The Cheesecake Factory

We scored all 145 entree-style items on The Cheesecake Factory's menu for how well they fit a diabetes-friendly meal -- glycemic index, carb and calorie load against a standard 60g-carb / 600-calorie budget, and how processed the item is.

Best choices

Ranked by GlucoBeacon's own scoring formula -- glycemic index, carbs and calories against a standard 60g-carb / 600-calorie per-meal budget, and how processed the item is -- highest score first.

Item	Category	Carbs	Calories	Est. GI	Score
Little House Salad	Salads	10g	260	30	83
Tossed Green Salad	Salads	19g	190	25	80
Farm Fresh Eggs	Breakfast	1g	280	0	79
Seared Tuna Tataki Salad	Salads	16g	450	30	75
Farm Fresh Eggs with Grilled Ham	Breakfast	2g	440	0	74
Farm Fresh Eggs with Old Smokehouse Bacon	Breakfast	4g	480	0	72
Grilled Steak Medallions	Steaks	24g	440	25	71
Grilled Steak & Eggs	Breakfast	2g	660	0	70

Approach with caution

These score lowest -- typically a mix of high carbs, high calories, high glycemic index, or heavy processing. Not "never eat," just items to pair with extra protein/fiber or eat in a smaller portion.

Item	Category	Carbs	Calories	Est. GI	Score
Smokehouse B.B.Q. Burger	Burgers	106g	1580	58	23
Macaroni and Cheese Burger	Burgers	81g	1340	58	23
Giant Belgian Waffle	Breakfast	77g	690	75	11
Cinnamon Roll Pancakes	Breakfast	285g	2360	75	11

How we score it

Each item gets up to 30 points for glycemic index (lower is better), 30 points for staying under a 60g carb budget, 15 points for staying under a 600-calorie budget, and 25 points for being minimally processed -- the same formula GlucoBeacon's in-app Restaurant Advisor uses, just run here against a generic budget instead of your own goals. A higher score means an easier fit into most diabetes meal plans; it isn't a guarantee for any individual, since real blood sugar response depends on portion size, what else you eat with it, and your own physiology.