California Pizza Kitchen

Wow! I am so impressed with the level of service at this CPK location. This has to be the best experience I’ve ever had at this chain. The hostess was such a sweetheart and so kind to me while she seated us. Our server was super attentive and right on point with everything. What a great dinner we had here! I’m so glad we happened to be in the area and eat here. The décor was very SoCal and cool unlike any other locations I’ve been to. Awesome all around! My fave CPK now

Food = 3
Service = 4
Ambience = 3
Noise Level = 1
I won’t be coming back here. Maybe if we ate outside. It was so noisy inside the restaurant. We had to yell at each other.
I had asked our server for lemon with my drink but he never brought any.
The food was ok. The Tortilla spring rolls appetizer was pretty good. We tried all three: Mediterranean Veggie with Marinara, Baja chicken with Guacamole, Thai Chicken with Peanut Sauce. We shared The Works pizza.

Always consistently good. However bar service needs A LOT of help. Drinks take way too long to get.

Wow, I used to LOVE CPK… what happened?! I’m not sure if their quality went down or if its just this location but I am definitely not planning to go back. First off, this location was lacking in ratings/​reviews but I came anyways, mistake #1.
We were seated pretty quickly but our server was nowhere to be found. We sat around waiting and even our host came by and asked if our server had come by yet. Shortly after, an older man came by to introduce himself as our server. Since we had to wait so long already, we were ready to order our drinks and our meal. We decided to share the spinach and artichoke dip and the Garlic Chicken Pizza.
The first thing we got was the Spinach and Artichoke dip… even before we got our drinks. One water and one Arnold Palmer should not take that long to bring out. After we had started eating our appetizer, the next thing that came out was our freakin pizza. and STILL no drinks. I was so appalled that the woman bringing out our food didn’t even notice that we had no drinks on our tables at all. I wasnt even able to tell her the first time she came by with our appetizer because she literally dropped it off at our table and ran away. So when she brought our pizza out, I asked for our drinks. She apologized and brought it out shortly after even though she wasn’t our designated server for the night.
Anyways, on to the food. The Spinach and Artichoke dip was pleasantly very good and decent in size however the Garlic Chicken Pizza was the most plain and tasteless pizza I have ever eaten. The pizza was flimsy and lacked toppings. The chicken was dry and onions were really thinly sliced. It literally looked like they just threw on some toppings in a hurry. This «thing» you call a pizza is $ 13.99? Wow, what a huge disappointment and waste of money. I lost my appetite after the first few bites and instantly regretted coming to CPK for dinner.
Overall, service was lacking and the quality of the food was lacking as well. All I know is that I couldve gone to Pieology or Blazed and created my own pizza with unlimited toppings for way less than what I paid for at CPK. $ 30 down the drain, I wont be back.

I usually always have a great experience when I go to CPK. For some reason the Garlic Fettuccine Alfredo was lacking flavor that day. Could have been a off day but I really hope this is not the same for the rest of the CPK’s
Service was great and no complaints.
I’ll have to give them another shot next time.

I haven’t been to CPK for years, and was really expecting this place to be mediocre as far as the food. First, staff was very friendly here. Décor & ambiance was very intimate. Paintings & displays on the walls gives you a true, vivid perception of what California is about.
I had the jambalaya fettuccine, and my girlfriend had the original BBQ chicken pizza. My fettuccine was very flavorful, and right amount of spice. Noodles were not over cooked.
For dessert, we took hole the butter cake with ice cream. Even after eating it at home, for the price, the butter cake wasn’t bad at all. Not dry, sweetness was good, nice and MOIST!
The FORKS were a bit weird as the prongs were very close together, which affects the amount of food can be picked up.
Our server was a sweetheart. She was very attentive, made us feel comfortable & welcomed, and was apologetic when she felt she was falling behind (even though she wasn’t).
Their menu in the store has a lot more of a selection than the one online.
Giving this place 5 STARS as it was a lot better than what I expected & have experienced in the past.

