GoneTrending

Texas hip-hop heads are going to pour out one for one of their legends. Today (August 15), it has been reported that “Then Leave” musician Beatking has died at the age of 39.

Beatking, real name Justin Riley, was a proud representative of Houston, Texas who raise through the state’s underground scene then become a staple in its club scene. When news of his untimely passing was shared across social media, supporters of the musicians refused to believe the devastating announcement.

However, in a statement posted to Instagram, the late entertainer’s manager, Tasha Felder, confirmed that sad news.

“Today, August 15, 2024 we have lost Beatking,” she wrote. “BeatKing has been the best part of the club for over a decade. He has produced and worked with so many artists, that his sound will forever live.”

The note closed with a line to spotlight the people and things Beatking cared for the most. “He love his daughters, his music, and his fans,” she wrote. “We will love him forever.”

Artists 2 Chainz, Moneybagg Yo, Erica Banks, and Armani Caesar are just a few of Beatking’s past collaborators.

Tributes from across the culture are sure to pour in for the legendary recording artist, producer, and songwriter.

The Cheesecake Factory menu is too big, right? I mean, I get it, variety is the spice of life, blah, blah, blah, but we can all agree that this menu has too much variety? Way too much.

Every time I open the tome that is the Cheesecake Factory menu a moment of panic strikes my soul as I have to quickly scan through 250 dishes (not an exaggeration, the menu literally has more than 250 different options) and decide on which one I want to disappoint me. I say “disappoint,” not because I think the Cheesecake Factory isn’t good — it’s actually better than a lot of giant restaurant chains and everything is scratch-made — but because I can’t help but think of the dish I could’ve ordered instead once mine finally arrives.

Eating at the Cheesecake Factory is an exercise in FOMO. You’re always going to wonder what might have been.

So, in an effort to make the menu a bit more digestible, we’ve taken 35 of the most popular items, tasted them, and ranked them to make navigating the menu a bit easier. 35 might not sound like a lot when you consider the hundreds of options before you but we’ve pulled the most popular dishes from every category on the menu, including every single appetizer.

One day we’ll get the whole 250 down the gullet for one mega-ranking, or, you know… we’ll die. Whatever happens first!

PART I — Completely Skippable:

35. Pretzel Bites With Cheddar Cheese Fondue

Thoughts & Tasting Notes:

I wish there was some sort of catch to this dish, but nope, this dish is exactly what it sounds like: balls of soft warm pretzel served with a salty cheddar cheese dip. The pretzels aren’t exactly the most amazing soft pretzel you’ll ever eat either, its standard stuff: buttery, chewy, and lightly dusted with salt.

Now, I may be wrong here but in my experience, I’ve never seen a Cheesecake Factory that wasn’t connected or at the very least in the same marking lot as a mall. Which means you can go to Auntie Anne’s or Wetzel Pretzel and pick up a fresh baked pretzel for a third of the price. So you should do that instead.

The Bottom Line:

Standard pretzel bites. Skip ’em.

34. Quesadilla

Thoughts & Tasting Notes:

Quesadilla’s are kind of hard to f*ck up, you just need a tortilla, and some cheese. These are a slight step up because they’re fire-grilled, which adds a nice fire-charred top note to this thick Monterey Jack cheese, green onion, and mild chili stuffed quesadilla. The dish is paired with guacamole, salsa, and sour cream for your dipping pleasure.

Having said all that, something about this quesadilla is lacking. The salsa provides no heat, the guacamole is more complicated than it needs to be, and the tortilla is suspiciously thick and bready. No one should come to Cheesecake Factory for authenticity, but there is something so glaringly inauthentic here that it made me crave the real thing from a corner taqueria.

I live in Los Angeles, so quesadillas are abundant, but even if you don’t have a taqueria nearby, we suggest you go to the market, pick up all these ingredients, and make an even better quesadilla at home.

The Bottom Line:

A waste of menu space. If you’re really craving a quesadilla, just make one at home, it’ll be better than this.

33. Warm Crab Dip

Thoughts & Tasting Notes:

It’s not that the Warm Crab Dip is bad, it’s just that there are several other shareable seafood dishes to snack on before your main course, and this simple blend of crab, artichokes, and cheese with crostini for dipping feels pretty minor when you compare it to better dishes (Ahi Poike Nachos and Fried Calamari come to mind).

Flavorwise, expect a mix of sweet and creamy notes with a tender texture and a subtle savory finish.

The Bottom Line:

Every other seafood dish on the Cheesecake Factory menu is better than this one. Skip it.

32. Sweet Corn Tamale Cakes

Thoughts & Tasting Notes:

This is one of the strangest dishes on the whole menu. It sounds delicious, it looks incredible, seriously the presentation of this dish alone is enough to make me hungry. But it just doesn’t taste great.

The dish is a combination of sweet masa cakes topped with sour cream, salsa verse, and avocado. The cakes themselves are delicious, they’re sweet and have giant corn kernels embedded in them which supply a nice textural element. But altogether, this dish is way too sweet. It’s practically a dessert, but its topped with avocado and tomato, which you know, aren’t exactly dessert-ingredients. Ultimately, I feel like this dish desperately needs meat to make it work.

And don’t even get me started on the salsa verde, which is less like a sauce and more like a gravy. It’s entirely devoid of heat. I wouldn’t even have thought it was salsa it if wasn’t written on the menu.

The Bottom Line

THe presentation is admittedly incredible, but the dish is a mess.

31. Factory Nachos

Thoughts & Tasting Notes:

I know, this dish seems like a good idea, but what you’re getting here are glammed-up movie theater nachos. Over a bed of tortilla chips is an impossible-to-share scoop of guacamole, chaotically dispersed red chili sauce, sour cream, pickled jalapeños, green onions, and salsa, with a layer of melted cheese.

The salsa and red chili sauce is incredibly sweet, and like the sweet corn cakes, I think this is a dish that could greatly be improved by the inclusion of meat. Also, what’s up with these nachos not having beans? No beans, no meat, no cilantro, green onions for some reason, who the hell made these nachos? It’s as if this dish was designed by AI.

The Bottom Line

A yassified version of movie theater nachos, yet half as satisfying.

PART II — Good But Forgettable:

30. Hot Spinach and Cheese Dip

Thoughts & Tasting Notes:

What I love about this dish are the aromatics. The garlic and shallots give this Spinach and Cheese Dip a mouthwatering aroma and taste great, but the way it stains your palate for the rest of the day is straight-up off-putting. For that reason alone, I’m going to suggest you skip this dish unless you have gum handy.

Palate-staining qualities aside, this dish does instead taste pretty good. The dip is served with a side of fried tortillas and it becomes very easy for one bite to turn to two, then three, then four, and then before you know it, you’ve eaten all of the dish. It’s way too easy to mindlessly eat this dish, and considering its an appetizer, that might ruin the main course.

The Bottom Line:

A slightly elevated cheese dip that is pretty damn good, but is ultimately a real meal spoiler. It’s also too expensive at $20.

29. Pepperoni Flatbread Pizza

Thoughts & Tasting Notes:

Good but forgettable, this Pepperoni Flatbread is a solid mini personal pizza served on airy, chewy dough, with perfectly crisped pepperoni cups. It’s good, but comes across as boring. I suspect this is on the menu for picky children who the rest of the menu doesn’t appeal to.

Also, you’re at a mall, surely there is another pizza place nearby that’ll allow you to get the real thing, rather than this simplified flatbread version.

The Bottom Line

Why are you ordering pizza at the Cheesecake Factory?

28. Ahi Poke Nachos

Thoughts & Tasting Notes:

Remember when I said the Factory Nachos were missing meat? Well, the Ahi Poke Nachos fixes that misstep, and the result is a pretty damn good dish.

This dish features a mix of marinated raw Ahi tuna, avocado, green onion (again with the f*cking green onion), chilies, sesame seeds, and crispy wontons drizzled with sriracha aioli. If you can manage to get all of the ingredients on a wonton, you’ll get a perfect bite that combines fresh bright-buttery tuna, pepper and tangy top notes, and a gentle heat that slowly builds on the palate between bites.

The Ahi Poke nachos feature a mix of marinated raw Ahi tuna, avocado, green onion, chiles, sesame seeds, and crispy wontons all drizzled with sriracha aioli. The perfect bite (meaning a bit of everything on the wontons) has a flavor that combines fresh bright-buttery tuna flavor, with added buttery, peppery, and tangy top notes with a gentle heat that builds on the palate.

The only issue is there isn’t enough tuna here to achieve a perfect bite more than a handful of times.

The Bottom Line:

A great-tasting dish that doesn’t provide enough of its star ingredient to be truly satisfying.

27. Thai Lettuce Wraps With Chicken/Avocado

Thoughts & Tasting Notes:

This dish is interesting because I think it’s incredibly enjoyable, yet not very satisfying. The ingredients all work, you get tender, slightly sweet charred satay-style chicken strips, bright and sweet carrots, textural bean sprouts and coconut curry noodles, and a great fresh cilantro and cucumber finish. The big buttery leaves of lettuce and cabbage is a nice way to wrap all the ingredients together into one perfect bite.

The trio of sauces, featuring variations on peanut and sweet chili sauce, are great, but there just isn’t enough here to share, which kind of makes it a failed appetizer in our opinion. Even if you were to eat this dish solo, there isn’t enough chicken to sustain the whole dish, leaving you with a bunch of lettuce and sides and no protein by mid-meal.

