When Mrs. K and I first tried The Cheesecake Factory’s Happy Hour (HH) last November, we became aware that the restaurant had the largest HH selection we had seen by far.
Their HH menu, available here: menu.thecheesecakefactory.com/in/indianapolis-37/happy-hour, has 13 Appetizers, all priced at $10.95 and 15 “Small Plates and Snacks” at $9.95. That’s an unusually large selection for Happy Hour. So when we were deciding on which HH to cover last week, we remembered the large number of untested dishes at the Factory.
Conveniently located in the Fashion Mall at Keystone on 86th Street, parking is never a problem. In fact, since it was a rainy night, we used the covered parking at the eastern end of the mall. In the restaurant, the hostess directed us to the bar area and we were soon greeted by April, our server for the evening. Drink orders came first, as usual – Mrs. K asked for her house Chardonnay (6.5 ounces for $8.50) and I went with a bottle of Coors Light ($3.95).
We had looked at the HH menu online before we left home so we had a pretty good idea of what we wanted, but when we asked April what she liked best, she told us the Sweet Corn Tamale Cakes ($10.95) were her favorite so we ordered those along with the Chicken Taquitos ($9.95). We had no idea what either of these dishes were, but the descriptions sounded interesting.
Sweet Corn Tamale Cakes: Topped with Sour Cream, Salsa, Cilantro, Avocado and Salsa Verde
Chicken Taquitos: Crispy Corn Tortillas Filled with Grilled Chicken, Green Chile, Corn, Onion, Cilantro and Cheese. Served with Avocado Cream and Salsa Verde
Sounds good, no?
While we waited, we enjoyed a piece or two of the warm pumpernickel loaf that April brought by with a plate of soft butter. It really wasn’t as crowded as last time we had been there. The bar/lounge at Cheesecake Factory is not large, but it can accommodate a lot of people with small booths along three walls, eight or so tables inside that radius, and a long bar that seats about 12.
Chicken Taquitos and Sweet Corn Tamale Cakes. (Photo by Ken Klingenmeier)
Our food came out and it was a terrific surprise. The Tamale Cakes looked great, lined up on a banana leaf, stacked with tomatoes and sour cream. They were our first choices to sample and we both thought that they were very different from anything we knew. They had a great mix of flavors with a slight snappy kick from the salsa verde, all piled on top of corn bread tamales. So flavorful – April was right to suggest them.
The Taquitos were crunchy bundles filled with chicken pieces, corn, onions, and cheese. A bed of creamy avocado and salsa added heat and tang. They were small in size – finger-food tidbits – and easy to eat.
We really enjoyed trying new foods we weren’t familiar with. We often go with what we know, but this time we took a little chance and were definitely rewarded. Great food at a great price – our tab came to just under $40 plus tip. We’ll have to come back sometime; there are so many other tempting things to try at The Cheesecake Factory!
Ken Klingenmeier offers this series of columns, called “A Seat at the Table,” wherein he reviews Indy-area restaurants – specifically their Happy Hour offers. Keep reading The Reporter for future restaurant reviews.