This is one of the few chain restaurants that I like. After all, they’re the original when it comes to different pizzas than the usual NY style pepperoni. Also have had plank salmon and it was really good, as was the Chinese chicken salad. Went here on a recent Saturday nite at 7:45. I miss the failed Mexican restaurant, El Cholo, that it replaced. So I was anxious to see what this restaurant is doing to try to win in the hard to succeed city of Irvine. From what restaurant owners have told me, they dictate so much in terms of appearance and other things, and nibble the restaurant profits more than the typical town. So how did they do? Months after their grand opening, so far so good.
Outside, the parking was surprisingly not too bad. This mini mall with Ralphs and a bunch of fast food places, stores, etc. can be as bad as any in Irvine, esp. around 6 PM. Inside, it’s definitely the best looking of the 10 or CPK’s I’ve been to. Bright and cheery inside, the kitchen, fired oven, and all the madness was in full view. The bar is pretty cool, There is still that cramped feeling as the other CPK’s. When we entered, the smiling young hostess opened the door for us. We were seated near the far window overlooking the patio, not being used because it was nippy outside. But driving by in the warm months of early fall, it was pretty full and the wine and laughter flowed freely.
Our waitress was friendly and prompt with getting our order, drinks, and bread. Our food arrived in 20 minutes. But then she disappeared. I would’ve wanted a refill on my coke much earlier. And if something was wrong with our food, I would’ve had to track someone down. I’m not shy to do that either even asking for the manager. After all, now that their pizzas are about $ 15 each, they better get ir right. The size of the pizzas are big enough so that my friend and I each ate just a half and both saved the other half for the following day.
The pizzas looked and tasted great as usual. Mine, Thai chicken this time, had a bit more charred bread than usual. But my friend’s Margherita, was perfect. I am rarely in the mood to try their desserts listed on the menu, but they do look pretty good. People next to us had the butter cake and said they likes it. Then at 8:15, we noticed that the once crowded restaurant is near empty in our section. It seems like the Irvine patrons want to prove that much of OC sleeps around 9 PM. At least we didn’t hear crickets. We’ll be back.

Did not know this location even existed. The food was good, the service was fine and I think that all CPK’s get a five star from me. I love the original BBQ chicken also the Jamaican Jerk pizza is good. Most of the salads they offer are awesome, I have nothing but great things to say about this place.

I placed two online orders here this week for Curbside Pickup.
The only reason I am giving three stars is both orders had all of the correct items.
Curbside. Doesnt seem to exist here. I sat in the 10 minute parking spot for 15 minutes waiting. So did the car next to me. They finally got out of their car and went inside, so I did as well. They had two people working in the Takeout area, and all of our food was sitting there waiting. Their order had about 15 items or more. My orders were for 5 people, and 1 person. Everything was ready, so why they didnt bring it out to the car, is beyond me.
The food in my order completely wrecked my stomach. I was extremely sick the rest of the day.
I will pass on ordering from here again, and definitely skip on the non-​existent curbside.

Service:
We had to ask for straws twice.
Bread was brought out when our appetizer arrived.
The server didn’t take the glasses even though he brought out refills. We ended up with five glasses, three were empty, waiting for the server to take them away while we were eating.
When I tried to order coffee, he said that there wasn’t any that was made. I don’t know why I was told that when it could have been brewed… I just told the server to forget the coffee.
Restaurant:
It’s spacious and pretty inside. It almost made me do a double take because I couldn’t believe it was CPK!
Food:
The food was just as good as any other CPK location. I really enjoy their pastas and dips. It’s great comfort food, especially during the wintertime. I know that they’re known for their pizzas but… that Chicken Tequila Fettuccine though… on fleek every time!
My friend ordered the Jambalaya pasta and asked for double the sauce. The server came back and said that it was going to be $ 2 extra because of the proteins in the sauce. He opted out.

The renovation and décor is a nice improvement over its predecessor, El Cholo, but I don’t really like the atmosphere. The bar area is small and tight. How many CPKs do we need, when there are so many new-​and-​interesting restaurants out there?!
Fortunately, we were seated in one of the comfortable booths with padded seating, next to a wall; I certainly wouldn’t want to be seated in the very 1^st round table behind the host desk, right outside the bathrooms; I’m glad we weren’t seated in the middle of the cramped main dining room, which seems more like cafeteria seating.
4 stars for the food and service. Our entrees were good — consistent with other CPKs we’ve visited; our server was great: very pleasant, personable, and impressively attentive.

