I could spend a lot of time making fun of the menu at California Pizza Kitchen. I have long maintained (and continue to stand by) my opinion that it was created to serve pizza to people who don’t really like pizza.
Or, perhaps most of the menu is just pretentious crap?
However, I’m not going to do that today, because, if you get past all the Thai noodles, gorgonzola, pears and lightly shaved kiwi skins, they can make a credible pizza, although few and far between on their menu.
I don’t go there often because it’s too busy and too pretentious, but we were in the neighborhood and I knew I hadn’t properly reviewed their “standard” pepperoni pizza.
So with that plan in my mind, I was promptly seduced into trying a new “specialty” pizza – the Pepperoni Pomodoro. The Pepperoni Pomodoro pizza is a neopolitan pizza described as, “Our Italian Pomodoro sauce with pepperoni, Mozzarella, Parmesan and fresh Mozzarella cheeses. Topped with fresh herbs.”
At first I resisted, mostly because I honestly didn’t know what a pomodoro sauce was and I was afraid it might be made with asparagus, pears and avocados, but when I ordered a “normal” pepperoni pizza, the waiter suggested the pomodoro and it gave me the opportunity to ask what it was. Answer: a slightly chunky tomato sauce. It was a $1 more, but I decided to go for it.
Irene, on the other hand, avoided pizza and had a dish of Thai Curry Noodles, which she really thought was good. She skipped pizza because they no longer serve the Peking Duck Pizza (I wish I were, but I’m not joking) and that’s what she was looking forward to.
On to the pizza. The Pepperoni Pomodoro pizza has a nice, thin crust, followed by a layer of “chunky” pomodoro sauce, followed by a lot of cheese, pepperoni and finally some greenish sprinkles.
The problems started right away. The thin crust was charred on the outer edge, so much so that carbonized crust kept coming off on my hands, leaving black marks that eventually ended up on my clothes, face and arms. Despite that, the crust was raw – an impressive accomplishment, but not of the good kind.
The pomodoro sauce was nothing special and the fresh cheeses were… well, have you ever eaten mozzarella cheese right out of the package? It has a completely different flavor from cooked mozzarella – or, actually, it hasn’t much flavor at all. Much of the cheese on my pizza had the “raw” mozzarella flavor. The pepperoni was OK and the green sprinkles were just some ordinary Italian spices.
All in all, I wasn’t happy with the pizza.
While we were still eating, the manager cam over to a nearby table and apologized to them – their Pepperoni Pomodoro had been burned in the oven and they were cooking a new one. Sounds like they haven’t gotten the hang of making these just yet.
In any case, until I get back and have a “normal” pepperoni pizza, I’m going to reserve final judgement on California Pizza Kitchen.
Pepperoni Pomodoro, 11″, $10.99 or $0.12 (0.116) per square inch.
California Pizza Kitchen
Biltmore Fashion Park
2400 E. Camelback Rd.
Phoenix, AZ 85016
Phone: (602) 553-8382
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