The Bottom Line:

A good dish, but considering its an appetizer that isn’t easily shareable, we’re going to have to hold that against it.

26. Fettucine Alfredo

Thoughts & Tasting Notes:

This is pretty much what you’d expect of restaurant chain Fettucine Alfredo. The sauce is incredibly thick and creamy, the noodles are al dente, giving the dish some bite, and… that’s about everything worth mentioning. You kind of need to add ingredients to make this great, chicken is a smart move, and broccoli and mushrooms would really help take it to the next level. But those are all add-ons, as it comes it leaves a lot to be desired.

The Bottom Line

Better than Olive Garden, but that’s not really saying much.

The Good:

25. Fried Calamari

Thoughts & Tasting Notes:

There isn’t much to say about this dish. It’s light, crispy, and has a sweet flavor that pairs excellently with the garlic sauce and cocktail dip it comes with. If you love fried calamari, this dish delivers.

Having said that, I think its merely good, not great, or mind-blowing. It’s certainly not a reason to go to Cheesecake Factory.

The Bottom Line:

If you love calamari, you’ll love this. If you’re lukewarm on it, this isn’t going to change your mind.

24. Buffalo Wings

Thoughts & Tasting Notes:

Again, these Buffalo Wings are good, but not blind blowing. What you get here are crispy chicken wings tossed in a thick mild buffalo sauce that has a nice tang to it and a bit of sweetness. They aren’t super wet and saucy, so you’re still going to get a lot of crunch from the chicken skin.

I like this dish, but there is a better option on this menu that takes these same flavors and gives you something truly novel. I suggest you order that instead.

The Bottom Line:

Everyone loves wings, but Cheesecake Factory uses this same flavors in a much more novel dish that we’ve ranked higher. So at least consider that one before ordering these.

23. Spicy Tuna

Thoughts & Tasting Notes:

The Spicy Tuna offers a perfect bite. There is a lightly fried crispy texture to the rice which pairs excellently with the Ahi tuna, and the light shavings of green onion and mildly spicy ginger drizzle wrap the flavors together nicely.

But there are four pieces to an order, so unless you’re splitting this four ways or you’re incredibly hungry, two to a person just comes across as overwhelming. It’s a small gripe, but that’s what hold the dish back for us a bit.

The Bottom Line:

A deceptively filling dish. It tastes great, but it might ruin your appetite.

22. Chicken Pot Stickers

Thoughts & Tasting Notes:

It’s hard to dislike this dish. The Chicken Pot Stickers are pan-fried dumplings with tender succulent chunks of chicken inside, served in a sweet and salty soy ginger glaze with toasted sesame seeds. Every element of this dish works well, but if you’ve ever had dumplings from a real dumpling house, these come across as lacking character.

Because of that, this dish is merely good, but not great.

The Bottom Line:

A tasty yet characterless chicken dumpling.

21. Pasta Da Vinci

Thoughts & Tasting Notes:

Pasta Da Vinci features sautéed chunks of white meat chicken tossed with mushrooms and onions in an umami-rich Madeira wine sauce served over penne pasta with parmesan cheese. It has this wonderful savory quality that makes your mouth water between bites and the way the onions provide a sweet counterpoint to the deeper richer flavors is wonderfully harmonious.

But Cheesecake Factory simply has better pasta dishes.

The Bottom Line

A delicious umami-rich pasta, but Cheesecake Factory has so many other pasta dishes that are better than this.

20. Miso Salmon

Thoughts & Tasting Notes:

Looking for the best salmon you’ve ever had from a big chain restaurant? It’s the Miso Salmon. It’s fresh and cuts like butter with the slightest touch of a fork. The salmon features a crispy crust that provides a nice textural element for each bite, with a focused and direct flavor. The salmon is served atop a bed of white rice in a small pool of miso sauce with a side of crispy fresh snow peas that admittedly are more of a garnish than a feature of the dish, but I appreciate the inclusion.

Great flavor aside, the presentation is absolutely beautiful. Having said all that, I think this dish could use some better sides.

The Bottom Line

A great-tasting glazed salmon dish with lackluster sides.

19. Korean Fried Cauliflower

Thoughts & Tasting Notes:

Vile weed! Just kidding. I’ll admit, I’m not the biggest fan of cauliflower, not because of the way it tastes, but rather just because it’s hard to get excited about this almost flavorless veggie. The good thing about cauliflower though is that it tastes like whatever it’s seasoned with, and in this case, it’s tossed in a spicy Gochujang-based sauce, which makes it taste pretty dan good.

The cauliflower (which are dusted in rice flour, giving the dish some extra crunch) is served with some toasted sesame seeds and green onions. They’re essentially garnishes, but I don’t mind it in this dish because it’s clearly designed to be an appetizer and not a main dish. The dish is also served with a lime wedge, which we suggest you squeeze all over this dish to add a burst of tartness.

If you’re looking for heat, this barely delivers. I’d describe the sauce as mild, with a pronounced sweet top note.

The Bottom Line

It’s fried cauliflower tossed in sauce, if that sounds good to you, this dish delivers. If not, there is no need to order this.

18. Chicken Parm Pizza Style

Thoughts & Tasting Notes:

This is a truly bizarre dish, the sort of thing that can only have come from Cheesecake Factory, and because of that, I love it! Let me make one thing clear, despite what the name might suggest, this is not a pizza. It’s a giant piece of white meat chicken that has been flattened out into a disk, coated with bread crumbs, slathered with marinara and melted mozzarella, and topped with chopped angel hair pasta in an alfredo-like cream sauce.

It’s weird and it makes you wonder, how did they make the chicken so wide and round? I find this dish tastes better when you don’t think about that.

I like this dish, weird as it is it doesn’t pretty damn good but it does make me wonder why Cheesecake Factory doesn’t just have chicken parmesan instead of this.

The Bottom Line

Delicious Cheesecake Factory chaos.

17. Oreo Dream Extreme

Thoughts & Tasting Notes:

Could a cheesecake be too decadent? Because that’s my problem with this one. The Oreo Dream Extreme (come on, “extreme” is right in the name!) features Oreos baked into a cheesecake base with fudge cake layers, Oreo mousse, and milk chocolate icing, resulting in bite after bite of rich chocolate tones with a tangy cheesecake finish and… I’m completely aware that I’m not selling to you the idea that this is somehow a bad thing.

Let me just say that I have a big sweet tooth, and yet I could only get a few bites through this cheesecake before I had to tap out.

The Bottom Line

Order it if you love Oreos. But be warned, this is proof that you can have too much of a good thing.

16. Sourdough/Sweet Wheat Loaf

Thoughts & Tasting Notes:

Table bread probably shouldn’t count as a dish, but we’re going to go ahead and rank it anyway just so we can say Cheesecake Factory has the best table bread amongst all the big chain restaurants. Yes, that means over Olive Garden and their weird over-hyped bread sticks. At Cheesecake you get a mix of sourdough and sweet oat-encrusted wheat bread which both pair amazingly with butter.

If I had to pick which loaf was better, I’d go with the wheat. It has a sweet earthy flavor with crusty oats. I can’t get enough of this stuff!

The Bottom Line

Eat the table bread. It’s worth the extra carbs.

PART III — The Great:

15. BBQ Ranch Chicken Salad

Thoughts & Tasting Notes:

Kicking of the “Great” category is the BBQ Ranch Chicken Salad. This salad features fresh avocado, tomatoes, grilled corn, and savory black beans over a bed of romaine lettuce tossed in a sweet BBQ ranch dressing. In addition to the above ingredients, you’ve got cucumber, which adds a nice refreshing top note that cuts through these otherwise heavy flavors, and crispy fried onion rings, which add some nice crunch and a savory edge to the dish.

What makes this salad work is how it’s balanced. The sauce is creamy but the grilled chicken pieces help to emphasize the dish’s savoriness, while the black beans help to balance out the sweetness imparted by the BBQ. It all results in a perfect forkful of flavor, and that is the sign of a great salad.

The Bottom Line

A delicious hearty salad that is perfect for sharing with the table.

14. Roadside Sliders

Thoughts & Tasting Notes:

If you’ve ever scanned the Cheesecake Factory and wondered if the big meaty Glam-Burgers were worth ordering, we’re here to tell you that they are. In fact, they might be some of the best chain restaurant burgers ever. If you’re still skeptical, play it safe and order the Roadside Sliders so you can have a little taste of the magic they promise, without it counting as a full meal. It’s a win-win.

These sliders are palm-sized with a savory lacy smash-style patty topped with onions, pickles, ketchip, and lettuce in a buttery lightly toasted bun. You can knock this burger out in two bites, but be warned, once you have one, you’re going to want a second and at that point you are probably better served just ordering a full sized burger.

The Bottom Line:

A perfect little burger bite. It’ll make the case that a full-sized Glam Burger is worth ordering.

13. Fresh Strawberry Cheesecake

This is fairly standard stuff in terms of what you’d expect from a cheesecake, and while it’s not as exciting as the Oreo Extreme, it tastes better, and that’s all that matters at the end of the day. This cheesecake is topped with fresh strawberries glazed in a thick sweet syrup which adds an element of brightness to the supremely rich cake. The graham cracker crust adds notes of nutmeg and cinnamon to this dish, which helps to add some depth and complexity to the rich egg and fresh cheese base.

