The Cheesecake Factory - Kapolei

In the 1940s, Evelyn Overton discovered a recipe in her local Detroit newspaper that inspired her to create her “Original” cheesecake. The recipe was so beloved that she decided to open a small bakery, though she eventually closed it to focus on raising her children, David and Renee. She moved her baking equipment to her basement kitchen and continued selling cakes to some of the best restaurants in town.

In 1972, Evelyn and her husband Oscar relocated to Los Angeles for one final attempt at starting their own business. With their remaining savings, they opened The Cheesecake Factory Bakery and began selling Evelyn’s cheesecakes to restaurants throughout L.A.

Their son David decided to open a restaurant in Beverly Hills in 1978 to showcase his mother’s cakes. He had a strong intuition that a restaurant with an extensive dessert menu would be a hit. On opening day, there was a line out the door, and over forty years later, many say that line has never stopped!