I hadn’t been to a CPK in years, but after a recent Unilocal event here I learned that the menu has completely changed. And it’s a huge improvement from a couple years ago.
First of all, I was blown away by the service. I was first greeted outside the door by a host with an iPad to check me in. Since I was alone, I opted to sit at the pizza bar rather than take up a table. This was a great choice.
At the pizza bar you are right in front of the kitchen and can watch everything being made. There was a family next to me with two kids and the chefs have them each some pizza dough to play with while their food was cooking. I had never seen that before, but it was very cool. The kids were having a blast learning how to make a pizza crust.
My waiter, Marvin, was outstanding. He was super informative, always smiling and energetic, and constantly ready to refill drinks and answer questions.
The spicy sausage flatbread appetizer was very good, but the cedar plank salmon was excellent. They brought it out with the cedar still smoldering and smelled amazing. The salmon was perfectly cooked and juicy. It was served with limes for the salmon and a very tasty corn, spinach, and feta succotash side dish.
The dessert menu is excellent as well. Butter cake, salted caramel pudding, s’mores, red velvet cake, etc. I chose the key lime pie and it had a wonderful graham cracker crust and tasted like authentic key limes, not the fake key lime many restaurants serve.
All in all I was impressed. Although they have kept most of their classics (i.e. Thai Chicken pizza), the rest of the menu is fresh, new, and from what I have tasted so far it is excellent. Despite being a chain (which I normally am not a fan of), it feels more like a local hang out now. I expect I will be back.

For being such a huge national chain I like CPK, best pizza it is not though.
I went with a large salad and it was just that, big and filling, by mo means healthy, but tasty.
Liked the egg rolls as a app, again not the best quality, but tasty and fried so that makes everything better.
Service was fine, food came out quickly and was hot and fresh.
The man enjoyed his meat pizza, I think pretty steep for the size and quality you get.
Wouldn’t go out of my way to come back here given the great dining options in the area but our dinner was A-​OK.

It’s been a while since I’ve eaten at CPK (in my opinion, they used to be good, but have gone downhill). I came here for a team work lunch, and I guess this is a new concept CPK. I ordered the half Thai Chicken Lettuce, which I was expecting to come out as lettuce wraps, as they used to make it. It came out to be an actual salad, with fried wontons and everything, and barely any chicken. I also ordered the crispy mac n cheese, which was disappointing as well. It tasted old and cold, so I just scraped off the insides. The service was good, although they did take a long time getting our check and birthday ice cream for my coworker.
+Service: Good, but not the best. It got slower the longer we stayed, but that was also during rush lunch hour as well.
–Food & Price: It could have been what I ordered, but I think their food could have been better. Even though what I ordered was a half order and was large, it barely had any chicken so I can’t justify the price for it. If I come back, I might try the rib-​eye, or pizza, but I don’t think I will be anytime soon.

The renovation is absolutely stunning and the earthy, green vibe is felt throughout their menu and attention to detail. CPK is not what you think it is. They’ve changed… for the better in my opinion.
Met up with a few friends after work to have dinner and a few drinks to help the week pass by a little faster. Everyone needs that mid-​week pick me up, right? We were seated in a booth and our server was quick to take our orders, but also give us plenty of time to look over the menu.
We started with drinks — California Crush, Red Sangria and White Sangria. Our server, Mario, was very helpful through suggestions and helped us narrow down our options. We had so many questions (mostly just being indecisive on which one is better) and he answered with a smile through them all.
For food, we decided to start with white corn guacamole & chips. For our dinner, our table got the Brussels & Bacon (well-​done) flatbread sans the carmelized onions, Asparagus & Arugula Salad, Mushroom & Spinach flatbread, and Penne Pasta with chicken. Mario came by to check on us every so often, making sure our satisfaction levels were over the moon, pretty much.
To end the evening, we got the salted caramel pudding. After 10 minutes of conversation at the table, the dessert never made an appearance. Mario came by to check on us and personally made sure the dessert was brought right out. To apologize for the long wait, he comp’d it, which took us by surprise. Service is surely on another level since the new renovations. I like!
Since one friend had to leave for the evening, the two of us stuck around for another round of drinks at the bar. To our delight, late night happy hour was just about to start! We ordered the Agave margarita (recommended by bartender as the best) and California Roots (super refreshing cocktail with avocado).
Although the weeknight was pretty crazy, it began to slow down by around 9:30 and we got to chat it up with the bartenders about whiskey, bourbon and best things on the menu. Somehow, we got around to decorating a few people’s name tags, lol! Thanks for putting up with us barside, Ronnie and Thomas.
With the new changes, you’re in great hands all around. I’m really digging this spot! I’ll be back soon :)

