North Italia coming to Birkdale Village

April 24. Apparently delighted with Birkdale Village, The Cheesecake Factory Inc. will open North Italia in the former Fox & Hound space in Birkdale later this year.

Fox & Hound had a two-decade run in Birkdale Village.

North Italia will take over the 7,400 square foot space and turn a “modern lens on Italian cooking in the upscale, casual-dining segment.” All dishes are handmade from scratch daily. The concept currently has more than three dozen locations in the US.

Background

Calabasas Hills, Ca.-based Cheesecake Factory is a leader in experiential dining with more than 300 restaurants throughout the United States and Canada under brands including The Cheesecake Factory, North Italia and Flower Child.

Their bakery division operates two facilities that produce cheesecakes and other baked products for their restaurants, international licensees and third-party bakery customers. In 2024, it was one of FORTUNE Magazine “100 Best Companies to Work For.”

At North Italia, look for pastas made from scratch daily, hand-tossed pizzas and dinner entrees like a seasonal Anolini, Spicy Italian Grinder, and Braised Short Rib Lumache. North Italia has a full-bodied wine and beer list accompanied by handcrafted cocktails.

About Cheesecake Factory

During the fourth quarter of FY 2023, the Cheesecake Factory reported total revenues of $877.0 million.

Quotable

“Comparable sales and traffic at The Cheesecake Factory restaurants outperformed the broader casual dining industry in the fourth quarter, demonstrating the strength and resilience of our namesake brand and our ability to capture market share. Execution within our restaurants was outstanding with our operators delivering improvements in labor productivity, food efficiency, wage management, and hourly staff and manager retention, driving solid flow-through to support profitability,” said David Overton, chairman and CEO.

The new North Italia location is across Lindholm from Red Rocks and two blocks from The Cheesecake Factory.