While this is a basic cheesecake build, it’s tang is incredibly mild, focusing more on rich and sweet flavors than anything else.

The Bottom Line

This cheesecake does not disappoint. Great execution of a classic flavor.

12. Housemade Meatballs

Thoughts & Tasting Notes:

Meatballs aren’t the most exciting dish but these are straight up mind-blowing. There are no tricks to this dish, it’s simply three giant meatballs in a tomato sauce topped with ricotta and parmesan and oven-baked basil leaves. It’s pretty standard stuff, build wise, but the flavor is mouthwatering.

The beef is luxurious, thick, and meaty, paired with an umami-rich sauce and served in a mini iron skillet that keeps everything blazing hot. It might seem like a bad appetizer because there are only three meatballs here, so it’s hard to share, but truthfully you only need about half a meatball, they’re so thick, rich, and hearty.

The Bottom Line:

A truly mind-blowing meatball.

11. Buffalo Blasts

Thoughts & Tasting Notes:

One of the things that sets Cheesecake Factory apart from other big chain restaurants is the presentation. They knock it out of the park, even for dishes that don’t taste great. The Buffalo Blasts have the opposite problem. There is no angle or lighting that is going to make this dish look good, but trust me when I tell you that it tastes f*cking incredible.

This dish is a big chicken tender stuffed with cheese and buffalo sauce that is deep fried and served alongside more buffalo sauce and whatever dressing you prefer to pair with buffalo-sauced chicken. Think of this dish like a giant, boneless chicken wing, it has all the buttery tangy goodness you’d expect from buffalo wings with way more meat, and crispiness thanks to the sauce being inside of the fried casing.

The Bottom Line:

A cheese and buffalo sauce-stuffed fried boneless wing. It’s way more delicious than it looks and that description sounds.

10. Bacon-Bacon Burger

A few entries back I said that Cheesecake Factory probably makes the best burgers of any restaurant chain, the Bacon-Bacon burger is why I think that. The bacon on this thing is insane, each strip is thick, perfectly cooked, and crispy. There is still enough fat on it to be flavorful and indulgent, but not so much that its chewy, allowing for a crispy crunch while still providing that savory goodness bacon is beloved for. The ground beef patty is thick, cooked medium, and topped with American and cheddar cheese, which helps to provide the melt that makes American the ideal burger cheese, with all the nutty, complex flavor that cheddar offers.

The flavors are pulled together with a mayo-based special sauce, but honestly, this burger is so full of juicy flavor that it doesn’t need the sauce. You can’t say that about many burgers out there.

The Bottom Line

Hands down the best bacon cheeseburger from any big restaurant chain.

9. Steak Diane

We need to give a round of applause to whoever the hell Diane is, because this steak is amazing. Like the best steaks, its simple, seasoned with a touch of freshly ground black pepper in a mushroom-based wine sauce with some sweet onions. The steak has a ncie chew with a great charred outer that works in perfect hamony with the earthy and floral pepper notes. The sauce helps to ensure that each bite is juicy and tender, while the mashed potatoes that the dish is served with serve as a nice creamy and buttery palate cleanser, which allows you to experience the intensity of that first bite of meat over and over again.

The Bottom Line

A truly great steak and a savory highlight of the menu.

8. Chicken Madeira

A great take on a classic dish,t he CHicken Madeira is a must-order. This dish consists of juicy bites of tender chicken breast, asparagus, and mozzarella cheese smothered in an umami-rich mushroom Madeira sauce with a side of red-skinned mashed potatoes, which serve as a perfect sponge for this rich and decadent sauce.

For best results, toss all the ingredients together.

The Bottom Line

One of the Factory’s greatest chicken dishes.

7. Spicy Crispy Chicken Sandwich

I find myself often underwhelmed by restaurant chicken sandwiches, compared to the fast food version I feel like there is often too much going on with these sandwiches that ultimately hurt the experience. That’s not the case with this one, this sandwich is f*cking astounding. You have the option of ordering this sandwich with spicy buffalo sauce or chipotle mayo, and both are good, but what will truly blow you away is the chicken.

The breast filet is juicy and tender and melts in your mouth before you even start chewing it, with a flaky and crispy batter that provides a wonderful crunch.

The sandwich is served on a sesame seed brioche bun and topped with melted jack cheese. If you want to take it to the next level, add bacon for more crunch and some smokey sweet notes.

The Bottom Line

One of the best chicken sandwiches I’ve ever eaten, and yes, that includes Popeyes.

PART IV — The Essentials

6. Carrot Cake

I feel like its easy to pass the Carrot Cake without giving it a second though considering this is the “Cheesecake” Factory, but that would be a mistake, because this dish is amazing. It features three layers of cake and cream cheese with chunky walnutes and julienned carrots encrusted into the cake, offering a bite that has more texture than most cakes on the market.

It’s moist without being as rich as cheesecake, but still sweet and decadent, checking all the boxes for a great dessert.

The Bottom Line

I promise you, it’s better than the cheesecake.

5. Fried Macaroni and Cheese

Yes, it’s maybe too high for mac and cheese, but did you see that this dish is fried? That makes it 10x better than your standard mac and cheese! We can all agree that the best macaroni and cheese has that addictive oven-baked cheesy crust, well the Factory elevates that idea by coating balls of creamy mac in crispy bread crumbs. This adds some much needed crunch to the dish, ultimately resulting in a dish with a satisfying mouthfeel that reveals molten melted cheese and pasta with every bite.

The dish is paired with creamy marinara sauce which adds some nice brightness to the dish. I don’t think its needed but it helps the presentation!

The Bottom Line

The greatest mac and cheese you’ll ever have.

4. Egg Roll Sampler

The Egg Roll Sampler is easily the best appetizer on the entire Cheesecake Factory menu. This platter features Avocado, Tex Mex, Cheeseburger, and Chicken Taquito egg rolls, and while there is definitely a hierarchy amongst these options, they all offer a great experience paired with a delicious sauce.

My least favorite is the Cheeseburger, which, as you might imagine, is basically a cheeseburger in the form of an egg roll. It has ground beef and cheese paired with a thousand island-style dipping sauce. It’s surprisingly good but I think every other egg roll is much better.

The Avocado Egg Roll is served with a pesto dipping sauce and features sun-dried tomatoes which adds a salty brightness to the dish. It’s great!

The Chicken Taquito offers a bite-sized chicken enchilada experience and is served with a creamy avocado-based sauce. The flavors are intense and rich, and the chicken is surprisingly juicy.

But my pick for the best is the Tex Mex, which features tender white meat chicken, corn, cilantro, and sundried tomatoes, served with what Cheesecake Factory pretends is salsa. Mild sauce aside, this egg roll is amazing and is an absolute must-taste.

The Bottom Line

Cheesecake Factory’s best appetizer.

3. Godiva Chocolate Brownie Sundae

If you only have room for one dessert, make it the Godiva Chocolate Brownie Sundae. No, it’s not a cheesecake, it’s not even cake, but trust me, nothing beats this dish. It features creamy scoops of vanilla ice cream topped with thick whipped cream and hot fudge, wedged between two dense and chewy Godiva chocolate brownies, topped with toasted almonds.

For the perfect bite, shave off a chunk of the brownie, lit it sit in the hot judge, and then spoon some vanilla and whipped cream on top. The results are mind blowing.

The Bottom Line

Moist, decadent, and refreshing in a way that the best cheesecake just isn’t. Nothing beats ice cream.

2. Spicy Chicken Chipotle Pasta

Admittedly, this mix of chicken, asparagus, bell peppers, peas, fried tortilla chips, garlic, and onions in a spicy Chipotle parmesan cream sauce sounds all over the place. like a dish that would only be created because of some weird cooking show challenge. But trust me, this dish delivers. Cheesecake Factory is at its best when the foot matches the restaurant’s all-over-the-place architecture, and no dish does that better than this.

The chicken is honey-glazed, giving it a nice sweetness that pairs well with the mild heat and earthy flavor of the chipotle cream sauce. The veggies provide a nice refreshing mix of vegetal flavors that pair really well with the richer earthier flavors of the rest of the dish.

It sounds and looks all over the place, but it delivers visually and on the palate.

The Bottom Line

It’s not spicy, as the name would suggest, but it’s delicious, and at the end of the day that’s all that matters. This dish is pure Cheesecake Factory chaos, and we love it for that.

1. Cajun Jambalaya Pasta

I think the Spicy Chicken Chipotle Pasta and Cajun Jambalaya are equals, but if I had to pick an absolute essential dish from Cheesecake Factory — and the existence of this article says that I do — then I’m going with the Cajun Jambalaya. This dish offers mouthful after mouthful of intense flavor that’ll quickly have you addicted.

Tasting this dish, I’m getting notes of onion, floral smokey paprika, earthy black pepper, and oregano, with a gentle hint of mild spice from cayenne pepper. Giant chunks of shrimp and chicken breast make this dish extra hearty and the spinach linguine everything sits atop is a nice touch that never feels too heavy. This dish truly delivers a journey of flavors. The shrimp isn’t too fishy, offering a clean and remarkably fresh flavor, with bites of fresh tomato that provide juicy bright bursts to offset this plate’s umami bomb qualities.

