Flash, yes, good thing I love peanuts.....I didn't consider a check or paypal cold hard cash, just my reimbursement.

I'd just sell the gift cards if I didn't want them. There's a few reputable websites on the net that let you do exchanges or sales.

Then again, I love Cheesecake Factory XD

americangeiko Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> I'd just sell the gift cards if I didn't want
> them. There's a few reputable websites on the net
> that let you do exchanges or sales.
>
> Then again, I love Cheesecake Factory XD


Well, actually the best thing to do with your giftcard is use it for the next time you shop Cheesecake factory...it is allowed. So just pay the first time out of pocket.

dktomb Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> The Cheesecake Factory visits are a racket! You're
> expected to spend around $50-$60 but your
> "reimbursment" is only a $30 gift card! That would
> never fly in the business world. CF is getting
> away with murder by not paying for their OWN
> evaluations. I think that's such a sham. Thoughts?


I agree, but it's so yummy! It's not a smart business choice, but it's a treat!

I've been doing the Cheesecake Factory for years and recycling the gift card each time. Since my Cheesecake Factory is in a mall, I would never have lunch or dinner there. The place is always mobbed with over one hour wait times. So, I only choose the take-out shops. In that way, I'm spending about half the reimbursement for a take-out meal than a sit down for two. Sometimes I'll grab the Sunday brunch and treat a family member. The report is easy, I receive payment within a month, and I am currently over two gift cards ahead.

Now, having said that, it's the ONLY shop I perform with a gift card reimbursement. There were several other restaurants (Seasons 52 to name one) that were paying by gift card that could be used at other company-branded restaurants (Bahama Breeze, etc), but they wised up. Reimbursement is now cash up to a set dollar amount. In these economic times, shoppers don't need gift cards.

I can't recall, is the gift card all you get or do you get reimbursed for the meal plus the gift card? Either way CF is getting off cheap. The gift card's actual cost to them is probably right around $10 or less

LisaSTL,
Cheesecake gives just a gift card, so, first meal is on you, second on them, and yes, a bit beyond cheap, but others do this as well. There is a great
restaurant in L.A. (only) that does this through Mercantile. They have a
sister restaurant in L.A. and a very nice one in Chicago. They send two
25.00 gift cards after your first meal, I send one to my daughter, since I
love love their food, it's a treat, and they allow more $$ than Cheesecake.

LisaSTL Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> I can't recall, is the gift card all you get or do
> you get reimbursed for the meal plus the gift
> card? Either way CF is getting off cheap. The gift
> card's actual cost to them is probably right
> around $10 or less

Yeah, they are holding onto big bucks here by providing a gift card instead of cash. They do NOT reimburse for your purchases. They don't in fact care how much you spent during your shop as long as you have a party of 2 or more and you order at least the 2 required items (one appetizer or one entree and one drink). Regardless of how much or how little you spend, you are reimbursed with a $40 gift card for dinner, $30 gift card for lunch/afternoon shops. Their meals are big and it can be a not-bad deal if I do dinner with another gal who doesn't eat a lot (I used to eat like a horse but simply don't enjoy over-stuffing myself anymore, must be getting older, or smarter....). If We share an entree (their entrees are huge) and one of us orders tea, the other water, I get out for about $23 at dinner counting food/tax/tip and get a $40 gift card. The same is possible at lunch for a $30 gift card and they do have special lunch prices. But if I got with my family, they all eat like horses (apple doesn't fall far from the tree, huh?) and it costs me well over the gift card amount.

We usually do the brunch shops and each of us will choose our own small plate item and my daughter always orders a Sprite (for the required beverage item). Seeing as her dad and I are into healthy eating, we get waters and with the light small plates, we've kept our caloric count down and managed to spend right around $20. We always leave with a to go bag and have enough left over on the gift card to get a slice of cheesecake to share. I've not done a dinner shop, but I know how huge their portions are and we'd be able to get away with getting one appetizer and sharing an entree. I don't mind these shops at all and it's nice to always have a gift card to pay for our meal. I just keep using the same $30 over and over again every month. No pay extra pay or real reimbursement, but the experience is fun and worth it to us!

