"The Coachella Valley is several hours east of Los Angeles, but this Cheesecake in Rancho Mirage warrants a special shout-out for being surrounded by a full-on moat. Yes, a moat. Granted, the only crocs we saw nearby were on people’s feet, but if you’re considering conquering this restaurant by force, think twice. The water feature is exactly the kind of absurd detail we expect from the expert planners at TCF, and the Rancho Mirage team nailed the assignment." - brant cox, cathy park, garrett snyder