California Pizza Kitchen — Restaurant in Clinton Township

Came out to this location due to an event in the area 9/9/23. We were a group of 4 myself and my three cousins. The wait to be seated didn't was about 5 minutes or so which wasn't bad. We were offered a table but for some reason the chairs are really tight and asked to sit at a booth.

Our waitress I can't remember her name but she was a doll. Very sweet, knowledgeable of the menu (when she didn't know something she asked and came back), she paid attention to us and all around had a great attitude.

Our drinks came back pretty quickly. The others had alcoholic beverages as I don't drink, I ordered a peach lemonade. When I tell ya'll that lemonade was so sour! man it was sour. I added the water that was given to me and nothing could drown out the sour flavor. I asked the server to take it back and get me an iced tea which was just OK but way better than that lemonade.

An appetizer of spinach and artichoke dip was order for the table. I loooove this dip anytime I can get it out I want some. This one wasn't good at all. I had a few bits and left it for the table. It was beyond mushy, the texture was off I can't put my finger on it. I thought maybe it was really old. The chips tasted burnt which in turn I think added to the off flavor of the dip.

We waited quite some time for our meals. We had to ask when it was coming out. I ordered the new Crispy Chicken Sandwich, 2 orders of the West Coast Burger and 1 order of Salmon. My order looked nothing like the picture online or in the menu I took it for what it was. It is a large sandwich and i'm guessing on a better day it's delicious as mine was not. My bread was not toasted it was cold like just coming out of the fridge and the chicken also had that "burnt" taste. I'm guessing the oil was old. To give perspective I cut the sandwich in half and only ate half of a half. The potatoes that were given were OK which is all I really ate. The two burgers were the same the bread was cold and dry. The salmon I was told was really good and she was glad she didn't order what we did.

After paying, tipping very well and not complaining we left to go to the event we were there for. I noticed as I was walking in I left my credit card and called right away. On Saturday they seem to close early and I wouldn't be able to get back before closing. I verified ALL of my info and was told my card was there. I explained I lived an hour away and if it was at all possible to mail me my card, I didn't want to have to change everything if it could be helped. I was advised that the GM had to be contacted to verify if that can be done. I left all my info just in case and was told I would get a call tomorrow which would be Sunday. Sunday comes no call. I called myself on Monday afternoon and explained what was needed. I was advised that the GM still hasn't advised on if my card could be mailed as it's a company policy to pick it up and someone would reach out to me. I'm guessing that it can't be done as no one has contacted me to say yes, no or anything else. 9/14/23.

So all and all my first trip to California Pizza Kitchen was not a good one. I live by one and never went and may keep passing it up. The money spent I feel I could have kept and I would also still have my...

I love CPK! Don't get me wrong, I never thought I'd have a negative experience like this but I guess this type of stuff happens in the world we live in today. I saw a sign out front that said "now hiring" hand written in chalk. I was like wow, I have 5 years serving in a high volume restaurant in Orlando, this is going to be a piece of cake, I walked in subtly but confident, and asked if there was any possible way I could submit an application that day, the girl at the front promptly pulled out a blank application, I filled it out, and the manager (Ed, I believe) made a point to come introduce himself, asked me if I was willing to work, I said yes sir, abolutely. I went to high school in California, and I love everything about it. I was just like this is perfect, I admitt he called me out on a mistake and he said how are we going to get ahold of you, and I immediately grinned and wrote my number on the application. Now I'm satisfied with not getting a call back. I made the mistake and I own them. However, I called back twice the next day, I got Ed on the phone and politely asked if I could check on the status of my application. He said we didn't get to talk much I'm really busy. I don't have time this week or next week. And I said I totally understand I'll call back after the 2 weeks to check back on this, he then said "No, don't bug us, we get a lot of phone calls and we don't need anymore if we are interested we will get back with you," and hung up the line. I accepted that response. But then I go back to the location the next day with the now hiring sign still out. I them realized the nature of the situation. And anyone else can be the judge. That's the situation. And that's how it was handled. How many stars I leave indicates how I felt about the service of the manager. Not about CPK. I'm just disheartened that's what represents CPK for anyone who works for them. I'm very harworking and ethical and feel that the manager could have been up front and said he wasn't interested because to me it's clear. A satisfactory manager would have responded with, "I looked over the credentials, I make the final say in who makes the cut, we have a high demand and I feel you would not be a suitable fit." And the transaction would have been completely on me. But i feel I represent a more professional image of myself than Ed does of that location, and I hope this gets acknowledged because CPK is a remarkable business that I truely am passionate about because who doesn't love California. I would have expected a response like that of a Denny's location,...

This place was great. We showed up at 6:30 PM on a Saturday. The restaurant was not busy, but in order to get us a nice table out of the way (we had two little kids) and a party of six we were asked to wait a few minutes.

Once we were seated our server (can't remember his name) was prompt and courteous. Drink refills happened as needed. The only downside was he was at the table three times and had forgotten to bring lemon for the water... no big deal, it still happened, just less than expectation. I expected the lemon would come with the water, not five minutes later.

The waiter then came back to us before the food came out saying that the food would be coming out very erratically as some scheduling mishap happened in the kitchen. The restaurant was very apologetic and offered two provide us two free desserts because of the way the food was coming out. To be honest, I might have noticed that all of the food was not delivered together, but I wouldn't have made a big deal out of it. I told him that was perfectly fine and I appreciated his offer. Then the manager came over to our table to apologize and reiterate the offer for a couple of free desserts. Again, I thought this was exceptional customer service. I did not have to complain. The restaurant itself identified an issue, owned the problem, apologized, and offered compensation. As a customer, there is nothing more that I could have asked for.

The food itself was good. I have no complaints, it was as expected. We all loved our food. The butter cake is no joke... I hate traditional cake, I don't even eat birthday cake... but this is a warm and rich masterpiece... when they say "trust us, just try it" I can second that statement.

The price is what it is... nowadays everything costs more than it's worth... thankfully, the price wasn't too crazy though... I think the cost of the meal with soda, for six was $110. Not too bad!

I highly recommend this CPK and the staff there. The staff exceeded my expectations and provided a great atmosphere and experience. The food is good, if you have never eaten pizza here it is a European style crust, wood pizza oven type... not like Detroit style or thick crust...

Other than that, try it out for yourself. Great place to eat and spend time with the family...