My favorite meal

In honor of my roommate's sister coming into town, my friends and I went to the mall which happens to be attached to a Cheesecake Factory. Okay, so that last detail may have been a major factor in going but we did shop a little too! I love what I ate so much last night that I've realized it's my favorite meal. Yes, my favorite meal is at the Cheesecake factory. Yes, i'm aware of how lame it is my favorite meal is from a chain restaurant. Please try not to drool as you look at these pictures, although if you do, I won't judge.

At first there was bread...and then there was love.

If you've never had the Whole Wheat Baguette at CF, you must find the closest one and eat baskets full till your heart's content. I promise you this is the BEST table bread you'll ever get at a restaurant or perhaps I just love carbs too much. The salty-ness of the butter combined with the sweet, soft, warmth of the bread is just divine. I truly think it's my favorite part of the meal. That must be some damn good bread for someone to say that, right? I did some digging and found their bread supplier! It' a Chicago based company called Maple Leaf Bakery. You can buy the bread direct from the supplier here. Why would you buy a whole case and have 36 loaves? Why wouldn't you.

On to drinks! The Passion Fruit Mojito!

This mojito is absolutely the best drink i've ever had. Ever. I've had it at multiple locations and worried it would taste differently each time since it's made by a different bartender every time but it's consistently delicious. A server once told me it's because they use high quality passion fruit syrup made with real fruit and not "natural flavors." Whatever their secret it, it's delicious!

Louisiana Chicken Pasta, so good i've never tried anything else.

This was the first dish i'd had at CF and it continues to be the only dish I eat there. The chicken on top is parmesan crusted chicken breast medallions (thinly pounded chicken breasts so they are more tender and absorb flavor better). I've since become a vegetarian so I omit the chicken and the dish is still just as amazing. It's too bad CF doesn't have tofu as a substitute for vegetarians! The bow tie pasta is tossed with peppers, onions, and mushrooms in a "Spicy New Orleans sauce." It's creamy and spicy and all around perfect.

Chocolate Tower Truffle Cake, WOman's best friend.

I am a dessert connoisseur in every sense of the word. Not only do I know too much about flavors, textures, and where to go for your afternoon chocolate fix, I am (according to Wikipedia's definition of a "connoisseur) "an "expert judge in matters of taste." I have dessert in practically every restaurant I dine at and have concocted my own creations at home. This cake pales in comparison to any morsel of chocolate i've ever tasted (except of course Magnolia Bakery in New York which now comes up automatically when I type "M" in my browser because I stare at the pictures so often, but that's a whole other post in itself.)

This cake has a chocolate chunk wall, layers and layers of moist fudge cake, light and airy chocolate truffle cream, chocolate mousse, all topped off with CF's homemade whip cream. I try not to eat the whip cream in my feeble attempt to save calories but lord, is this cake worth it. I could write about it forever but i'd rather you taste it for yourself so you can write to me and tell me I was right and that you can now die happy. Because this cake is that good.

Well it's almost noon and you know what the best part about CF is? The portions are large enough for left overs. What better thing to do after writing this post than to have this very meal for lunch? Tell me, what is your favorite meal?