An absolute winner. You can eat the whole thing on a bed of rice, but I say give the spinach linguine a try — you won’t be disappointed.

The Bottom Line

Cheesecake Factory’s best pasta and best dish. Period.

It doesn’t have to be Cinco de Mayo to enjoy a refreshing, easy-to-drink, Mexican-style lager. There are myriad American-made, Mexican-style lagers just waiting to be paired with yard games, end-of-the-summer beach days, and an afternoon spent sitting in a lawn chair with your feet immersed in the cooling water of a kiddie pool. From coast-to-coast, brewers have crafted countless no-frills, crushable beers that deserve your attention all year long…. Especially in the dog days of August.

Since we’re not in the business of making you do the heavy lifting, we found eight of the best Mexican-style lagers available today. Then we ranked them based on overall flavor and how well they pair with Mexican food. Keep scrolling to see them all.

8. Cerveceria Colorado ¡Venga!

ABV: 4.9%

Average Price: $10 for a six-pack

The Beer:

This 5% ABV lager was crafted to taste like the traditional Mexican lagers we all know and love. Cold fermented with Mexican lager yeast, it’s known for its no-frills, crisp, surprisingly balanced flavor profile. It’s the kind of beer you’ll want to have on hand all year long.

Tasting Notes:

There are a ton of classic Mexican lager aromas on the nose with cereal grain and corn upfront. There are also aromas of citrus peels, freshly cut grass, and gently floral hops. Sipping it reveals more corn sweetness, bready malts, lemon peels, hay, and herbal, floral hops. The finish is crisp and highly crushable.

Bottom Line:

While some authentic Mexican lagers might lean a little watery, Cerveceria Colorado ¡Venga! Is crisp, flavorful, and pairs well with spicy nachos.

7. 21st Amendment El Sully

ABV: 4.8%

Average Price: $11 for a six-pack

The Beer:

21st Amendment El Sully is a 4.8% ABV Mexican-style lager brewed with pilsner malt, flaked maize, Vienna malt, flaked barley, and acidulated malt. It gets its hop presence from the liberal use of US Golding and Magnum hops. The result is an award-winning, sweet, refreshing, clean take on the classic style.

Tasting Notes:

On the nose, you’ll be greeted with aromas of sweet corn, cereal grains, lemon peels, orchard fruits, and floral hops. Drinking it brings forth notes of cereal grains, corn sweetness, wet grass, hay, honey, lemon zest, and floral, lightly bitter hops. It’s a crisp, refreshing, crushable beer if ever there was one.

Bottom Line:

21st Amendment El Sully isn’t supposed to blow you away with aroma and flavor. But it still manages to have a ton of both. The sweetness and bitterness ratio pairs perfectly with cheesy quesadillas.

6. Ska Mexican Logger

ABV: 5.2%

Average Price: $11.99 for a six-pack

The Beer:

You don’t have to be a lumberjack to enjoy Ska’s take on Mexican lager called Mexican Logger. Brewed with select malts, proprietary yeast, fresh water, and Saaz hops, it’s like a Mexican lager meets a Bohemian pilsner. It’s known for its light, clean, fresh, and very crisp flavor profile.

Tasting Notes:

Complex aromas of yeasty bread, cracker malts, sweet corn, lemon peels, fresh-cut grass, pepper, and floral, herbal hops greet you before your first sip. The palate is loaded with flavors like bready malts, cereal grains, corn, lemon zest, honey, straw, grass, and floral, earthy hops. The finish is spicy, floral, and lightly bitter.

Bottom Line:

This is a very well-rounded take on the style. There’s a perfect balance of malts and hops. Its malty backbone and crisp, floral finish make a great compliment to savory, meat-filled tacos.

5. Great Lakes Mexican Lager With Lime

ABV: 5.4%

Average Price: $10.49 for a six-pack

The Beer:

There’s no confusion about what you’re about to drink when you crack open a can of Great Lakes Mexican Lager With Lime. That’s exactly what it is. Brewed with 2-row base malt, flaked corn, and Mt. Hood hops, it gets a tart, zesty kick from the addition of lime peel and lime puree.

Tasting Notes:

On the nose, you’ll find aromas of sweet corn, pale malts, citric lemon, and floral hops. The palate continues this trend with a ton of corn sweetness, bready malts, grass, honey, lime zest, and floral, earthy hops. It’s a beer for fans of light, crisp beers and lime tartness.

Bottom Line:

This is a classic, no-frills Mexican-style lager. It’s crisp, easy to drink, and has a nice kick of lime. It pairs well with fried fish tacos.

4. Epic Los Locos

ABV: 4.8%

Average Price: $11 for a six-pack

The Beer:

You don’t have to wait until Cinco de Mayo to imbibe this sublimely refreshing take on the classic Mexican-style lager. Brewed with Weyerman pilsner malt, Carapils malt, and yellow corn, it’s hopped with Amarillo hops and flavored with lime juice and sea salt.

Tasting Notes:

The nose is a mix of bready malts, cereal grains, a ton of corn, lime zest, and floral, piney hops. On the palate, you’ll find notes of biscuit malts, cereal grains, sweet corn, grass, honey, lime peels, floral hops, and light salinity. Crisp, citrusy, salty, what’s not to love on a hot day?

Bottom Line:

This Mexican-style beer is already refreshing and flavorful. But the addition of lime and sea salt elevates it to a new level. This crisp, refreshing, salty brew perfectly complements freshly made salsa and chips.

3. Lone Tree Mexican Lager

ABV: 5.3%

Average Price: $10.49 for a six-pack

The Beer:

Lone Tree figured this beer was good enough that it didn’t need a comical or pun-filled name. It was good enough to simply be called Mexican Lager. This 5.3% ABV lager is brewed with malt, hops, water, yeast, and flaked corn. The result is an award-winning, crisp, clean, thirst-quencher of beer.

Tasting Notes:

A nose of cracker-like malts, corn sweetness, orange peels, lemon, pears, black pepper, and floral, piney hops makes for a welcoming start to this beer. The palate is sweet and crisp with notes of freshly baked bread, sweet corn, fresh-cut grass, pepper, orchard fruits, lemongrass, and floral hops. A beer worth trying.

Bottom Line:

The sweet corn, cracker malt backbone citrus peels, and floral hop flavors make for a well-balanced, crushable beer that pairs perfectly with fresh guacamole.

2. AleSmith Clásico

ABV: 5.2%

Average Price: $12.49 for a six-pack

The Beer:

San Diego’s AleSmith is well-known for its IPA prowess, but if you don’t give this Mexican-style lager a shot, you’re missing out. Available year-round, AleSmith Clásico gets its European flavor from the use of Munich and Vienna malts and select hops. The result is a sweet corn-forward, malty, crisp, thirst-quenching beer.

Tasting Notes:

A lot is going on with this beer’s nose. There are scents of sweet corn, bready malts, wet grass, hay, tropical fruits, lemon peel, and floral hops. Sipping it brings forth notes of cereal grains, corn sweetness, fresh bread, grass, honey, bright lemon, orchard fruits, and herbal hops. The finish is a gentle mix of malt sweetness and floral hop bitterness.

Bottom Line:

This beer used to be brewed to pay homage to the band Sublime. You can still enjoy some of their early 90s hits while you sip this balanced, sweet, crisp beer and enjoy a loaded burrito.

1. Hi-Wire Atlántico

ABV: 4.5%

Average Price: $12.49 for a six-pack of 16-ounce cans

The Beer:

This sessionable, 4.5% ABV Mexican-style lager was crafted to have authentic aromas and flavors. Brewed with select hops and Pilsner malt, Vienna malt, and flaked maize, it’s known for its corny, sweet, malty backbone, fruity, earthy body, and gently bitter, floral, hoppy finish.

Tasting Notes:

Notable aromas of sweet corn, yeasty bread, cracker malts, lemon peels, orchard fruits, honey, and floral, herbal hops make for a great start to this beer. The palate continues this trend in the best way possible with a ton of bready malt, pilsner malt, sweet corn, citrus peel, fresh-cut grass, and floral, herbal hop flavors. The finish is corny sweet, crisp, and lightly bitter.

Bottom Line:

If you only try one beer from this list, make it this one. In a sea of no-frills Mexican-style lagers, this is one of the most well-balanced we’ve tried. It pairs well with traditional tamales.

Finishing isn’t new in the world of whiskey, but if you look around your local liquor store in 2024, you may notice that there are more finished bourbons than ever before. People are buying finished bourbons like they’re going out of style despite the fact that they’re… clearly not.

Whether established heritage brands like Wild Turkey and Old Forester or nascent names like Bhakta and Bardstown Bourbon Company, most whiskey brands have thrown their hats in the ring to challenge for finished-bourbon supremacy. With that in mind, there’s no time like the present to consider which of these brands has the best new finished bourbon of the year. After all, we’ve just passed the halfway mark of 2024 and are about to enter the fall release schedule, which classic Straight Bourbon Whiskey dominates.

So, before we get into the thick of the traditional bourbon calendar, here are the ten best finished bourbons released in 2024 (so far!).

10. Ezra Brooks Port Cask Finish Bourbon

ABV: 49.5%
Average Price: $32

The Whiskey:

Ezra Brooks is one of the more established names in bourbon, with a history that traces back to its founding in 1957. In 2024, however, this port-finished bourbon represents the newest lineup extension for the respected brand.

