California Pizza Kitchen, Glendale, NY- 7/10 stars

[maznycfoodie]

 Yes, a foodie can go to chain restaurants too.  They're not all bad.  That being said, foodies can also eat at chain fast food and enjoy them too.  Anyway....

 

 If you're looking for a place to eat authentic Italian pizza...then don't even bother coming here.  If you're looking to eat different kinds of flavors on a pizza, some new and creative, some adapting to already existing ideas, this is the place for you.  California Pizza Kitchen offers different flavors for different tastes.  The only thing it's missing in my opinion, are dessert pizzas.  Expensive?  Maybe, not really.  It is a chain restaurant offering something different.  How big are the pizzas?  One is big enough for two but one person can finish one pizza if that's all you're gonna eat.  That's what I did, although I did trade a few slices for my friends' pizza slices.

So on to the pizzas

The Good

- Chipotle Chicken Pizza- this was my pizza, it had a nice kick to it which I would hope so considering its name.

- Tostadas- Another "Mexican" pizza minus the kick.  It was like a nachos pizza.  Also very tasty but I liked mine better.  This was my friend's whom I traded a slice with.

 

The Bad

- Cheese- Honestly, if you're gonna come here for cheese pizza, you are better off getting the authentic one from Italian restaurants, where it tastes much better.  After all, you don't come to CPK to get a plain cheese pizza. You come here to explore different flavors you wouldn't get in a local pizzeria.

More

- Pasta- I've only tasted the Spaghetti Bolognese, which is good, nothing special, but it's good and filling.

- Desserts- Only tried the chocolate souffle, which was rich and delicious and made me full like I'm fat if the pizza or pasta didn't make me feel that way already. Desserts after all were meant for sharing, yet I just devoured it all for myself.

I will update on this more when I go back there and try their other pizzas.

Verdict- I love California Pizza Kitchen.  I love to dine here with friends when I'm in the mood for pizza...but not the Italian American kind, when I want the different kind.  If you have a foodie group, you can always each order one pizza and then split all pizzas among yourselves so that you may have many different flavors to feast on.

Pics

Chipotle Chicken Pizza


Tostadas Pizza

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Comments

[wendelah1]

The pea and barley soup is really, really good. So good I've made it at home from the recipe in their book. I like the original barbecued chicken pizza and the vegetarian pizza with Japanese eggplant. I love their version of tiramisu--it's very light. I don't recommend the sandwiches. The salads are all good versions of what they are.

Personally, I think the cheese pizza from anywhere in New York City, not just Italian restaurants, is better than any cheese pizza I've eaten elsewhere in the US. The cheese pizza from the stand on the corner, from all the various tourist stops, it's all just amazingly good.

I'm from Los Angeles, California. Here via omnomnom.

[maznycfoodie]

Oooh I have never had the soups, but I find usually that soups in the chain restaurants are usually good anyway, although the salads seem to be all the same I get tired of them. The fact you mentioned vegetarian pizza reminded me for the future to mention if the place is vegetarian friendly.

Aw well for me since I live in New York I can get picky about what is good pizza. It's hard because there are tons of pizza places here.