Cheesecake Factory hit with sexual harassment lawsuit

TAMPA - A former employee of the Cheesecake Factory in Brandon is accusing the company of subjecting him to a barrage of sexual harassment from other male line chefs and punishing him when he complained.
Michael Knight, 42, has filed a federal lawsuit against the company seeking compensation for "mental anguish (and) loss of dignity."
He says line chefs continually grabbed each others' buttocks and genitalia and simulated sexual intercourse in front of him in the restaurant's Westfield Brandon mall location. He contends he was mocked, punished and ultimately fired in September 2008 after he expressed his discomfort and complained.
The Brandon man's allegations are strikingly similar to those made by the federal Equal Employment Opportunity Commission against the national restaurant chain in an Arizona case that was settled last year for $345,000. In that case, six male employees said they were subject to sexual harassment in a mall restaurant near Phoenix.

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Restaurant Sales Signal `Resiliency' of Consumer Spending

Sales at DineEquity Inc., parent of Applebee’s Neighborhood Grill and Bar, are rising at restaurants open for at least 18 months, thanks to its new Sizzling Skillet entrees starting at $8.99.


BJ’s Restaurants Inc. and The Cheesecake Factory Inc., based in based in Huntington Beach and Calabasas Hills, California, also are reporting more revenue this year, indicating consumers are eating more at casual eateries. Cheesecake’s meals, for instance, range from $5.95 to $27

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The Cheesecake Factory Reports Results for Second Quarter of Fiscal 2010

CALABASAS HILLS, Calif.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--The Cheesecake Factory Incorporated (NASDAQ: CAKE - News) today reported financial results for the second quarter of fiscal 2010, which ended on June 29, 2010. Total revenues were $418.9 million in the second quarter of fiscal 2010 as compared to $407.9 million in the prior year second quarter. Net income and diluted net income per share were $19.2 million and $0.32, respectively.

In the second quarter of fiscal 2010, the Company made a $7.4 million, pre-tax payment to unwind the remaining $100 million interest rate collar on its revolving credit facility balance. This reduced reported diluted net income per share by approximately $0.07. Excluding this item, net income was $23.7 million and diluted net income per share was $0.39.

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3 restaurant servers charged with skimming cards

WASHINGTON (AP) - Three servers at a Cheesecake Factory in Washington are accused of stealing credit card numbers from diners at the restaurant.


Federal authorities say about $117,000 in fraudulent charges were made with the numbers in 2008 and 2009.

The U.S. Secret Service began investigating after Citibank reported many fraudulent charges on cards that had been used at the Cheesecake Factory in the Friendship Heights neighborhood.

Former restaurant employee Nicole Ward is accused of recruiting the other two servers. The three used electronic "skimmers" to capture the numbers and then would hand off the devices to people higher up in the scheme.

The Cheesecake Factory Reports Results for Fourth Quarter of Fiscal 2009

Total revenues were $400.6 million in the fourth quarter of fiscal 2009 as compared to $400.4 million in the prior year fourth quarter. Net income and diluted net income per share were impacted by certain charges recorded in the fourth quarter of fiscal 2009, as detailed below, resulting in a net loss and diluted net loss per share of $13,000 and $0.00, respectively.

In accordance with accounting rules, the Company recorded pre-tax, non-cash charges of $26.5 million related to the impairment of four Grand Lux Cafe restaurants in the fourth quarter of fiscal 2009. All of the Grand Lux Cafe locations remain open. In addition, the Company made a $2.2 million, pre-tax payment to unwind an interest rate collar in conjunction with a $50 million repayment on its revolving credit facility. Collectively, these items reduced reported diluted net income per share by approximately $0.28. Excluding these items, net income was $17.2 million and diluted net income per share was $0.28.

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Cheesecake Factory: revenue steady in 4th quarter

CALABASAS HILLS, Calif. (AP) -- The Cheesecake Factory Inc. said Tuesday that its preliminary fourth-quarter revenue held steady while sales in established locations dipped slightly.

The restaurant chain said sales for the period that ended Dec. 29 were $401 million compared with $400 million during the same quarter in 2008.

Meanwhile, sales in locations open at least a year dipped about 1 percent, with sales down 0.7 percent at the company's namesake locations and down 3.9 percent at Grand Lux Cafes.

Sales in restaurants open at least a year are an important retail industry measure that tracks sales in established stores, rather than newly opened ones.

They declined 2.8 percent in the preceding third quarter, and Cheesecake Factory said the sequential improvement was "driven almost entirely by guest traffic."

The Cheesecake Factory Reports Results for Second Quarter of Fiscal 2009

CALABASAS HILLS, Calif.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Jul. 23, 2009-- The Cheesecake Factory Incorporated (NASDAQ:CAKE) today reported financial results for the second quarter of fiscal 2009, which ended on June 30, 2009.
Total revenues were $407.9 million in the second quarter of fiscal 2009 as compared to $407.1 million in the prior year second quarter. Net income and diluted net income per share were $16.6 million and $0.28, respectively.

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Cheesecake Factory shares rise on upgrade

The Cheesecake Factory Reports Results for First Quarter of Fiscal 2009

Total revenues were $392.8 million in the first quarter of fiscal 2009 as compared to $393.8 million in the prior year first quarter. Net income and diluted net income per share were $10.0 million and $0.17, respectively.