Tasting Notes:

Nose: Aroma notes of candy cane, rich cherries, warm vanilla, and wood chips greet the nose at first before accents of tobacco leaf and clove enter the fray.

Palate: The ripe cherry note rushes in at first with nectarines and bananas, chocolate chips, and vanilla, painting the palate with a lush layer of sweetness. This whiskey has a lot of grip on the palate, punching well above its weight proof-wise and delivering a sipping experience more in line with whiskey in the 110 range.

Finish: The finish is lingering, marked by vanilla, oak, and milk chocolate. At the very end, this whiskey reintroduces the cherry note found early in each sip. This is surprisingly tasty stuff.

Bottom Line:

While this bottle is a relative bourbon — like the rest of the Ezra Brooks lineup — in a similar fashion, it shouldn’t be mistaken for a bottom-shelf whiskey to overlook. On the contrary, Ezra Brooks’ entire brand portfolio is perhaps best considered an incredible value bourbon, capable of delivering great quality for a wallet-friendly price. This bottle is the brand’s prime example.

9. Blood Oath Pact No. 10

ABV: 49.3%
Average Price: $185

The Whiskey:

Blood Oath is the well-received brainchild of food scientist and Luxco Head Distiller John Rempe. For Pact 10, Rempe, now a decade deep with these releases, utilized a double cask finish with Cabernet Franc barrels and Merlot casks.

Tasting Notes:

Nose: The entrancing aroma of black pepper, Brazil nuts, caramel, cumin, duck fat, and clove tumble out of the glass on the first pass — forcing you to sit up and pay attention to each unique layer. After spending some time with the glass before imbibing there’s also a lovely cherry cordial undertone that binds all of those disparate parts.

Palate: This whiskey enters the mouth with a chocolatey kick and an almost chalky texture. A fresh crack of black pepper sits atop the chocolate note to go with some bright apricots, piquant raspberries, and a touch of toffee.

Finish: The finish on this whiskey is surprisingly lengthy, even more so given its proof, as the flavors settle mostly at midpalate and toward the back of the jaw, which makes sitting with each sip all the more delightful.

Bottom Line:

The Blood Oath series has featured a wide array of cask finishing techniques, but the throughline has been a high degree of quality, and Pact 10 easily continues that trend. Fans of previous iterations will find this year’s variation to be more in line with a classic finished bourbon profile, and that’s perfectly fine. John Rempe proves here that he can play the hits as well as anyone.

8. Bhakta 2014 Armagnac Finish Bourbon Whiskey

ABV: 52.7%
Average Price: $149

The Whiskey:

Bhakta’s 99% corn bourbon, aged for 9 years, underwent a 125-day cask-finishing process in the belly of French Oak barrels, which previously held Bhakta’s award-winning 1973 Armagnac vintage.

Tasting Notes:

Nose: Brownies and watermelon…do my nostrils deceive me? A fresh inhalation introduces cinnamon and white pepper, while the intriguing watermelon note asserts itself more forcefully on the second pass, along with milk chocolate.

Palate: Chocolate-covered cantaloupe, black pepper, and dates splash over the tongue, seizing its edges as this viscous pour displays some sturdy staying power. There are waves of vanilla, maraschino cherry, and Vermont maple syrup waiting in the wings and undulating under the surface as well.

Finish: This whiskey packs a lengthy finish that gently ripples from the middle of the tongue out to the periphery like a rung bell. The aftershock of a flavor bomb detonated without a hitch.

Bottom Line:

This top ten list is full of incredible whiskey, and the fact that Bhakta 2014 Armangac Finish Bourbon landed at this spot indicates that. This delightfully complex whiskey seamlessly introduces intriguing layers of flavor and coats your tongue without ever becoming muddled or mystifying. A whiskey that dares to be different and yet is instantly recognizable as a liquid indulgence — it’s hard to ask for more than that.

7. Jos. A. Magnus Cigar Blend Batch 208

ABV: 57.76%
Average Price: $190

The Whiskey:

Jos. A Magnus Cigar Blend is the heralded premium expression under industry icon Nancy Fraley’s purview. Eschewing the trend of releasing premium bourbon annually, Cigar Blend is released sporadically in limited batches. Batch 208, nicknamed “Maduro,” was released as part of a series of batches 207-212 earlier this year, which featured a blend of 9-year-old MGP 36% and 21% rye-recipe bourbon, 16-year-old Barton rye-recipe bourbon, and 20-year-old MGP 36% rye bourbon.

Tasting Notes:

Nose: The proof is evident on the nose with cherry cola, tobacco leaf, and rich oak tones bursting out of the glass. After a few waves, there are additional notes of organic honey and trail mix, with dried cranberries, mixed nuts, and dark chocolate chunks coming through.

Palate: Brown sugar greets the initial sip as slightly savory tones with nutmeg and barrel char, plus some mocha and dark chocolate. The whiskey has a well-rounded texture, but despite that, it’s worth noting that the proof is a tad distracting on the first pass. Subsequent sips see the alcohol burn dialed down, and once acclimated, those flavors really present themselves well on the palate.

Finish: The finish has a bright cherry, allspice, vanilla flavor that pairs well with a surprising pop of fernet. It lasts for a long time, and even though it’s a bit hot, it’s really quite a pleasant send-off.

Bottom Line:

Jos. A. Magnus Cigar Blend is one of the expressions that helped reinvigorate America’s interest in unique cask-finished whiskeys. It presents the alluring challenge of pairing this bourbon with a fine cigar like you would a well-aged brandy. For the aptly named Maduro batch, I’d highly advise you to accept the challenge.

6. Peerless Rum Barrel Finished Bourbon Whiskey

ABV: 53.5%
Average Price: $149

The Whiskey:

This non-chill filtered, sweet mash barrel-proof bourbon pairs some of Peerless’ finest whiskey with a rum cask finish. With this second batch now under their belt, it looks like we can expect this expression to continue into the future.

Tasting Notes:

Nose: The rum is evident in the best way possible, with bananas flambé and brown sugar resting on a bed of dense oak, cooked pear, and candied walnuts.

Palate: Carmelized bananas and custard hit the tongue with gusto on the first sip, along with the walnuts and brown sugar. The liquid has a heavy mouthfeel but couples that with a slick texture that explodes on the back palate, gently spreading up the roof of the mouth with grilled pineapple, joining more vanilla and oak.

Finish: The finish is medium-length, marked by more brown sugar and walnuts, with some black pepper, more muted banana peel, and cinnamon bark rounding things out.

Bottom Line:

Peerless presents: a rum lover’s bourbon. Whereas some brands go too far, allowing the finishing cask to do the heavy lifting while the base spirit is relegated to being background noise, this expression is truly a symphony that shines a light on both the bourbon and the rum. This is easy sipping; an island is not required.

5. Rabbit Hole Mizunara Founder’s Collection 15-Year-Old Kentucky Straight Bourbon Finished In Japanese Oak

ABV: 57.1%
Average Price: $1,500

The Whiskey:

For this decadent exploration of terroir, Rabbit Hole founder Kaveh Zamanian took barrels of his brand’s premium 15-year-old bourbon and finished them for over 11 months in one of the most expensive finishing casks on the market: Japanese Mizunara oak. Due to the limited nature of both the bourbon and the finishing cask, less than 2,200 bottles of this expression were released.

Tasting Notes:

Nose: Cedar, butterscotch, and orange blossom waft out of the glass to greet the nostrils when you first go in to nose this whiskey. There’s also a fair bit of leather and, intriguingly, squid ink hiding under those sweet, citrus-forward aromas. The nose is generally restrained in its sweetness, but there are layers to it, with notes of sugar cookies and honey joining allspice and clove.

Palate: The flavor of indulgently rich vanilla cream with orange zest opens the first sip, introducing the palate to an exceptionally slick mouthfeel. As this whiskey transitions toward the middle of the palate, one finds white chocolate, allspice, and apricot.

Finish: Each sip closes with a slightly floral flush, which soon gives way to earthy oak tones, a touch of mint, barrel char, and honey. It pulsates down your chest with a mellow, medium-length finish.

Bottom Line:
Mizunara is prized for its unique flavor profile, and it’s an expensive oak to procure because the trees each barrel is made from must be aged between 200-500 years before being felled. In that sense, while the bourbon in this release is hyper-aged at 15 years old, this is truly a whiskey over 200 years in the making. Give that fact due consideration as you savor every drop of this magnificent release — it’ll be a struggle not to empty the bottle in a far quicker fashion.

4. Seelbach’s Private Reserve Amburana Finished Bourbon Batch 003

ABV: 57.65%
Average Price: $90

The Whiskey:

Seelbach’s Private Reserve springs from the mind of Blake Riber, founder of Seelbach’s, one of the nation’s leading digital distributors of craft spirits. For the third batch of Seelbach’s Private Reserve, the brand has taken a nearly 7-year-old bourbon with 78% corn, 10% rye, and 12% malted barley and finished it in first-use toasted Amburana barrels for a mere eight days.

Tasting Notes:

Nose: Cinnamon rolls with vanilla frosting rumble out of the glass, along with the aroma of Brazil nuts, coffee cake, and caramel. Accenting notes of nutmeg, clove, and tobacco leaf also fill the air.

