Why are celebrities so obsessed with the goddamn Cheesecake Factory?

By Isha Aran  |  July 19, 2016 | 9:27pm
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It’s almost been three months since Drake dropped Views from the Six, which gave us “One Dance” and the stunning revelation that Drake loves the restaurant chain Cheesecake Factory. No, like, really loves it. The Squire of the Six has been spotted there at least 10 times, and was seen at one of the chain’s Houston locations five days ago. He may have been filming the “Child’s Play” music video, but he was definitely enjoying every bite. And he’s not the only one.

Yesterday, in an interview with E!, Meghan Trainor—the pop star who is so white that she feels totally comfortable joking about being “Trini to the bone,” and then explaining that that means that she has Trinidadian blood, and then further explaining that she doesn’t have any Trinidadian blood, which is why it’s so funny that she, a white person, made that joke—talked about a recent Cheesecake Factory experience of her own:

“Last night, I went to Cheesecake Factory and my security guard [said], ‘Do you want me to come with you?’ and I was like, ‘No, dude. It’s Cheesecake! I will be fine,'” she told us. “I got in there and I got swamped. Ah, maybe I should have had [security] come with me!”

Seriously, Cheesecake Factory? This again? While I’m 100% blaming Drake for Meghan Trainor’s Cheesecake Factory shoutout (because I’m slightly unreasonable), the place is a mainstay for all celebrities—just a few weeks before Views dropped, even the Kardashians showed up en masse at a Cheesecake Factory. Let’s take a stroll down memory lane, shall we?

In March 2012, Kristen Cavallari, who was pregnant at the time, hit up a Cheesecake Factory, spending five hours inside the restaurant. In 2014, Britney Spears made headlines after she skipped out—or as TMZ put it, “chewed and screwed”—on a Cheesecake Factory bill, but made up for it by, um, later paying for it and leaving the waitress a hefty tip.

Tyrese Gibson and Sanaa Lathan were spotted leaving Cheesecake Factory in 2014, as was a half-blue, half-blond-wigged Barbie-era Nicki Minaj (we can only imagine that her Roman Zolanski persona ordered the Skinnylicious Chicken Enchiladas while her Barbie persona got the Eggroll Sampler) way back in 2011. And the ever-delightful Parks and Recreation writer and Twitter personality Megan Amram is probably Cheesecake Factory’s #1 fan, except for maybe shark attack survivor and former lifestyle impresario Blake Lively (YES, HER) Not to mention the many NBA players who dine at the establishment (“They have millions of different cheesecakes,” one really tall New York Knick said.) Ciara, too, is a regular Cheesecake Factory attendee who blessed us with this gem of a tweet:

When celebrities indulge at the Cheesecake Factory, it means something more than just your average Stars! They’re just like us! moment. It’s not like they’re picking up groceries, filling up their gas tanks, picking their noses, or doing other normal stuff. Cheesecake Factory is a decidedly middle-class, mediocre (without the benefit of being cheap) dining establishment. Cheesecake Factory is the reference standup comedians drop when they’re trying to describe how dull dates become when you’re married. The food isn’t fantastic, nor is it good for you. The fact that they named their healthy menu “Skinnylicious” should probably say it all. Cheesecake Factory delivers the exact opposite of the glamour we expect from our celebrities, who constantly pave the way for new diet trends and try to sell us their gourmet cookbooks. It’s kind of nice that we plebs can truly connect with the rich and famous over these crappy dining choices and the horrific bowel movements that inevitably follow—there’s nothing more relatable than that.

 
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