• Obama defended his record on The Cheesecake Factory on Wednesday.
• He said he frequented the restaurant as a dad and mocked the GOP backlash to his joke.
• "The president wasn't even mad about the Saddam Hussein comparison," Obama said.

Barack Obama wants to set the record straight: he loves The Cheesecake Factory as much as the next dad.

The former president defended his record on the California-based restaurant chain while campaigning for Democrats in Atlanta on Wednesday. At a campaign rally in Cleveland on Saturday, Obama said President Donald Trump's White House renovations had it "looking like Saddam Hussein opened a Cheesecake Factory."

The joke sparked dayslong backlash from Republicans and the White House, who framed Obama as an elitist out of touch with average Americans. Obama countered by saying he's spent plenty of time at the restaurant chain.

"I am the father of two daughters. Do you think I could have survived their childhood without going to The Cheesecake Factory?" Obama asked the crowd on Wednesday. "I lived at Chuck E. Cheese and California Pizza Kitchen and The Cheesecake Factory. That was my jam for about a decade."

Following Obama's initial comment over the weekend, Trump called him a "lousy president" for comparing the White House to the restaurant. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent ate at a Cheesecake Factory on Monday and said he "would tell the Martha's Vineyard set to give it a try."

Obama, who was campaigning with Georgia Sen. Jon Ossoff and gubernatorial candidate Keisha Lance Bottoms, criticized the response to his comment. He said the White House devoted more energy to rebutting his Cheesecake Factory joke than to addressing affordability or allegations of corruption.

"The president wasn't even mad about the Saddam Hussein comparison," he said. "That part didn't bother him, but he was very upset about the Cheesecake Factory. He took great umbrage."

Obama said the White House "mobilized" a response to his joke but "not to inflation," pointing to Bessent's Cheesecake Factory visit: "This is the man who is in charge of the economy, the person who's supposed to be figuring out how to make your life more affordable."

The White House did not respond to a request for comment from Business Insider.

The Cheesecake Factory did not respond to a request for comment and has not publicly addressed the controversy. The company did, however, score a win on Tuesday, when it reported a third-quarter earnings beat. Its stock price was up over 100% this year as of market close Wednesday.

Cheesecake Factory executives did not mention the controversy on the earnings call.

• The Cheesecake Factory served up some sweet sales numbers in an earnings call Tuesday.
• The chain had a lot on its plate: It's been at the center of a presidential feud for days.
• The Cheesecake Factory has yet to comment on the Obama-Trump food fight.

The Cheesecake Factory's moment in the spotlight just got a little sweeter.

The California-based restaurant chain reported solid third-quarter earnings on Tuesday, a few days after getting dragged into a political feud that's become bigger than its famously large portion sizes.

It all started after former president Barack Obama stirred the pot on Saturday when he compared President Donald Trump's White House renovations to Saddam Hussein's take on a Cheesecake Factory, prompting Republicans to seize on the comments and defend the chain.

Amid the firestorm, The Cheesecake Factory reported quarterly revenue of $1.03 billion, up nearly 14% year-over-year, while comparable sales at its restaurants rose over 15% year-over-year.

CEO David Overton credited the chain's new menu items, rewards program, and social media engagement for the growth in sales.

"The Cheesecake Factory has long enjoyed tremendous brand affinity across generations, and its ability to attract younger guests reinforces the enduring appeal and relevance of our namesake concept," Overton said.

Executives did not address the feud during the earnings call Tuesday, and the company has not publicly commented on it.

The company's fiscal third quarter ended September 29, before Obama's comment, so any potential boost the chain gets from the current headlines may be icing on the cake.

Thanks, Obama

The food fight started after Obama invoked The Cheesecake Factory while mocking Trump at a campaign rally in Cleveland on Saturday.

"He's got the White House looking like Saddam Hussein opened a Cheesecake Factory. There's gold everywhere," Obama told the crowd, referring to the gold accents and furnishings Trump has added to the Oval Office. "He's clearly not focused on lowering prices for you."

The White House seized on the comment, while Republican commentators said it showed Obama was an elitist who's out of touch with most Americans.

Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent visited a Cheesecake Factory for lunch on Monday and said he got his usual: the French dip cheeseburger.

"I would tell the Martha's Vineyard set to give it a try," Bessent told Fox Business. He also took a jab at Obama's taste in design, comparing his newly opened presidential library to "Darth Vader's tomb."

Trump, of course, got a piece of the pie as well.

"The White House is now in the best shape it's been since 1792 when it was built," Trump told reporters on Monday, sprinkling in a direct message for Obama: "For you to say it's The Cheesecake Factory, that just shows why you were a lousy president."

Only time will tell if Obama and Trump go back in for seconds.