Palate: The flavors on the palate are more delicate and exhibit a finesse that you wouldn’t initially assume from such a forceful nose. The vanilla cream and cinnamon are soft on the palate, and the flavor of almond meat helps to curb the sweetness, which is evident but well executed. There’s a little milk chocolate and apricot on the second pass, which adds depth, as does a fresh sprinkle of clove and cayenne pepper.

Finish: The finish has trace elements of vanilla cream, cinnamon, apricot, and almond, which are evident throughout each sip. Intriguingly, the finish also introduces the flavor of stout beer. It’s medium to long with almost no alcohol punch, which allows you to mine all of the flavors it brings to the table.

Bottom Line:

Bourbon fans have become well-acclimated to Amburana finishes over the past few years. Despite the powerful impact the Brazilian casks can wield on a spirit, some increasingly restrained and nuanced experiments have been hitting the market. Seelbach’s Private Reserve’s third batch is one such example, utilizing the exotic wood sparingly to spectacular results.

3. Old Forester 117 Series: Rum Finish Bourbon

ABV: 47.5%
Average Price: $250

The Whiskey:

Old Forester’s 117 Series first debuted in the spring of 2021 to spotlight some of the distillery’s most exclusive experimental whiskey. For this 2024 iteration, they’ve taken barrels that held rum for at least four years and used them to finish their classic base bourbon for approximately six months. Of note, each bottle in the 117 Series comes in the smaller-than-standard 375ml format.

Tasting Notes:

Nose: The aroma of caramelized bananas, chocolate-covered mocha beans, apricots, and citrus tones strut their stuff early on as you nose this whiskey. Additionally, there’s a bright cherry undertone and some palo santo lurking underneath.

Palate: A slick mouthfeel coats your palate almost immediately when you sip this whiskey and introduces milk chocolate and bright cocktail cherry sweetness to go along with flavors like bruised peaches, overripe bananas, and white pepper. The tip of the tongue has a bit of creme brulee sweetness and dark chocolate, and that palo santo aroma from the nose hits the tongue at midpalate, providing momentum from the tip of the tongue to the back of the throat.

Finish: The 117 Series’ Rum Finished Bourbon has a lengthy finish aided by its mouth-coating viscousness. The length of the finish is welcome, and the flavors are all tasty, but the absence of spice is a noticeable, albeit small, knock against it.

Bottom Line:

Tasted in this lineup, Old Forester’s Rum Finished Bourbon proves that it’s just as impressive in an open field as it is against its own. This whiskey ranked high among the best in Old Forester’s brand lineup, and its placement near the top of this list should only serve to solidify it as one of the better bourbon releases of the year.

2. Angel’s Envy Cask Strength Port Finished Bourbon

ABV: 59.9%
Average Price: $310

The Whiskey:

Angel’s Envy Cask Strenght Bourbon, now in its 11th iteration, takes some of the most distinctive barrels in the brand’s portfolio and sees them finished in barrels that previously held port wine for up to 14 months. At full cask-strength, this release and the brand’s cask-strength rye are typically the highest-proofed expressions you can expect from Angel’s Envy each year.

Tasting Notes:

Nose: Nutty port tones create the aroma of umami, chilled black cherries, and freshly polished leather on the nose. It immediately comes across as rich and displays a depth of flavor that draws you into the glass, beckoning an initial sip.

Palate: The whiskey is at first demure, and it lures you into exploring further until it bursts unexpectedly at midpalate with rich cherry notes, leather, peanut shell, and chewy ginger cookies. The mouthfeel is dense, allowing all of that flavor to fully blossom on a bed of mature oak, cooked apples, vanilla, and black pepper spice.

Finish: The finish is impressively lengthy, showcasing more of a cherry undertone with dense oak, milk chocolate chips, and clove rising in prominence until it’s all gone.

Bottom Line:

Angel’s Envy Cask Strength is a pricy expression that proves its mettle by plumbing a depth of flavor far beyond the reach of most other bourbons on the market today. By serenading you with a muted siren’s song up front, this whiskey crashes against your palate with syrupy red berries and all of the hallmarks of mature oak, which will leave you floating on waves of lip-smacking flavor.

1. 15 Stars Straight Bourbon Whiskey Finished In Sherry Casks

ABV: 57.5%
Average Price: $180

The Whiskey:

For this award-winning expression, 15 Stars showcases a blend of 18, 13, and 10-year-old straight bourbon whiskeys from Kentucky and Indiana. That bourbon is then finished in sherry casks for an undisclosed period of time.

Tasting Notes:

Nose: Rich black cherry tones fuse with figs and brown sugar to create a rich layer of aromas that sit over some slight smokiness and an interesting note of brioche bun. The aroma notes come across as truly decadent, with an alluring depth of flavor that also contains some oily nuttiness and a savoriness along the lines of duck fat.

Palate: In the mouth, the flavor of gooey waves of caramel sauce over vanilla ice cream with Luxardo cherries and a slight bit of peanut brittle will light up your eyes and lead to you eagerly welcoming a second sip. Each layer is dense and well-developed, and once you’ve got that second sip on your palate, the umami, and nutty tones accent the red-berry sweetness and push all of the top notes deeper into your taste buds.

Finish: The finish is only medium-length, and the proof is nearly absent throughout, but the mouthfeel is oily, and the persistent flavor of cherries, caramel, and vanilla hangs on through the end of each sip with salted almonds and nutmeg keeping the balance.

Bottom Line:

15 Stars isn’t really a well-established brand, but for those in the know, this is the expression that put them on the map. If you weren’t previously familiar with this brand, be advised that they have some rock-solid whiskeys all along their core lineup. However, this Sherry Cask Finished Bourbon is far and away the star of the show, and its place on this list is all the proof you need.

K-pop sensation Blackpink has run its course. Now, it is time for each of the group’s members to find their footing as an individual act, and Lisa is doing just that.

So, far the “Rockstar” singer has reportedly inked a new record deal, gearing up for her first solo performance, and filmed her debut acting role. Today (August 15), Lisa released her highly anticipated next single.

On “New Woman,” co-produced by Max Martin and ILYA, Lisa joins forces with fellow international star Rosalía. On the track, the duo laser in on empowering those on the path of rediscovery, as Lisa sings: “Soak up, all new / So I cut / I go, go to the root / Off to bloom, yeah / Purple into gold / Pain has come and gone again / Walked through that fire / I rediscover.”

In the official video, directed by Dave Meyers, each lady takes a moment to enjoy reflect on their trying year. After a second of self-care, they connect for a bonding exchange of sisterhood. The cross-cultural collaboration is just the sort of empowerment anthem that just has much to heal the musicians (who are both experiencing new beginnings) as it can the listening audience.

Watch Lisa’s official video for “New Woman” featuring above.

A couple of months back, Uproxx and Skrewball Peanut Butter Whiskey teamed up with Benny Blanco for “Skrew The Usual” — a must-watch dissection of Benny’s superpowered creative approach.

But Benny isn’t the type of artist to be pinned down to just one thing, the producer, songwriter and chef is multi-talented — so in addition to talking about how he crafted some of his most beloved hits of the past decade, we also got to talking about his work in the kitchen. That conversation led us to Benny’s Sticky Icky Sundae (as well as a custom cocktail that is also a must-try).

So what is this sundae? It’s an addictive whiskey-infused banana split that has easily become our dessert of the summer.

The sundae features brûléed bananas, Salt & Straw’s famous “Sea Salt with Caramel Ribbons” ice cream, a Skrewbal Whiskey-infused magic shell, and Skrewball Whiskey-soaked cherries and whipped cream. Trust us, it tastes even better than it sounds. So to help level up your summer and close the season’s final full month in delicious style, we’ll walk you through how to make Benny’s Sticky Icky Sundae.

But before we talk about the sundae, we need to get an essential ingredient out of the way first — the Skrewy magic shell.

Skrewy Magic Shell

Ingredients:

• 4 oz. natural peanut butter (any brand you love)
• 4 oz. coconut oil
• 3 Tbsp Skrewball Whiskey

The Skrewy Magic Shell is the essential peanut butter and coconut drizzle that pulls all the ingredients together and makes this decadent treat so addicting. It also levels up this simple dessert to gourmet status. Luckily, it’s fairly easy to make and will have you feeling like Carmy Berzatto.

Method:

• Combine all three ingredients in a mixing bowl into fully emulsified
• Pour into a squeeze bottle
• Fully cool prior to use

Bam, you’ve just made delicious magic. On to the sundae!

Benny’s Sticky Icky Sundae

Ingredients:

• 1 Brûléed banana cut into halves
• 3 scoops of Salt & Straw “Sea Salt with Caramel Ribbons” ice cream
• Skrewy Magic Shell
• Three Skrewball-soaked cherries
• Skrewbal candied peanuts to taste
• Skrewball-infused whipped cream
• Edible gold leaf

A couple of caveats with these ingredients. If you don’t want to go through the trouble of making candied peanuts or Skrewball-infused whipped cream, you can sub those ingredients with regular candied peanuts and whipped cream. But, if you truly want to impress, we suggest you go all the way and make those simple ingredients from scratch.

Any candied peanuts recipe on the internet will work, simply add a dash of Skrewball to the recipe to give them that decadent whiskey goodness. For the whipped cream all you need to do is take some heavy whipping cream, add a glug of Skrewball to taste, whip it together and voila! You’ve got whiskey-infused whipped cream.

