California Pizza Kitchen — Restaurant in Edmonton

Immensely frustrating experience. Went late night to avoid what appeared to be busy crowds, around 9:20. The restaurant was quite busy, but that’s to be expected during opening week. Asked for any takeout options (there’s a separate entrance for takeout), was told takeout wasn’t available yet. Curious, since takeout boxes were being handed out by servers and I’m pretty sure I saw some takeout bags being brought out, but I simply figured it was to reduce burden on the kitchen, since it was opening week.

After being told to wait 20 minutes for a table (and waiting 40 minutes), me and my friend were seated at 10:00. We got a very friendly server, however, her comprehension of what constitutes as halal food seems to be lacking. When asked for halal options for pizzas, she pointed to one and said “this one doesn’t have ham,” which isn’t really what halal means. When asked to clarify why some chicken menu items were halal while others weren't, she struggled to explain. Therein, I wouldn’t feel comfortable ordering halal items from this location. It’s fine, working on first week basis, but for something religiously significant as halal food, servers should have a clear understanding of the menu, what items are halal, or at the very least what halal meat is.

We ordered our food and waited. The restaurant was starting to slow down, with tables getting more empty. Ten minutes passed, and then twenty, and then thirty. We soon noticed that tables that were seated before us we’re getting food. We tried to ask for our server for the status of our order (which wasn’t comprehensive by any means, just two pizzas, one a cheese) but we couldn’t find her. Even throughout our waiting, we saw her once to refill our waters, and that’s it. Around 10:45, after waiting 45 minutes for two pizzas, failing to spot our server, and with the night getting later, me and friend decided to walk out, my dinner instead being a drive thru Harvey’s burger.

A lot of this has to do with opening week, being the first franchise to open in Canada comes with expectations and pressure, so it’s understandable the disorganization that this restaurant grapples with. However, with all these factors combined (no takeout, debit machine not working, huge waiting time, not knowing what halal means) it’s clear this restaurant isn’t ready for the big time yet, and I cannot recommend it. I hope to return at some point to actually try the food, but I’ll be no rush to come back, not until they have some months of experience...

I had high hopes for California Pizza Kitchen based on the ambiance of the restaurant. However, when I initially wanted to place an order online or even wanted to look at their menu, their website did not have the Canadian menu listed and did not even display the Windermere location. I had to sift through Google images in order to get a good idea of what their menu looked like.

Upon arrival, we had to wait several minutes before being seated. We had a party of five and were given a small table that could fit four people. There were plenty of other tables nearby that would allow us to space ourselves comfortably.

We booked our table around the 3:30 timing in order to catch happy hour. The drinks on the happy hour menu were barely any different from the regular price menu, which was strange. In addition to that, happy hour in the evening was different from happy hour in the afternoon so the selection to chose from dwindled even further.

After being seated, we all ordered from the menu. However, there was barely any options on the vegan menu. Although I placed an order the waitress was not sure of the dietary restrictions menu. She did apologize and brought out the chef who was also vegan. That was certainly very nice of them. In addition to that, the manager personally came by to greet us and make sure that we were doing okay.

However, in the end, despite paying for meals, we were told to leave because they had a reservation after for that table. Upon looking around, there were several empty tables which just did not do well on their part for their customer service. It was certainly not a great way to take care of your clients. I would not recommend this place if you are looking for good customer service. Although, the food was good, I'd say, I was not really that...

Today we thought we would give the restaurant a try and after great expectations we will never be back. Historically, and I would say rarely for me, when I do have an issue with something I will bring it to the attention of someone with authority. Unfortunately there was nothing positive to offer and so I find it necessary to give my opinion. The music, blaring so loudly at a weekday lunch and no customers, was one thing but the food was absolutely the worst thing we have eaten in a long time. The tomato basil soup was lukewarm, very small in size and tasted like slightly watered down canned pasta sauce. The favorite recommendation of spinach/artichoke dip only tasted like raw onions, was not heated and at best was a low quality frozen product. The accompanying chips were not made in-house, salted or warm. Not sure what to say about the pizza. A large round piece of cardboard with too spicy sausage which killed any other flavors. All the food seemed frozen/pre-made and served without any care or love. Yesterday I went to another restaurant in the area and the difference is striking as they understand the food that has flavor and looks inviting/made with love will go a long way. Service today was only fair as the server only came once to ask if our few bites were good, pretty much right after the food was delivered. So two American chains with one that has stepped up and one that seems to think they can come to Canada and not...