests to a chain
restaurant like Cheesecake Factory. You're better off taking your
guests to a mom 'n' pop restaurant or a local chain they don't have in
their area.

You don't say how crowded the restaurant was. Perhaps the table they
wanted to give you was being occupied by selfish customers who refused
to leave.

This happened to me at a restaurant. I was with a large group. We
hadn't called ahead and the folks at the large table they wanted to
give us sat around drinking coffee and gabbing for an hour after they
had paid the check. We ended up leaving and going elsewhere; we knew
it wasn't the restaurant's fault and let them know we didn't blame
them when we politely asked the hostess to take us off the waiting
list. When we came back another time, they remembered how
understanding we were and gave us excellent service. We still go there
often.

In any case, it really was YOUR choice to wait it out that long. That
wasn't a wise choice given how hungry you were and given that you had
a young child with you.

You also don't actually state what the hostess and/or manager said
which was rude besides "no" to your request to jump the line. And, as
anyone who has been on PFB for more than an hour knows, "no" does not
equal "rude." If they truly were rude, why didn't you leave? I
wouldn't eat somewhere where I wasn't wanted.

As far as the slow service goes, that was probably a hint that they
don't want your business. Perhaps they had a bad attitude or perhaps
you had one. I don't know, since I wasn't there. However, if I were
you, I'd take the hint and not return. Seriously.

Just my 2 cents.

I hate to say it, but any time you have more than 4 people eating
together, it's a good idea to call ahead and give the restaurant a
heads up. If not for the logistical issue of SEATING everyone
together alone, then just out of courtesy. You wouldn't show up at a
relatives house unannounced with 7 other people in tow and expect them
to drop everything for you, so why should a restaurant be any
different?

Personally, you should be thankful they served you at all, even if it
was later than you'd hoped for - some restaurants will not accomodate
you with that many in your party if you don't give them enough
notice.

& I don't know how the whole child/family discussion took off, but
using your pregnancy and your small child as a pawn to try and get
sympathy/better service is wrong.

*NEWSFLASH, HEATHER*

THE WORLD DOES NOT REVOLVE AROUND YOU!

The restaurant was busy & there were people there before you! They
cannot just push everyone else aside for you!

Grow up & get over yourself.

Did you ever stop to think that there could have been others in line
who deserved to be seated before you and yours? Like diabetics who
need to eat at certain times or people with arthritis who can't stand
for long periods of time or people in a hurry to catch a plane?

Did they whine like you to be put in front of everyone else?
Nooooooo!!!! But YOU are pregnant, YOU have a kid, YOU have out of
town guests. Of all the selfish posters I have seen on this board you
take the cake; make that cheesecake.

Please don't return to the Cheesecake Factory. The rest of us
including the poor hostess will breathe a sigh of relief knowing
you're not there throwing fits. Come back when you've grown up.

I can't really say anything else that everyone else already hasn't. If
you had a hungry 5 year old, why would you wait 2 1/2 hours? And you
said you made numerous attempts to find out what was taking so long;
what were you told? I think after about an hour, I would have given up
and chose another restaurant.

I can understand choosing not to have children. It sure would make
life a lot less complicated. Obviously, not everyone is meant to have
children. As a matter of fact, it's probably a blessing that some do
not. But I don't understand being against others having children. Do
you also wish your parents never had chidren? Do you wish a child
never entered the world again? Should we just stick with the people
already here, and when it ends, it ends?

I have never burdened anyone with my children or expected special
treatment, so I really don't appreciate some of the comments. All I
ask is that you not be so quick to judge everyone by a few poor
examples, and that you have the same respect for parents as you expect
for yourself.

Also, the use of questionable language doesn't make your points any
more valid.

I can understand choosing not to have children. It sure would make
life a lot less complicated. Obviously, not everyone is meant to have
children. As a matter of fact, it's probably a blessing that some do
not. But I don't understand being against others having children. Do
you also wish your parents never had chidren? Do you wish a child
never entered the world again? Should we just stick with the people
already here, and when it ends, it ends?

I have never burdened anyone with my children or expected special
treatment, so I really don't appreciate some of the comments. All I
ask is that you not be so quick to judge everyone by a few poor
examples, and that you have the same respect for parents as you expect
for yourself.

Also, the use of questionable language doesn't make your points any
more valid.

My 2 worth. Determine how long you are willing to wait and if they
can't seat you in that time frame leave. No place is worth waiting
that long for.

Mind YOU, it's obvious you are trying to use the fact that you are
pregnant in order to get special treatment and be seated before all
the other people who were waiting and just as hungry as your "hungry 5
year old." Why should the restaurant do anything special to
"accomadate" YOU? Your complaints make no sense. What does the fact
that it was Tuesday have to do with anything? And as others have
mentioned, why on earth did you wait so long instead of just going
somewhere else? You made your child wait THREE HOURS to eat, and at an
hour when he/she should be home in bed. That's on YOU, not the
restaurant.