For the Skrewball-infused cherries, simply soak maraschino cherries in whiskey overnight.

What You’ll Need

• Sundae bowl
• Torch
• Edible gold leaf

Method

• slice a banana lengthwise and brûlée by topping with sugar and torching the top of each halve.
• Place 3 scoops of ice cream on top of brûléed banana halves
• Top with signature Skrewy magic shell.
• Add peanuts.
• Top with whipped cream and cherries.
• Add gold leaf.

Bottom Line:

This dish is the perfect combination of sweet and rich flavors, resulting in a decadent, addicting (in the best way) and boozy dessert. It’s also deceptively simple, making it a visually impressive dish to whip up for friends!

Name a better burger variety than a big, juicy, decadent bacon cheeseburger. Go ahead, we’ll wait…

You’ve got nothing right? That’s because there isn’t a single ingredient that elevates a hamburger quite like bacon… Oh, except cheese, which this also has. The smokey aroma and flavor, the subtle sweetness, the crunch — all the elements come together into a harmonious symphony of the senses, delivering the ultimate flavor bomb. Our mouths are watering just thinking about our favorite bacon cheeseburgers.

The fast food bacon cheeseburger is amazing when you think about it. How can something so delicious that your taste buds vibrate with glee at the first bite take less than 15 minutes to prepare? It’s the sort of dish that makes drive-thrus seem like true wonders of the world. Okay, maybe we’re overselling it a bit but the point is that bacon cheeseburgers are f*cking delicious.

But of course, that begs the question — which fast food restaurant makes the best? In an era where more and more people are opting for a market run or a sit-down restaurant rather than hitting up the drive-thru, this is an important question to answer. Fast food is expensive, so if you’re going to spend on it, you deserve the very best.

We found the best bacon cheeseburger in all of fast food by ranking the top 12 chains. Here is to great burgers — let’s eat!

12. Dairy Queen — Bacon Two Cheese Deluxe 1/3lb Signature Stackburger

Thoughts & Tasting Notes:

Who are the people who are eating food at Dairy Queen? I have to know. This fast food chain routinely ranks last in our food rankings. I’ve yet to come across a dish that tastes good. Do you know how hard it is to f*ck up a bacon cheeseburger? Somehow Dairy Queen has done it!

This burger features two (or three) 1/3 pound beef patties, two pathetic strips of bacon, a slice of American and White Cheddar (why?!) cheese, tomato, onion, pickles, ketchup, and mayo. The beef is dry, with one flavor note: salty. The bacon might as well be nonexistent, it offers neither flavor nor crunch, and the lettuce is straight-up sad.

This burger has nothing going for it.

The Bottom Line:

Maybe the worst fast food burger I’ve ever eaten. Period.

Find your nearest Dairy Queen here.

11. A&W — Bacon Double Cheeseburger

Thoughts & Tasting Notes:

It’s getting a little bit harder to find A&W restaurants in Southern California and I got to be honest, that doesn’t bother me. As mean as it sounds, A&W isn’t particularly good at anything it offers (even the root beer) but if you have a lot of A&Ws in your local area I feel like it’s my duty to warn you that this bacon cheeseburger isn’t very good.

What’s great is you get 1/3 pound beef patties, so this burger is a bit beefier than a lot of the competition, but the bacon leaves a lot to be desired. It’s thin, lacking in crunch, and lacking in flavor. Considering this is a ranking that revolves around bacon cheeseburgers, bacon quality is pretty important.

In addition to the bacon, you’ve got two slices of American cheese, tomato, white onions, pickles, shredded lettuce, and mayo. The accoutrements are all fine with the exception of the lettuce, which waters down a lot of the flavor.

The Bottom Line:

Overall, this burger is fine. It’s not bad by any means, but it’s not good either. And for that, it’s living at the backend of this ranking.

Find your nearest A&W here.

10. Sonic — Garlic Butter Bacon Cheeseburger

Tasting Notes & Thoughts

Last year Sonic’s Garlic Butter Bacon Cheeseburger ranked dead last in our ranking of bacon cheeseburgers so we’re happy to see it bumped up a few spots this time around. Does that mean it has gotten any better? Nope. There are other, worse burgers out there, so take this burger’s new rank with a grain of salt. And you might as well add a pinch of a bunch of other ingredients too, because this burger is lacking.

The flavor is dominated by the grilled onions with a touch of pungent garlic and some smoke from the bacon. All together, that creates a wonderful savory finish. So where did this burger go wrong? The beef.

The meat patty here doesn’t offer a whole lot of flavor. It’s more texture than anything else and doesn’t cut through the more interesting layers of garlic, onion, and bacon. This burger comes across as unbalanced. It’s almost the polar opposite of our number one choice.

The Bottom Line:

Great accoutrements, bad beef.

Find your nearest Sonic here.

9. Jack in the Box — Bacon Ultimate Cheeseburger

Tasting Notes & Thoughts

The Bacon Ultimate Cheeseburger has a lot going for it — it provides a flavorful mix of sweet, tangy, and earthy flavors. It’s unlike a lot of bacon burgers on this list, but like a lot of the burgers living at the back half of this ranking, it’s the meet that holds it back.

The beef is underseasoned. I’m not sure it’s seasoned at all, it just tastes like cooked beef. I’m not getting salt, pepper, nothing! And the beef doesn’t taste good enough to justify its lack of seasoning. The bacon is also way too thin for its smokey flavor to cut through the double dose of American and Swiss Cheese, ketchup, mustard, and mayo.

The Bottom Line:

The beef is flavorless and the bacon is too thin to cut through.

Find your nearest Jack in the Box here.

8. Burger King — Bacon King

Tasting Notes & Thoughts

The Bacon King is a big, substantial, meat mountain of a burger. It has all the makings of a great fast food dish, but it’s just so damn dry.

The beef has a burnt, over-cooked flavor with a moisture-less gravely texture. The bacon, on the other hand, is pretty good. Smokey and slightly sweet, emphasized by the sweet tang the ketchup and mayo bring to the dish. This burger is almost good to the point of being frustrated.

Come on Burger King, you’re so close here.

The Bottom Line:

With a few tweaks, this burger could go from just fine to very good. Unfortunately, there is nothing you can do to get it there.

Find your nearest Burger King here.

7. McDonald’s — Bacon Quarter Pounder With Cheese

Tasting Notes & Thoughts

Beef, salty, and sweet with a sharp spice from the white onions and a lot of earthy tang from the wet pickles. It’s a decent burger, but the bacon is barely there. The strips are thin and sparingly used to the point that they barely translate through all the other flavors.

The Bottom Line:

It’s a good way to slightly elevate a Quarter Pounder but if what you want is a bacon cheeseburger, this fails to deliver thanks to its lack of bacon.

Find your nearest McDonald’s here.

6. Carl’s Jr. — Double Western Bacon Cheeseburger

Tasting Notes & Thoughts

The Carl’s Jr. Double Western Bacon Cheeseburger is the first bacon burger on this that’s worth ordering. It’s not the best, but it’s very good. The barbecue sauce is slathered on this burger heavily, offering a strong sweet tang that dominates the overall flavor.

In addition to the sweet BBQ you’ve got savory notes from the deep-fried onions, some charred notes from the beef, and a bit of smokiness from the bacon. Unfortunately despite having two ingredients that should provide crunch and texture, this burger comes across as soggy because of how inundated with BBQ sauce it is.

The Bottom Line:

A very good… but not great bacon cheeseburger.

Find your nearest Carl’s Jr. here.

5. Rally’s / Checkers — BaconZilla

Tasting Notes & Thoughts

Anytime a fast food brand comes up with a dork name for its bacon cheeseburger, you know it’s going to be good. Case in point, Rally’s BaconZilla. On two patties of beef you get two slices of American cheese, ketchup, mayo, and four strips of bacon. Now we’re f*cking talking!

A single bite treats your tastebuds to a mix of beefy, smokey, sweet, salty, and meaty flavors that cut through the sauce and are elevated by it, rather than masked (looking at you, numbers 6-12).

This is a great bacon burger. But we can do better!

The Bottom Line:

Delivers on the sort of unhinged decadence you want from a bacon cheeseburger.

Find your nearest Rally’s/Checkers here.

4. Five Guys — Bacon Cheeseburger

Tasting Notes & Thoughts

How good or bad your Bacon Cheeseburger is at Five Guys totally depends on how you build it. We like a mix of grilled mushrooms, grilled jalapeños, and barbecue sauce, resulting in a burger that is smokey, umami-packed, and spicy.

Here is the thing though, the bacon cheeseburger at Five Guys is expensive. In Los Angeles, this simple burger build will cost me $15. I could save two dollars by ditching the bacon and ordering a cheeseburger or save $5 and get a patty melt with the same build (minus the bacon of course) and both options would be just as good if not better. That means the bacon at Five Guys is inessential, and because of that it doesn’t deserve top 3 status.

The Bottom Line:

There are better ways to spend your money at Five Guys. We suggest a Patty Melt.

Find your nearest Five Guys here.

3. Smashburger — Double Bacon Smash Burger

Tasting Notes & Thoughts

The Smashburger Double Bacon Smash Burger has a lot going for it. The meat is juicy, beefy, and well-seasoned with a simple mix of salt and pepper, with a Maillard crust that adds a nice amount of texture to each bite. The cheese is salty and creamy, always a good thing, but the real highlight is the bacon.