The NEW CPK has some potential with its new style, concept, and menu. Usually see lots of people coming to check out this new spot.
DÉCOR:
— Updated urban style with seating area in dining room, homey living space, bar counters, and outdoor patio (good for mixer or happy hour)
— Indoor waiting area has some comfy couches by the wine refrigerator, and there are a few cozy couches in the outdoor area. One family brought board games for their little ones to play while they waited to be seated. Genius!
SERVICE: okay considering the first month of opening. Put your name and mobile number down with the hostess, and CPK will text you when the table is ready. The wait is going to be longer than anticipated. We estimated 20 min wait and became a 40 – 45 min wait before we were seated. Server did check in on how we’re doing.
FOOD: This new CPK has a variety of items including appetizers, salads/​soup, main plates (rib-​eye, salmon, chicken, etc), pastas, signature pizzas, drinks, wine, and cocktail. There’s also gluten free and vegan menu too.
GARLIC CREAM FETTUCINE WITH CHICKEN ($ 14.99): small serving size, but it was too rich and heavy for me. After one bite, I didn’t want to continue eating. Could be it was served lukewarm and didn’t taste fresh at all.
WILD MUSHROOM PIZZA WITH TRUFFLE OIL ($ 14.99): I’ve had it when it was fresh off the oven on opening night, which was DELICIOUS! But, when it was served last night, it was a pure disappointment. You can tell even before eating that it’s been sitting out for a while and the bottom of the crust was soggy. No bueno on the consistency of food. Also the truffle oil given was so few :(
MUSHROOM PEPPERONI SAUSAGE PIZZA ($ 14.29): Cremini mushroom, pepperoni, spicy Italian sausage, basil, mozzarella, and wild Greek oregano: okay, but a bit too salty
FIRE-​GRILLED RIBEYE ($ 25.99): grilled with Pinot Noir sea salt and topped with creamy bleu cheese butter served over roasted potatoes and lemon-​garlic wild arugula salad: rib-​eye was juicy and tender~
PESTO CREAM PASTA WITH CHICKEN ($ 14.69): yummy penne with sundried tomatoes and basil pesto cream
CALIFORNIA ROOTS: vodka, fresh avocado & mint, fresh agave sour, fennel salt rim — CPK’s newest drink tastes too herby and grassy, not a fan
Overall service was okay, but food could be good if it were served hot, which presents an issue of consistency. Also it’s very loud and noisy in the dining area, which makes conversation a little difficult. If they can resolve the parking and food consistency issue, this could be the new neighborhood restaurant.
TIP:
1. For birthday celebration, they provide complimentary ice cream.
2. Parking may be an issue here: if you circle around a few times, you’ll find it or go towards the back of CVS for additional parking.

New location, great looking interior, friendly staff…
Not sure about the new look CPK is going for with their Anthorpologie, Crate and Barrel, Fig & Olive type of style, but I just did not feel very comfortable. I like the old CPK look with their booths and white interior.
Maybe because this place was so new but the food wasn’t as good either. Had their thai salad that I always love, and it was not as fresh and not very good. Also tried their seasonal pizza with egg and bacon. It had 2 eggs and maybe one bacon sliced up on the pizza.
I’ll probably be visiting the Spectrum location if I want CPK.

