LOS ANGELES, Aug 04, 2008 (BUSINESS WIRE) ----California Pizza Kitchen, Inc. (CPK) (NASDAQ:CPKI), home to the Original BBQ Chicken Pizza and other innovative hearth-baked pizzas, made-to-order pastas, creative salads, appetizers, soups, sandwiches and desserts, opened a new restaurant today at Twelve Oaks Mall in Novi, Michigan. The shopping center was expanded last fall and features 200 shops and services along with department stores Nordstrom, Macy's, Lord & Taylor, JCPenney, and Sears. The new restaurant in Novi will mark the sixth CPK location in Michigan.

The new 5,500 sq. ft. restaurant is located at the mall entrance between Nordstrom and Lord & Taylor at 27500 Novi Road. Hours of operation will be Monday through Sunday from 11 a.m. to 10 p.m. except Friday and Saturday when the restaurant closes at 11 p.m. Guests can dine-in, place a take-out order or use CPK's Curbside service and have their order delivered to their car, by calling (248) 449-3280.

The menu will feature all of the popular favorites along with the newest menu additions including Sonora Egg Rolls, with grilled lime chicken, roasted corn & black bean salsa, Cheddar and Monterey Jack cheeses, fire-roasted mild chilies, green onions and cilantro wrapped in a crispy wonton roll, and served with tomatillo salsa and ranchito sauce; Buffalo Chicken Pizza, with grilled chicken marinated in spicy Buffalo sauce with Mozzarella cheese, carrots, celery and crumbled Gorgonzola cheese, served with a side of Gorgonzola ranch dressing; a new specialty entree, Ginger Salmon, a pan-sauteed Atlantic salmon topped with sweet ginger sauce and served with wok-stirred Mandarin noodles, snow peas and sesame seeds or wok-stirred vegetables; Asparagus & Spinach Spaghettini, a new, light pasta with sauteed asparagus, spinach, fresh tomatoes, basil, garlic and Parmesan cheese; Pesto Cream Penne, another new item on the pasta menu with a basil pine nut pesto cream sauce, sun-dried tomatoes and Parmesan cheese, available with chicken, shrimp or both; Pear & Gorgonzola Pizza will be returning to the menu with caramelized pears, Gorgonzola, Fontina and Mozzarella cheeses, sweet caramelized onions and chopped hazelnuts, topped with field greens tossed in Gorgonzola ranch dressing.

The new restaurant will also feature an extensive beverage menu for its full bar, including CPK's original California Cosmo, along with five new cocktails including Spa Martini, Sparkling Kiwi Lemonade, Cherry Limeade, Aussie Splash and Pineapple Mojito Martini.

Following CPK's tradition of giving back to the communities in which it operates, the new CPK restaurant will donate 100 percent of all dine-in pizza sales during regular business hours on Tuesday, August 12, 2008, to the Farmington Family YMCA, located just five miles east of Twelve Oaks Mall. The Farmington Family YMCA, established in 1978, is part of the YMCA of Metropolitan Detroit and helps build strong kids, strong families, and strong communities. A highly respected organization features day camps, child care, specialized wellness classes, offsite programs, swimming pools, gymnasium, a wellness center, an early childhood development center, and other sporting activities for the entire family.

California Pizza Kitchen, Inc., founded in 1985, is a leading casual dining chain featuring an imaginative line of hearth-baked pizzas, including the original BBQ Chicken Pizza, and a broad selection of distinctive pastas, salads, appetizers, soups, sandwiches and desserts. Of the chain's 241 restaurants, 201 are company-owned and 40 operate under franchise or license agreements. There are currently 23 restaurants located internationally in China, Japan, Philippines, Malaysia, Singapore, Mexico, South Korea and Indonesia. There are 25 CPK ASAP locations, 9 of which are company-owned and 16 are franchised. CPK premium pizzas are also available to sports and entertainment fans at three Southern California venues including Dodgers Stadium, Angel Stadium of Anaheim and STAPLES Center. Also included in the company's portfolio of concepts is LA Food Show Grill & Bar, which has one location in Manhattan Beach, California and a second location currently under construction in Beverly Hills, California. 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. For more details, visit www.cpk.com.

SOURCE: California Pizza Kitchen, Inc.

California Pizza Kitchen Sarah Grover, 310-342-5000 

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