Being knocked up and/or having a child in tow is NOT a disability, and
it's definitely NOT special. Get over yourself. And while you're at
it, you might want to look up the meaning of "retribution" in the
dictionary. LOL!

So let me get this straight. Because you arrived with a large party
at the height of the dinner rush, you expected special treatment
because you're pregnant? Do you honestly think you're the only
pregnant one there? It's the Cheesecake Factory, for crying out loud!
There's always a long wait. Suck it up or go somewhere else.

You went at a traditionally busy time, to a place that's known to be
busy at all hours. In addition, this is a place that's known for its
DESSERTS. When people decide to order dessert, the whole meal takes
longer.

It takes the kitchen(or here, the cheesecake counter) more time to get
the dessert ready than to just slap the check on the table. Customers
tend to linger, maybe because they're sharing or maybe because they've
spent 6 bucks for a piece of cheesecake and they're going to eat every
last bite, no matter how full they were after the main course.

I've only been to Cheesecake Factory once. All of the tables in my
section of the restaurant were booths or two-seater tables. There was
no way in that part of that particular Cheesecake Factory a table of 8
could have been accommodated, unless the waitress rushed a couple of
two-tops so that a few could be pushed together. Then we'd be reading
3 or 4 letters about how the rude waitress rushed a romantic dinner
out or a special meal with Great-Great Grandpa.

Why on earth would you wait 2.5 hours just to eat at the Cheesecake
Factory?

Ha I love the title!

You cant go someplace with 8 people sans reservation and expect to be
seated quickly. I dont belive that the hostess was rude to you I
believe that you felt the wait was too long and so you became a PITA
rather then just being patient or going someplace else. You admit that
you asked numerous times what the hold up was and i believe you got an
answer you didnt like and so now she's "rude".

Go to www.kraft.com for a cheesecake recipe LOL

Next time, try someplace that has a shorter seating time (or that
takes reservations), and serve Cheesecake Factory cheesecake at your
house, with coffee, for a less expensive dessert. (Costco and Sam's
carry it.... just don't try to use an expired coupon.)
I wouldn't be so short, but waiting 2.5 hours to be seated is a
choice. And if you're waiting 2.5 hours, you might not be surprised
that the food isn't waiting for you at the table.

Retribution means "revenge". I think the work you were looking for is
"restitution".

As others have said, you chose to subject your pregnant self and your
hungry child to the wait instead of going elsewhere.

No pity here. Its a well-known fact that The Cheesecake Factory stays
busy. Even if you go during off hours, I am told that you have a
wait. You went during the dinner hour, so it make sense that you had
to wait even longer. The hostess should have been polite to you at
all times although from your tone, I suspect you were less than polite
to her. Your pregnancy is irrelevant. I have a 5 year old. I would
never sit and wait a long time for a table, forcing him to go hungry.
There are too many other restaurants out there. Again, I stress, I
have a 5 year old almost 6 year old. So, I've been pregnant. I HATE
when I see and read pregnant women try to use their pregnancy as an
excuse for some special treatment.

Not to foget Subway and Ryans. Honestly, you could`ve left no sane
parent would`ve waited that long with a 5 year old in tow. GIMME A
BREAK

You claim that the hostess was rude to you - - my question is what was
your attitude towards her? You state that you made "numerous
attempts" to find out what was taking so long and asked to speak to
the manager about your wait time. When are people going to learn that
not getting your way doesn't equal rude, that your attitude has an
affect on others. Furthermore, going over an employee's head to their
manager often times has a negative affect on the desired outcome.

As others have stated, the fact you are pregnant and had a five year
old with you is meaningless in this situation.

It was your choice to wait 2-1/2 hours to be seated and I don't
believe that you are entitled to any "sort of retribution" for the way
you were treated.

That is not a surprise at the Cheesecake Factory. I have only dined
there with my husband (party of 2), and even then we have had to wait
over an hour to be seated. It doesn't surpise me that a party of 8 had
to wait 2.5 hours.
If you were getting antsy, you should have just left. And you really
need to leave the part about being pregnant out of your letter. Just
because you are pregnant doesn't mean you don't have to wait.

You need a backbone! You waited 2.5 hours to be seated? If the
hostess couldn't give you an estimated amount of time as far as the
wait, your party of eight should have left. You probably could have
gotten seated and eaten sooner if you'd left and gone to another
restaurant.

I'm not justifying this reataurant's behavior -- 2.5 hours hours is
RIDICULOUS. But you waited

And the cynical side of me finds it VERY difficult that eight people
(seven adults) were willing to wait that long to be seated. Weren't
your out-of-town guests hungry? That makes you a rude host.

"Mind you I am 8 months pregnant, had a hungry 5 year old and we had
out of town guests with us as well. "

And you STAYED and waited TWO AND A HALF HOURS to be seated?

Yeah, right.

Even for an obvious gimme grab, that's pushing it a bit.