My favorite thing there is the Chicken Madeira. OMG that is so good! The last time we went I brought home half of the dinner. Yummmmm, leftovers!

I do at least one of these monthly; and sometimes 2x's a month. I am ALWAYS over when I go to dinner or brunch there - because I cannot resist the corn fritters! (I make them too from scratch, my bratty son told me Cheesecake Factory Fritters are better because theirs have more dough. I told him I wasn't making them for him any longer.. LOL)

When I have enough built up, I end up putting back some of my cards for Christmas gifts, since two of the boys love the place and like going out to eat.

You can get a great salad for 10.00 on their lunch specials, very filling.
My personal favorite is their Firecracker Salmon roll appetizers, split for two, the cheesecake is the most expensive, but OMG!!!!

shoppingintheburbs Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> each of us will choose our own small plate item and my daughter
> always orders a Sprite (for the required beverage
> item). Seeing as her dad and I are into healthy
> eating, we get waters and with the light small
> plates, we've kept our caloric count down and
> managed to spend right around $20. We always
> leave with a to go bag and have enough left over
> on the gift card to get a slice of cheesecake to
> share. I just keep using the same $30 over and
> over again every month. No pay extra pay or real
> reimbursement, but the experience is fun and worth
> it to us!

Same thing here but I do all meals. I also have 6 locations within 20 min drive, with the 2 near my house. I go with my son who has an enormous appetite and he orders an entree and soda and I do 2 small plates or an appetizer. We always have money left for a cheesecake to take home, or use the remainder for future visits when I have more than 2 people. They are a great fun and the report is easy. I do the take out and use only ~$12. Then I have enough in gift cards, or do the actual shops and take kids with me.

Oh you are SO lucky Kate!

We only have one location here, so I have to stagger my dining times. One month I'll do a brunch and try and get a dinner.

Next month I'll do an afternoon in the beginning of the month, and my 30 days are over, I'll grab a brunch again.

The only one I have not done is the Late Night Dinner. 10PM to eat is just too late for both DH and I. Major tummy upsets eating that late! Our location here has an outside patio which is absolutely wonderful to sit at for a Brunch! (at least until it's 110 degrees by 10AM!)

r@inyDayZ3, they let you do it every 30 days? We have a 90 day rotation per location. I guess because we have many locations. I just take any restaurant as lately I prefer to write the report than cook.

I noticed that every month also - here there is only one location and they only allow a shopper to shop it every 90 days. Once they were desperate for a last-minute shopper and let me do it after 60 days.

So far Kate, yup!

As soon as I hit the 30 days, I'm back up for one of the dining times over 30 days.

It could be that I'm willing to pick up the shops during the week? I dunno, not sure there. The gals always call me toward the end of the month and tell me they'll wave the rotation! So I jump on it. Heck, why not! I've also managed to get a couple bonused here because it was last minute.

We only have one of the stores locally, maybe there just isn't enough people to do them, I don't know.

The schedulers are great, they are extremely accommodating too and are always nice on the phone. They answer every time I've had to call and do call me back if I leave a voice mail.


KateH Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> r@inyDayZ3, they let you do it every 30 days? We
> have a 90 day rotation per location. I guess
> because we have many locations. I just take any
> restaurant as lately I prefer to write the report
> than cook.

I find it very interesting that this thread sat idle for exactly 2 years, April 2010 to April 2012, but everyone just picked up right where it left off! Cheesecake Factory has just changed its 90 day rotation to a 30 day, and I have even gone in less than 30 days. I was scheduled for 3 times this last month. I love it, don't mind the gift cards at all, and it is a special treat to go there. Hubby and I went last week, and it was $48 with tip, each had dinner, each had cheesecake, so $40 reimbursement card meant we spent $8 for our dinner out. To me, that is fantastic! Now when I take the "kids", the last time it was $90, 4 dinners and 3 or 4 cheesecakes. That is what I think is expensive, the desserts. The meals are not overpriced. I frequently have received a $10 bonus lately, so that night we were reimbursed $50, so looked at it as a chance to be out with my daughter and son in law for a lovely dinner at a great discount price.

