California Pizza Kitchen

I have never been a fan of CPK. If you see me there, it’s because I’m with someone with a bland palate that has chosen this as a place to eat. After having almost everything on their menu, my opinion remains un-​detoured. I’ve given them enough money, and I don’t plan on giving them anymore. Say «NO» to CPK!

An express CPK inside USC.
Their menu options are limited and altered to fit students. The most popular student choice would probably be the half pizza half salad for ~$ 6.50, but just note that the pizzas are pre-​made, so you can’t really modify your pizza (like ask for no cilantro/​onions etc). A full pizza here is like in between a regular pizza and kid’s pizza at a real CPK, it’s enough to fill up one person perfectly. They also have various pasta options here, my favorite is the chicken tequila fettuccine. The salads are all pre-​made in the morning, so if they don’t have any left, that’s too bad.
They’re really slow at serving during lunch/​dinner rush hour… they try to give everyone a number but just end up getting confused. My number was skipped a couple of times since they kept forgetting about me. During rush hour, I would probably go over to Panda since they’re faster and more efficient, but CPK is a good choice apart from those times.

Came here during USC campus visit in mid-​aug. Thought we’d try the on-​campus food court.
Getting thru line was on slow side. All 3 of us ordered the Duo Special with half a small pizza and a Caesar salad. Price was good, under $ 7, but the bbq chicken pizza was pretty bad. I like it at the actual CPK restaurants, but this was dry and tasteless, except for the chunks of chicken. Salad was decent and I did like the shaved parmesan.
Difficult to find a place to sit inside. Must a madhouse during the school year. Also had to leave area for a restroom.
Overall, I wish we would have traveled the 5 miles from USC’s campus to eat at Phillipe’s French Dip sandwiches!

Watch out for the grumpy old lady here — she will make u whatever she wants and when u tell her thats not what u ordered shell be sure to throw your actual order in your face

As anywhere in the Tutor Campus Center during midday, the line is quite long. Use the Tapingo app to order via your phone & pick up w/​in 10 minutes usually.
I don’t recommend the Mac n cheese — tasty enough for half the portion then it seemed unappealing – too fakey cheesy or something – to finish.

MMM BBQ CHICKEN PIZZA!
That’s what keeps me coming back to this place. Honestly, I feel like there aren’t any good spots to eat on campus, and this is one of the better places.
What kills me about this place is the wait! During lunch, you could easily wait 10 – 15 minutes for the pizzas to be baked. If you are on the run, this is probably not the place to eat. It is funny how it is Express CPK, but not really express.
It is a good deal though, the lunch combo is $ 6.99 for half salad and half pizza!

This CPK location in the Tutor Campus Center has massive issues when it comes to the lunch rush from around 12−2pm. Every time I’ve tried to come here they’ve had me wait upwards of 10 minutes in line because they run out of pizzas — they try to do their best in getting everyone food but the rate at which they cook is just way too slow for their own good.

This CPK is located inside the Tutor Center food court. The facilities here are really nice, and you’re surrounded by primarily undergrads that are on break between classes.
Food ⁴⁄₅
Standard CPK quality pizzas and salads. I like that most pizzas are made to order… probably because they sell so quickly. I’ve never had the sandwiches, but it’s not California Sandwich Kitchen so I don’t feel like I’m missing out on anything.
Ambience ³⁄₅
It gets loud in here. Trying to eat and study in this place is overwhelming. Don’t plan on doing any serious reading if you’re eating here. If you don’t mind the noise then you’re good here.
Décor ⁴⁄₅
It’s neat in the Tutor Center. Lots of white tables and white walls, giving an overall modern feel to the place.
Service ³⁄₅
Good enough for CPK in my eyes.
Overall ³⁄₅
If someone were to ask me about CPK at USC, I’d say, «It’s alright». It is, but don’t expect a five star meal between classes or before your exams.

They now have the Sun Dried Tomato and Broccolini fusilli. It’s as bomb as the other pastas!
I’ve been here at least 30 times this year…

A typical CPK, but at USC. Go around 1pm to skip the lunchtime traffic. The wait for food is not too bad (maybe 5 minutes, max). Pizzas are good. The macaroni and cheese with bacon was good. Not really sure what there is to complain about.
Also, show your USC ID card to skip taxes. (:

The location on campus has recently pre-​made pizzas sitting our for a very quick bite to grab before class. For campus food and something so quick and decently good, its overall a nice bite to have.

