A Politically Incorrect Blog About Living in Woodland Hills, California

Dinner At The Cheesecake Factory With Peppermint Bark Cheesecake For Dessert :) Yay

I had the opportunity tonight to hit up The Cheesecake Factory in Warner Center with a good friend for dinner and as always it was a pleasure!  I actually branched out and tried a few things that I haven’t had before, so I figured I’d post some pictures and comments here on the blog.

The Fresh Vegetable Salad (Asparagus, Green Beans, Tomato, Cucumber, Roasted Beets, Apple, Edamame, Radicchio, Romaine and White Cheddar with Pomegranate Vinaigrette. Available with Chicken)  We decided to go with a healthy appetizer, and at first I was a little skeptical that the Fresh Vegetable Salad would be a little too healthy or boring.  But, my worries were unfounded because this salad actually presents quite a few great flavors in a pretty unique combination.  You never know what you’re going to get in any given bite.  I was particularly fond of the apple, edamame, the very fresh and sweet tomatoes, and the roasted beats were quite a hit with my friend.  A very smart and healthy choice!

Shepherd’s Pie (Ground Beef, Mushrooms, Carrots, Peas, Zucchini and Onions in a Delicious Sauce Covered with a Mashed Potato-Parmesan Cheese Crust) In a surprising move, my friend was in the mood for the delicious and decadent classic – Shepherd’s Pie.  In a health conscious move, she elected to forego the cheese crust.  Personally, I would have gone for broke and gotten the cheese crust, after all she wasn’t driving.  Sorry, only die hard fans of Home Alone 2 will get that reference.  Honestly, this dish was awesome.  The meat and sauce in the Shepherd’s Pie has an amazing, and almost spicy, zing to it.  I was definitely impressed.

Jamaican Black Pepper Shrimp (Sautéed Shrimp with a Very Spicy Jamaican Black Pepper Sauce. Served with Rice, Black Beans, Plantains and Cool Mango Salsa. Available with Chicken or Chicken and Shrimp) I’ve always had great luck with shrimp dishes at The Cheesecake Factory.  In fact, one of my favorite items there is the Bang – Bang Chicken and Shrimp.  In an effort to be adventurous and try new dishes, I opted tonight for the Jamaican Black Pepper Shrimp.  This, my friends, is an awesome dish!  First, the sauce that the shrimp are bathed in his flavorful and spicy, just the way I like it.  And plantains, well, I never met a plantain I didn’t like.  As you can see the shrimp are plentiful, and the mango salsa is a nice sweet complement to the spiciness of the dish and is great when mixed into bites of shrimp and rice.  Good stuff!

Peppermint Bark Cheesecake – Seasonal (White chocolate cheesecake swirled with chunks of chocolate peppermint bark and topped with white chocolate mousse and finished with chopped peppermint)  Seasonal cheesecakes at The Cheesecake Factory are something  that I look forward to during the holiday season every year.  Particularly the Pumpkin Cheesecake and the Pumpkin Pecan Cheesecake.  I love them both, although I haven’t had a chance to have the Pumpkin Pecan slice this year, I will certainly do so before it’s gone.  Recently, I also had the special edition Stefanie’s Ultimate Red Velvet Cheesecake, and it was awesome.  Now, I can admit that Stefanie’s cheesecake is very, very sweet.  Probably the richest, sweetest piece of cheesecake you I or anyone will ever eat.

Now, the Peppermint Bark Cheesecake is definitely rich, but this slice is not quite as sweet as Stefanie’s, so I can see it definitely being more appealing to those trying to avoid a sugar overdose.   That being said, I love the texture and flavor of the white chocolate cheesecake in this slice.  The chunks of chopped peppermint are actually a really neat and creative touch for this cheesecake – it’s like eating a slice of cheesecake covered in crushed candy canes.  Now, nothing ushers in the holidays quite like that!

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Corner Bakery Cafe Has Free Wi-Fi And Pretty Good Salads

The Corner Bakery Cafe is a pretty convenient place to get a quick meal, and I’ve been taking full advantage of their free Wi-Fi as of late.  I recently had a great Grilled Ham and Swiss on Sourdough Panini (Thinly sliced smoked ham with melted Swiss cheese, plum tomatoes, and Dijon mustard-mayo) – sorry, forgot to get a picture on that one – and on another occasion got take-out of the Chopped Salad (Romaine lettuce, shredded Parmesan and Romano cheeses, and spicy croutons with Caesar dressing) – both were excellent.  The Chopped Salad was very Cobb Salad like, which of course is one of my all time favorite salads. (See my review of the Cobb Salad at JFD for more on that.)

At peak hours it can be a very busy place, but they have overflow seating at Maggiano’s and a pretty sizeable patio area.  I’m a pretty big fan of the place, and it’s good if you want good food that is both fast and affordable.  They also have a pretty good (and very inexpensive) breakfast menu, which I’ve hit up numerous times.  I’ll try to get a few more pictures of their cuisine up soon.

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