Thanks Carol for pointing that out about changing the rotation dates! I was starting to wonder if I got mixed up somewhere (highly possible, I don't even know what the date is today!)

TCC offers: Brunch, Afternoon, Dinner, Dinner @ Bar, Late Night and I think To-Go. (Not sure, those may get snagged immediately).

For those who are new and wondering how to grab some of these and avoid rotations? Stagger your selection times. One month request Brunch and Dinner - now you are on 30 days rotation for those. The next month pick up Afternoon and Dinner @ Bar and maybe throw in a Late Night or To-Go. Month #3 - you are back up for the Brunch and Dinner shops.

If you can, interchange them all - and then you end up with 2/3 shops there per month.

I completely agree about the price of the Cheesecake though. I have only splurged on this two times in the past 6 months - out of 12 shops there so far. One was at Christmas when mom & dad were out and I was able to take them on the shop with us. Mom loves cheesecake so I picked up one then for her. Then just two weeks ago the Tiramisu Cheesecake looked sooooooooooooo good, I couldn't resist! (and it was.. LOL)

Rainy, are you sure that you have to rotate times of the day as well? I almost always do a dinner.

Carol - I really don't know for sure. I just swap out the times to make it different servers and a different experience so I can change out my report. Sometimes I feel like it gets monotonous and just too predictable if I constantly do the same hours.

I swap out the times because between my DH and I we pick up a lot of dinner shops. We don't get too many Sunday Brunch shops, and both of us really enjoy those (from any company). A lot of the places we shop on Sundays don't open until 11AM or Noon, we just like to visit TCC at 11 and then go do our shops.

Oh - and a funny - believe it or not, the very first two dinner visits we did - 30 days apart, a "help, can you pick this up" from one of the schedulers, we actually had the SAME server. That was weird, after about 5 weeks getting the same guy AND the same table on the patio! I think he recognized us because he said, "Weren't you guys in here a couple of months ago at this table too?"

I have found the reimbursement they pay not to be any worse than any of the other restaurant shops I do. They do not require an appetizer and two entrees and dessert like other restaurant shops but only one or the other and they do not require an expensive alcoholic drink. I find for most restaurant shops unless you order the only chicken on the menu or some cheap pasta or salad you are out money if you expect to have two diners or more. And for cheesecake factory if you don't have a young family to stay home with at night, do a belly up to the bar or a late night dinner. I do them after eating dinner at home with my over 21 daughter or my husband and treat it like an evening out for a drink...Two drinks and an inexpensive appetizer on the menu to share or one salad and wonderful bread and you are way below the $40 and can save the difference for the next "full meal" visit. And it is fun once in a while to just go out and have a drink with your friend/spouse. You can certainly choose non alcoholic even at the bar to save even more. I now have around $80 saved up and will someday go and splurge on a shop for the full meals.

I have never done a Cheesecake factory shop but would do one for a gift card. There is one just 5 minutes from me.

I have done various food shops from fast food to upscale dining. Most of them have been just pure reimbursement shops. They do not pay any fees for doing the shop or the report. I have had a few that will pay from 5-9.00 for the shop plus reimbursement. And a lot of people will not do a shop that is just reimbursement. So it comes down to if you like a restaurant enough that you would already go there to eat to get a free meal.
I have also done places that eat at infrequently but may do to help the mystery shopping co. out to evaluate the services and food. I might do it just once. I feel its part of mystery shopping-to do all types of establishments.

I am not sure if I understand completely if the gift card is your reimbursement for the meal. Or is it in addition to the being reimbursed for the meal? Are you getting the gift card and reimbursement?

