All Over Albany

The guacamole at Cheesecake Factory

We have to admit that we didn't see this coming, either. But it's true: The Cheesecake Factory has good guacamole. In fact, it's probably some of the best you'll find around here.

Now, admittedly, we haven't surveyed the entire Capital Region for quality guacamole (at least, not yet). But we think it'd be hard to do much better than The Cheesecake Factory. We love how they keep the guac chunky enough to tell that you're eating something that was once actually an avocado. And they manage to use just enough chile (jalapeno, it seems) and citrus to pick up all that monounsaturated fattiness. The chips that come alongside are even pretty good, with enough salt to, again, play against the avocado's creaminess.

This Hass-tastic mixture doesn't come cheap, though. It'll set you back 10 bucks. Is it worth it? Well, if you're a guacamole fan, and you're not planning to down the whole of a mammoth Cheesecake Factory entree -- then yeah, it probably is. But it's close. Ten bucks for chips and dip is stretching it.

One caveat: we've had this guacamole a handful of times now and it's been good all but one time. The exception was kind of bland and we're guessing it had something do with the quality of the avocados. Such is the nature of non-standard ingredients, so your mileage may vary.

The Bottom Line

In an upset, some of the Capital Region's better guacamole comes from a chain restaurant. And it's surprisingly filling -- enough so that it makes a pretty good lunch for two people. (And you probably won't even have to wait around lunch.) Tip: go for the mild, it's spicy without overwhelming the avocado.