California Pizza Kitchen Expands into Mexico

By: California Pizza Kitchen | 0 Shares 136 Reads

First California Pizza Kitchen Restaurant Opens in Mexico City

LOS ANGELES--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Aug. 14, 2007--California Pizza Kitchen, Inc. (CPK) (Nasdaq:CPKI), home of the Original BBQ Chicken Pizza and other innovative hearth-baked pizzas, made-to-order pastas, creative salads, appetizers, soups, sandwiches and desserts, opened its first location in Mexico today. The new restaurant, opened by CPK franchise partner Grupo Calpik, S.A. de C.V., is located in the Bosques de Las Lomas neighborhood in Mexico City.

The new 5,900 square-foot CPK seats approximately 220 people and is located on the main floor of the Parque Duraznos Mall. Tastefully decorated with warm colors and rich textures, the restaurant will open daily from 1:00 p.m. to 1:00 a.m.

Rick Rosenfield, co-founder and co-CEO of California Pizza Kitchen, stated, "Working with Grupo Calpik to open Mexico's first CPK restaurant has been a wonderful experience. We are thrilled to finally see the doors open and have a presence in this growing market." Larry Flax, co-founder and co-CEO of California Pizza Kitchen, added, "Since we announced our partnership with Grupo Calpik in February, we have received an overwhelmingly positive response. We are so excited to bring our creative menu to Mexico City."

The open-exhibition kitchen takes center stage where guests can watch as all of California Pizza Kitchen's innovative dishes are prepared. The menu features a wide variety of innovative items including everything from the California Club Pizza and Jamaican Jerk Pizza to Kung Pao Spaghetti and the award-winning Thai Crunch Salad. A special menu is also available for children 12 and under.

Using only the highest quality fresh produce and U.S. imported ingredients prepared daily, all California Pizza Kitchen pizzas are hearth-baked in an imported open-flame pizza oven.

California Pizza Kitchen, Inc., founded in 1985, is a leading casual dining chain. Of the chain's 215 restaurants, 183 are company-owned and 32 operate under franchise or license agreements. There are 25 CPK ASAP locations, 10 of which are company-owned and 15 are franchised. Another company-owned concept is LA Food Show Grill & Bar, which currently has one location in Manhattan Beach, California. The company's full-service restaurants feature an imaginative line of hearth-baked pizzas, including the original BBQ Chicken Pizza, and a broad selection of distinctive pastas, salads, soups, appetizers and sandwiches. The company also has a licensing arrangement with Kraft Pizza Company, which manufactures and distributes a line of California Pizza Kitchen premium frozen pizzas. Children who dine at California Pizza Kitchen choose from an extensive menu, recently named "The Best Kids Menu in America" by Restaurant Hospitality Magazine.

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