In spite all of this, I am very selective about the type of shops that I do. It has to be worth my time and efforts. I will not do if the report takes longer for me to complete than the time it took to do the shop. It has to be worth my time and efforts.

You are NOT reimbursed for your meal. You are paid for the shop but you are paid with a gift card instead of cash. You are paid a flat rate: $30 for a lunch/daytime shop and $40 for a dinner/late night.

dktomb Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> The Cheesecake Factory visits are a racket! You're
> expected to spend around $50-$60 but your
> "reimbursment" is only a $30 gift card! That would
> never fly in the business world. CF is getting
> away with murder by not paying for their OWN
> evaluations. I think that's such a sham. Thoughts?

Good Post! I always wondered about the value of the offer and never accepted because it sounded "off". Thanks for that.

KathyC Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> dktomb Wrote:
> --------------------------------------------------
> -----
> > The Cheesecake Factory visits are a racket!
> You're
> > expected to spend around $50-$60 but your
> > "reimbursment" is only a $30 gift card! That
> would
> > never fly in the business world. CF is getting
> > away with murder by not paying for their OWN
> > evaluations. I think that's such a sham.
> Thoughts?
>
> Good Post! I always wondered about the value of
> the offer and never accepted because it sounded
> "off". Thanks for that.


I am glad you are all leaving these simple jobs for me and those of us who like them! I guess it is because of all of you afraid to do them that they offer me bonuses. These jobs should be snapped up. lol See my posts above. I have done at least a dozen and only went over the limit once. The report is pretty easy. As long as you do not expect to get a full dinner (seafood or meat and potatoes) you are fine. You can order a big salad (dinner size), a burger and fries or one of the less expensive pasta dishes. Many of those are between $10-14. And recently they introduced a Slimlicious menu (something like that) with a whole bunch of under 500 calorie meals that were quite filling and tasty and were not fried like many of their items. Some locations have a lunch menu but I don't do lunch there as it is basically the same menu and you get $10 more for dinner. The extra $10 pays for two sodas and the tip easily.

I have done quite a few of the Cheesecake Factory shops and really enjoy them. We have 4 locations in our area. One of them has a happy hour with reduced drink and appetizer prices. We can fulfill all of the shop requirements for under $20 including tip! My wife and I eat out alot and would go to CF anyway.

You can get 1 soda, a full entree $16, 2-3 small plates, pay for tip, and you'll still be under the reimbursement. Another option is to have 2 full entrees (when I say full I mean it does not have to be burger, salad, sandwich, etc) and 1 soda and you'll still be under the reimbursement, including tip. The report is not a fine dining length. It is quick and straight forward. You just have to do the initial investment since you wont have a gift card to do the first shop, but afterwards you just use gc for each subsequent shop. You do not order rib eye or filet mignon for both guests so you wont spend $60. Cathy C, do a take out first as you can spend as little as $8 and still get the $30 giftcard. Then you move to a full meal. You can either use each gc just to pay for the next meal, or if you have many locations near you, you can eat frequently there and learn to have a good balance left on the gc to build gc savings. I have so many extra gc now that I give them from Christmas gifts, or use them to take out family for extra outings.

I like doing the to-go because I save $ on just $2 tip and the report is shorter with a lot less timing. I recently found out about the 30 day rotation, which is great, as there are two CF within 10 miles of me.

You know, I realize that I usually spend more on these shops than I am reimbursed, but the way I figure it, I probably would have gone out to dinner anyway that week, and now it cost me $30 less than it would have. I always do the To Go shops, too, so I end up spending a fraction of the time with the same reimbursement. Just did one last week and signed up for next month at another location. It's a nice way to escape making dinner. I figure that's payment in itself!

I love the food there and would have spent my own money anyway. The report is easy and I like that I can order whatever. My favorite is the grilled artichoke and all the salads. The dessert is heavenly, but too fattening. :-)