I love Cheesecake Factory. It’s one of my all-time favorite restaurants, and remains in my family the “special occasion” restaurant for everything from Mother’s Day to birthdays. Their menu is so expansive that you could get something entirely different every time you go. Yet, I’m a creature of habit and tend to get the same things.

There are three essential components to every Cheesecake Factory outing: the free bread, the entree, and the cheesecake. No Cheesecake Factory is complete without all three of these things for me. Their infamous brown bread is addictive. The bread was still steaming warm and super soft when we received it—the perfect state. I prefer the brown bread to the white bread; the pillowy texture and sweetness of the brown bread is simply superior. It pairs so well with the butter, which melted instantly on my slice. You could make a meal out of the bread alone.

My friends and I decided to go all out (thanks Rose) and share an order of the Avocado Egg Rolls for an appetizer. I’ve had avocado rolls at other restaurants, but never at Cheesecake Factory until now. I can safely say the Cheesecake Factory Avocado Rolls are the best. They come in a crispy wrapper filled with plenty of avocado, sun-dried tomato, mixed with red onion and cilantro. The tamarind-cashew dipping sauce it’s served with takes it to the next level. The rolls’ filling are smooth, buttery, and while the avocado is a subtle flavor, the tomato and other elements give it a bit of zest. The dipping sauce is absolutely delicious, adding a strong tangy flavor to the roll. I wanted to eat more of these so badly, but I had to save my appetite for the entree.

I ordered my favorite dish at Cheesecake Factory: the Thai Coconut Lime Chicken. This plate is massive—the size cannot be understated. It’s the size of three meals, which makes it perfect for leftovers. It comes with pieces of pulled chicken, snow peas, shiitake mushrooms, onions, and garlic in a Thai coconut-curry sauce with cashews and pineapples with a side of white rice. This dish is packed with so much flavor and so many textures, and that’s why I love it. The chicken and veggies are soft while the cashews are crunchy. Everything on the plate is drenched in the coconut-curry sauce, so every bite is filled with piquant, tangy, and creamy flavors. The curry has a bit of a kick that might make your nose run if you eat it too fast, but it’s not very spicy. It makes for a burst of flavor with the sweet and acidic chunks of pineapple speckled throughout. Everything in this dish combines amazingly well together for a powerful flavor profile. I dream about this meal.

Of course, we had to get cheesecake to go. I decided to experiment and try something new, but it wasn’t the best. I tried the Cookie Dough Lover’s Cheesecake with Pecans. It’s mostly original cheesecake with a bit of chocolate chip pecan cookie dough on the bottom and cookie dough frosting on top. I did enjoy this cheesecake—it tasted rich, creamy, and sugary. The cheesecake was smooth, while the bottom felt a bit tough and crunchy. The cookie dough elements added notes of vanilla, chocolate, and nuts. However, I wanted more of the cookie dough flavors as opposed to the cheesecake. Fans of original cheesecake would like this, but I am a chocoholic and prefer the richer flavors of chocolate cheesecake. Still, it was a yummy treat.