I stopped at this CPK for lunch a week after attending a Unilocal event here. I will just be reviewing my lunch but will give a few extra recommendations based on the event in my last paragraph. This location is one of the first «reimagined» CPKs that has new décor and menus which will slowly be rolled out to all locations.
Arriving solo, the hostess pushed me to sit at their «pizza bar» — a counter that faces the prep and pizza-​making area. I found this space to be a bit claustrophobic and made me feel uneasy as you constantly have people prepping pizza toppings or actually making pizzas two feet in front of you; I felt like I was being stared at the entire meal. My advice, if you are dining alone, is to not sit here and insist on a table. It might be fun for a kid but otherwise — no.
I ordered off the lunch menu: a half-​sandwich and salad duo. The sandwich I chose was the roasted turkey and brie on ciabatta. Spinach-​quinoa was the salad I picked.
Initially they brought me some fresh-​out-​of-​the-​oven-​one-​minute-​ago bread which was heavenly. My platter with both salad and sandwich arrived soon after. The salad was very good but requires a knife to cut the large spinach leaves unless you don’t mind them flopping all over your chin on the way into your mouth. The salad, aside from the fresh spinach which was sprinkled with quinoa, consisted of crisp Granny Smith apple pieces, marinated cranberries and spiced pecans with a vinaigrette on the side. The flavors seemed to hit every taste bud note — it awakened the tongue and was a pleasure to eat.
The sandwich was very good although my first bite was quite bitter thanks to one of the greens which I quickly removed. Turkey and warm brie with bits of pear is a great flavor combination yet it seemed to be missing something. Maybe the honey mustard needed a stronger flavor.
I ordered a slice of key lime pie to finish things off. The graham cracker crust was perfect and the key lime was flavorful yet not too strong. Yum-​O-​Rama.
Service was excellent. I was checked up on often and he made fun yet brief conversation every now and then which made the meal all the more enjoyable.
As previously mentioned I attended a Unilocal event here the previous week and can confidently also recommend the mushroom pepperoni sausage pizza, the grilled ribeye (seriously, CPK now makes a fantastic steak!) and the salted caramel pudding. From the bar I recommend the sangria.

California Pizza Kitchen you really revamped your style. Last time I visited a CPK was over 6 years ago and never returned, but now the next time someone asks me to go to CPK, I won’t quickly shoot that idea down.
Came on Friday around 12 at place was pretty busy, but still grabbed a table without a wait time. Our server, Alissa, was great. She was very personable and had great recommendations. She also was very cheerful which is nice to see cause working in the food industry can be challenging at times. However, I like to think I’m pretty cordial.
Ordered the sunny side up pizza, fettuccini alfredo, crispy mac and cheese, and the white corn guac & chips
Sunny Side up Pizza– ³⁄₅ It really needs sauce as it was dry. Came with a lot of toppings — fingerling potatos, bacon, egg, green onions. Picture looked more appealing than the taste.
Fettuccine alfredo– 4.5÷5 Cooked nicely, pasta was al dente and the sauce wasn’t clumpy. I got it plain but next time I’d throw in some chicken or shrimp. My favorite dish ordered.
Crispy Mac and Cheese– ⁴⁄₅ Came with 4 pieces. Don’t let it fool you as these 4 pieces are heavy and will fill you up. Nice and crunchy on the outside, creamy and soft on the inside. Good appetizer though.
White corn gauc & chips– 3.5÷5 white corn makes it sweet which is nice. Wish there was as more salty component to it as the white corn overpowered the avocado. This appetizer is lighter than the mac and cheese.
The desserts looked good but was too full to try them. Good job CPK for stepping up your game!

I came here on grand opening night, Wednesday August 26, 2015. The restaurant was packed and bustling and there was simultaneously a private Unilocal event going on. This could have been disastrous, but it wasn’t! Service from each and every server I encountered was fantastic. I used to be in restaurant management, so I a bit skeptical about how successful 2 major events would be in one night, but I was blown away. More than successful! Each cocktail I had was delicious and each entrée I tried was fabulous.
If you want a creative drink, you have to try the California Roots. It’s made with fresh avocado and rimmed with fennel salt. Not too sweet and quite delicious. This might well become my new favorite cocktail. The blood orange sangria was also very good, but it’s on the sweeter side. It would be a perfect drink for a novice.
Now, let’s move onto the Fire-​grilled ribeye. I had my doubts about a pizza focused restaurant making good ribeye. Well, let me say, I was completely wrong. Order it medium rare. There’s also herb butter melting on top when it’s served. Gorgonzola butter would have given me a heart attack! The ribeye was so good. This is definitely be my new go to dish here.
The salted caramel pudding for dessert was also good. Crumbly bits at the bottom. There wasn’t am overpowering caramel flavor. It was a nice, mild dessert perfect to share, or even for kids.
The hustle and bustle made me miss the industry. I was lucky enough to chat with the regional territory manager and a few PR ladies. Everyone was friendly and informative. Way to go CPK, I was impressed!