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What → send → correspondents
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newsletter → sign → inbox
It’s not quite the seismic “October surprise”, but the final week of the US midterm election has been partially consumed by a debate about a restaurant chain – The Cheesecake Factory.
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week → ’ → chain
It all began when Barack Obama, stumping for the Democrats at a rally in Cleveland, Ohio, mocked President Donald Trump’s extensive renovation and redecoration of the White House.
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Obama → begin → House
“There’s gold everywhere,” Obama observed.
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Obama → ’ → ?
“What’s up with the gold?
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What → ’ → gold
He’s got the White House looking like Saddam Hussein opened a Cheesecake Factory.”
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Hussein → get → Factory
Trump was triggered.
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Trump → trigger → ?
“The White House … is a symbol of America,” he told reporters during a lengthy rant.
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he → tell → rant
“It has to be clean.
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It → have → ?
The columns can’t be broken.
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columns → break → ?
The bricks can’t be falling off from under the plaster.
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bricks → fall → plaster
And for you [Obama] to say it’s a Cheesecake Factory, that just shows why you were a lousy president.”
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you → say → ?
Moreover, though, Obama’s jibe led Republicans to proclaim that he and the Democrats were elitist and out of touch.
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he → lead → touch
Here he was, they argued, mocking a restaurant chain that is enormously popular with middle America – and at the pointy end of an election campaign.
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that → argue → campaign
The Cheesecake Factory is a market-leading operation, with some 370 restaurants across the US (not all under the same brand).
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Factory → lead → brand
It’s renowned for its vast menu: you can order pretty much anything – pastas, steaks, burgers, salads and breakfast items – and, of course, multiple varieties of cheesecake.
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you → ’ → cheesecake
It’s also a family favourite – not a cheap night out for mum, dad and the kids, but affordable for a regular treat or special occasion.
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It → ’ → treat
The Trump administration has responded to Obama’s joke with full force.
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administration → respond → force
Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent had lunch there on Tuesday, with Fox News’ cameras in tow.
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Bessent → have → tow
He ordered the French dip cheeseburger – his usual, he claimed.
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he → order → cheeseburger
“I had a great meal, always have a great meal, and I would tell the Martha’s Vineyard set to give it a try,” Bessent added, referring to the island synonymous with celebrity retreats.
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Bessent → have → retreats
I felt compelled to see what all the fuss was about, so I headed to the only Cheesecake Factory in New York City, in Queens about 25 minutes by subway from Manhattan.
The restaurant is on the ground floor of a shopping mall, and at lunchtime on a Wednesday, the cavernous room is scattered with friends catching up over burgers and shakes, two solo diners at the bar, and four men near me speaking German.
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room → compel → German
Black, white, Latino – it’s a kaleidoscope of Queens.
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it → ’ → Queens
The menu – sometimes called “the Bible” – runs to 22 pages, including drinks, plus a separate “skinnylicious” menu with lower-calorie choices, from which I select the grilled steak medallions ($US28.95, 440 calories) and a little house salad ($US9.50, 260 calories).
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I → call → medallions
My server says the restaurant has been busy, but not because of the ruckus between Obama and Trump.
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restaurant → say → Obama
Indeed, he hasn’t heard of the kerfuffle, and neither have any patrons.
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patrons → hear → kerfuffle
Rather, people are here to try the Cajun salmon, which recently had a viral moment on social media.
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which → try → media
“What Obama said was funny and accurate,” says patron Dakota Rylander.
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Rylander → say → What
She doesn’t buy Trump’s indignation.
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She → buy → indignation
“That’s just what he does – he tries to distract from what he’s doing by pointing the finger at other people.”
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he → ’ → people
Her friend Faith is more interested in how the restaurant apparently short-changed her on a slice of cheesecake that was meant to be half price for rewards members.
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that → change → members
I receive my free bread, with a slab of butter and an unknown number of calories, and the salad, which is fresh (a rarity in the US) and plentiful.
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which → receive → US
The beef medallions come with lots of asparagus, mushrooms, mash and a delicious Madeira wine sauce.
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medallions → come → asparagus
Honestly, I can’t fault the meal.
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I → fault → meal
The service is also friendly without being over-the-top in that American way that can sometimes get annoying.
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that → get → way
As for the decor, I don’t find it tacky.
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it → find → decor
The lighting, wood panelling and furniture blend orange, red and sandy yellow hues, rather than the overt gold of Trump’s Oval Office trinkets.
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lighting → blend → trinkets
I don’t think Obama was really dissing The Cheesecake Factory, and I think Trump quite famously can’t take a joke at his own expense.
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Trump → think → expense
It’s likely neither of them has been to a Cheesecake Factory in some time.
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neither → ’ → time
…and 2 more, not listed.
The Aporia
