The Cheesecake Factory and its eclectically grandiose design have suddenly landed in the center of the culture wars. Over the weekend, Barack Obama said Donald Trump’s gold-riddled White House renovations looked like “Saddam Hussein opened a Cheesecake Factory.” Republicans clapped back that the former President was out of touch with everyday Americans. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent made a very public visit to the location near the White House for a French dip cheeseburger, telling the “Martha’s Vineyard set” to “give it a try.” And today, the White House tweeted that the Cheesecake Factory is a “great American institution,” which it followed up with an AI cartoon of Trump standing in front of the restaurant waving to a cheering crowd with American flags.
Clearly, though, there was one important voice missing in this drama: an actual designer of the Cheesecake Factory. So, I called him up.
Rick McCormack began working with the chain when it opened its sixth location in California and joined the company as in-house designer in 1995 after founder David Overton took Cheesecake Factory public. He says Overton was ultimately the “mastermind” of the design, combining Egyptian columns, French limestone floors, Victorian beadboard siding, and custom murals and mosaics. The elements—inspired by restaurants Overton encountered during his time in San Francisco—might seem completely foreign to one another, but with a common palette, “they came together very well,” McCormack says.
“What we were always trying to achieve was creating a bit of a theatrical, touch of exotic dining atmosphere,” McCormack says. The idea was that people would be so impressed with the design that the cost of dining there would surprise them. “I think that ended up holding true just by the sheer success of the Cheesecake Factory.”
McCormack left Cheesecake Factory in 2008 and went on to start his own California-based design firm called McCormack Studios, working with chains like Yard House, Seasons 52, and Matchbox. He says he hasn’t kept close tabs on how the chain’s design has evolved, but “if you walk into a current-day Cheesecake Factory, it’s still very familiar to the ones we have designed and built.”
Now, back to the important questions: Is it fair to compare Trump’s gilded Oval Office to the home of avocado egg rolls and fried mac and cheeseballs? Did McCormack agree with Obama’s comments?
“Not at all. I mean, there’s no comparison of the two. They’re completely different styles,” he says. “I can see where someone uneducated in design or with an untrained eye might think, well, the White House has these ornate build appliqués and the Cheesecake Factory could have some fancy elements, so they must be alike. But I don’t think they could be farther apart.”
McCormack says he found it “sad” that the Cheesecake Factory was being politicized when there were so many bigger issues to worry about. “I also was unhappy that Obama would disparage such a great American success story like the Cheesecake Factory,” he adds.
As for what he thinks of Trump’s White House aesthetics, McCormack says it’s “more than to my liking.” But he points out that no design is universally loved.
“We used to use the term ‘gilding the lily’ at Cheesecake when we took things maybe a little over the top,” McCormack says. “Sometimes, as they say, less is more. And so, if I had been the designer and I was in charge, I probably wouldn’t have done quite as much. But, again, I can appreciate President Trump trying to introduce more of a pomp and circumstance to the White House and make it worthy of what it represents.”
As it turns out, McCormack’s favorite Cheesecake Factory to design was actually the classically columned location in the White Flint Mall in Montgomery County, which closed more than a decade ago.
“Going into the DC area, David thought it would be fun to do more of a federal style exterior to it, so I was able to really immerse myself into Roman architecture and how the classic buildings were,” McCormack says.
Does that mean that Cheesecake Factory was inspired by… the White House?
“Nope. Classic Roman architecture,” he says. I point out the White House is also inspired by classic Roman architecture. “That’s a good point. I never thought of that,” he says.
I mention to McCormack that Trump still has a number of design projects in the works, including an entire ballroom. Clearly, the White House is a fan of his work, and McCormack is no stranger to Corinthian columns. Would he ever consider doing some design work for this administration?
“Oh, in a heartbeat,” he says. “It looks like they have great budgets and are able to spend some money. I would not shy away from that.”
Jessica Sidman covers the people and trends behind DC’s food and drink scene. Before joining Washingtonian in July 2016, she was Food Editor and Young & Hungry columnist at Washington City Paper. She is a Colorado native and University of Pennsylvania grad.