Another restaurant in the «food court» of the USC Campus Center. CPK usually racks up a huge line pretty quick for lunch so be careful. I don’t like their pastas but the pizzas are pretty good, my favorite is the BBQ Chicken! It can be a bit pricey but at least you can use your USC student card. Once you order you have to awkwardly wait to the side until your order comes out so that’s kind of annoying. But at least we have a CPK on campus!

California Pizza Kitchen is amazing! I love being able to stop by the middle of campus and pick up a delicious pizza.
My favorite pizza there is the BBQ chicken pizza — it’s awesome. Also, they have pasta, soup, salad, and sandwiches, so if you’re not in the mood for pizza, they still have some great options.
In addition to the food being great, the people who work there are always nice and friendly. I would suggest stopping by if you are ever on campus.

My favorite restaurant in the Campus Center. Everything they sell is delicious. My favorites are their Chicken Tortilla Soup, Mac and Cheese, and BBQ Chicken Pizza. Their soup is the best deal its pretty large and only $ 2.79

Why does this CPK have bad reviews? During lunchtime they have 4 BBQ pizzas ready at any given time and 1 – 2 of everything else. Every single time I’ve been here all the pizzas are a perfect golden brown.
I have mad respect for Chris Dewolfe for opening the first CPK on a university campus at his alma mater :)

I went to a CPK in San Diego for two of my proms so the food brings back memories.
I don’t care much for their pizza because it’s too thin and lacks toppings. The BBQ chicken and the meat lovers is ok. The best part is the pasta! I always get the chicken tequila fettucine. My friend works here so whenever I come he doesn’t even need to ask my order and just goes and makes it. I think the portion is a bit small for $ 7 but I still end up satisfied. Sometimes there is an uneven amount of chicken, especially if someone else in front or behind me orders the same thing. Then either mine or theirs would have more chicken. I guess it just depends on who the chef that day is. Same goes for sauce. Sometimes there’s too much and other times there’s not enough. The line can be quite long so expect to wait at least 10mins unless you go near closing time.

Pro Tip: Use the To-​Go window by the stairs to Lemonade. You can get the prepackaged salads there (I find the chicken caesar to be a particularly good deal) as well as the sandwiches and a few other menu offerings.

3 Stars
Service was slow but the pizza (The Works — 4 stars) was pretty good… a lot better than I expected

There has GOT to be a better way to handle the lunch rush at this location. They know what to expect every single day… yet they never improve their time. There had to be about 30 people in line with one (mind you: slow) cashier taking orders. It took about 40 minutes for me to get one pasta from the time I got in line. You would think they would work hard to get the «express CPK» idea down pat for a college campus, but it’s not working. They are making everything to order (and the lines to get those orders are too damn long!) and it’s taking forever.
Only eat here if you’ve got all the time in the world.

Cons:
Lines can get very long during lunchtime, and the pizza and pasta menu closes earlier than the actual business closing time. Also, the menu here only includes half the items served at an actual sit-​down restaurant. These are the only complaints I have of this place.
Pros:
–Located very conveniently in the middle of campus
–Service is fairly quick (considering that they freshly bake each of their served pizzas and pastas. Sandwiches can be immediately grabbed from their display fridge)
–The Original BBQ Chicken Pizza: mmmm so delicious! At first I was nervous that they would add too much barbeque sauce, but this was obviously not the case. The red onions and cilantro adds to it a wonderful extra kick, although I kinda wished for more cilantro. Very good pizza nonetheless. No wonder this is their most popular pizza!
–Chicken Tequila Fettucine: also very delicious! Chicken is very tender and sauce is creamy. This dish tastes 3x better when spraying lime all over the noodles, because due to the creamy texture you might feel a bit queasy (which can be quite alleviated by the limejuice!).
–USC students get tax deducted!
Although this particular CPK has a limited menu, they still carry the BBQ chicken AND the chicken fettucine, and therefore I am a fan. :)