It’s smokey, crispy, a bit sweet, a bit fatty — I love it. In addition to that you’ve got a wonderfully buttery flaky bun with tomato, lettuce, and mayo to round out the flavors.

This was another hard one. I’d say it was neck and neck with our number one choice and what kept it from getting the top spot was that there wasn’t quite as much bacon as I wanted. I have nothing bad to say about this burger, it’s just not my favorite. But, it could be yours!

The Bottom Line:

A great, high-quality, bacon cheeseburger. There is a lot to love here.

Find your nearest Smash Burger here.

2. Wendy’s — Baconator

Tasting Notes & Thoughts

The Baconator is ticking all the boxes: affordable, beefy, heavy on the bacon, and comes with a dorky name, which as I said earlier, is always a good sign. This burger has a strong emphasis on its bacon, it’s almost an even 50-50 split between being beefy and smokey. The bacon here reminds me of a greasy spoon spot, it’s crispy, oily, smokey, and sweet on the backend, while the beef is rich and meaty, dressed with ketchup and mayo that together create a rich umami finish that comes across as decadent, rich, and deep.

If it weren’t for our number one pick, this would easily be the best-tasting bacon cheeseburger in fast food. But unfortunately for Wendy’s, it’s not.

The Bottom Line:

As much about the bacon as it is about the beef. This is a great bacon cheeseburger, it’s just not our favorite.

Find your nearest Wendy’s here.

1. Shake Shack — Smoky Classic BBQ Burger

Thoughts & Tasting Notes:

This year Shake Shack dropped two new bacon cheeseburgers, the Carolina BBQ Burger (which is very good) and the Smoky Classic BBQ Burger, our new choice for the best fast food bacon cheeseburger.

This burger is incredible. There’s a delicious, lacy, smashed beef patty (or two), American cheese, bacon, pickles, fried onions, and BBQ sauce. No lettuce, no intrusive veggies watering down the flavor, this burger is focused.

The bacon and fried onions provide an audibly pleasing crunch with a smoky umami flavor that complements the sumptuous beefy notes of the patty. All of those elements create a lot of richness on the palate which is nicely balanced by the sweet flavor you get from the BBQ sauce. This burger is a must-order and one of the few single patty burgers that can come across as indulgent and decadent in all of the best ways.

The Bottom Line:

Not only the best bacon cheeseburger of 2024, it may be the best fast food cheeseburger currently on the market. Period.

Find your nearest Shake Shack here.

For a movie as mysterious as Longlegs, you would think that whoever wrote and directed the film would be a creepy and enigmatic entity with dark inner demons and ties to the occult. In reality, Osgood Perkins is just a bit of a movie nerd who likes to be spooked, much like those who go to see his films. And much like a movie nerd, he took to Reddit to answer some questions about the movie, but things went off the rails, much like Longlegs itself.

In a recent Reddit AMA, Perkins shared some very helpful information about the most ambiguous parts about the movie. When asked by one fan if Agent Harker doomed herself to hell since “her mother did not finish committing the murder of the entire Carter family?” Perkins replied, “sure.” So…..there’s that. Another gem includes him saying that “the movie was made entirely by google.” This is the man who made the scariest movie of the year.

There were some more informative answers, too, they just aren’t as fun. Perkins revealed that his biggest influences are Eraserhead, The Shining, and Beetlejuice, even going so far as to say “I should be so lucky to lick Lynch’s boot.”

But the real fans want to know the important stuff, like if Nic Cage was really interested in singing. Of the infamous “Let Me In Now” moment, Perkins said, “i wrote the words and cage did the phrasing. just one of those lucky things that happens if you keep showing up to work. so, like, keep showing up to work,” he said, spoken like a true boss.

Perkins claimed that Cage was down for just about anything, saying, “Nick would run into traffic if he thought it would help the movie.” Thankfully, he did not run into traffic to help the movie. He did unpack some major trauma from his childhood, though.

But the real takeaway here is that Perkins hates TV. One fan commented, “I wish this movie was a series. That’s all I want to say. It left me wanting so much more,” but Perkins didn’t agree, replying, “F*ck tv. And thank you!” Hopefully now you can understand just the type of filmmaker Perkins is.

Finally, he shared his favorite way to watch a film: on a plane. But through someone else, “I like watching people watch movies on airplanes. so i hope someone watches someone else watching someone else watching it on an airplane. over an ocean. at night.” And this? This could be how we make Red Eye 2 happen.

Taylor Swift and Kim Kardashian’s refueled beef might have been a zealous overstep by fans.

Back in April, the Swifties’ argued that The Tortured Poets Department featured a song addressing their past issues. However, the latest title change for the song in question, “Thank You Aimee,” subtly points toward another longtime feud of Swift—Kanye West.

When the record was initially released, it read “thanK you aIMee.” Each of the capitalized letter spelled out Kim. Now, the song is stylized “thank You aimEe,” which emphasizes Ye instead. Ye is reportedly Kanye West’s new legal name.

After Ye’s infamous interruption at the 2009 VMAs, the two have been at odds. Both have exchanged jabs at each other in their subsequent releases.

While the title may have changed, there’s no denying Swift had a few lines for Ye’s ex-wife and mother to his children, Kim, as she sang: “All that time you were throwing punches, I was building something / And I can’t forgive the way you made me feel / Screamed ‘F*ck you, Aimee’ to the night sky, as the blood was gushin’ / But I can’t forget the way you made me heal,” she sings in the chorus.

Listen to Taylor Swift’s song “thank You aimEe” above.

NCIS will soon launch its twenty-second season, and unlike with, say, Law & Order: SVU, none of this procedural’s starting team remains. Both Cote de Pablo and Michael Weatherly, however, will return soon for the NCIS: Tony & Ziva spin off, and we will soon learn more about Leroy Jethro Gibbs‘ history, which includes a formative tragedy, but let’s set that aside for now.

Additionally, it’s worth remembering that NCIS began as a spin off to JAG, which acted as a springboard for Mark Harmon’s Gibbs and Donald “Ducky” Mallard. Sadly, actor David McCallum passed away a few years ago, and Mark Harmon left NCIS during Season 19. Still, fans remain fond of the character who began his primetime TV run as an enigma, whose complicated history was somewhat revealed in various flashbacks with the younger Gibbs portrayed by Mark Harmon’s real-life son, Sean Harmon. Origins will now feature a different actor as young Gibbs, although both Mark and Sean are onboard for producing duties. And fortunately, for those who have had enough of geographically-based spin off titles, the franchise is taking a character-based approach from the start, so let’s explore what we can expect.

Cast

TV Line has published exclusive photos of Austin Stowell as Leroy Jethro Gibbs and Kyle Schmid as Special Agent Mike Franks (portrayed by Muse Watson in NCIS), who the publication also features in the below video. Although Stowell doesn’t exactly resemble how Mark Harmon looked at that age (shoutout to Summer School), he’s pulling off a “younger Gibbs vibe” for sure:

Plot

NCIS: Origins will begin in 1991, over a decade before we meet Gibbs’ later career colleagues, including Ziva (who replaced Kate), Tony, Abby, and more. Additionally, viewers will arrive at this spin off while already knowing about the death of Gibbs’ wife and daughter (who we already know that he took vengeance for) as well as his fraught relationship (first revealed in the “Heartland” episode of NCIS) with dad Jackson, and presumably, we will receive even more texture on why Gibbs spends his later career keeping everything close to his sleeve. Additionally, the first episode’s title has been revealed to be “Enter Sandman.”

As Screenrant has noted, this almost certainly refers to Gibbs’ time in Operation Desert Storm. Perhaps we’ll find out he listened to Metallica a few times, too, you never know. Curiously enough, a Season 7 NCIS episode also featured a character named Navy Captain James “Sandman” Powell, although that’s probably mere coincidence, and this episode will have plenty to do with Gibbs’ tours as a Marine sniper.

Perhaps we will eventually meet young Ducky, and it would be a (Naval) crime to leave him out of this show, particularly because NCIS revealed that the lovable medical examiner and Gibbs were first acquainted in 1980. However, this dynamic hasn’t been confirmed for Origins‘ first season, unlike the appearance of Special Agent Mike Franks as a regular character. Actor Kyle Schmid spoke with TV Insider to discuss the “edgier” tone of this spin off:

“I think 1991 in Los Angeles is a very poignant point in history with a lot that happened. We’re going to be able to explore all of that with phenomenal directing. I think with a younger and edgier cast, it will make for an edgier show in the process. This is super exciting because we have phenomenal actors who really get to dig into this stuff that I’m hoping will blow the doors wide open.”

Additionally, the show’s CBS description clarifies that we’ll meet up with Gibbs “as a new special agent at the fledgling NCIS Camp Pendleton office.” We’ll follow as “[h]e takes his place on a gritty, ragtag team” with Franks in charge.

CBS has done a pretty good job of keeping a lid on specifics, but we will not have to wait much longer to see different shades of Leroy Jethro Gibbs.

Release Date

NCIS: Origins will premiere on October 14, and a full season order is on tap.

Trailer

This teaser does a fine job of showing us the older Gibbs, presumably fishing in Alaska, while living up to its name in teasing what’s to come.