California Pizza Kitchen Frozen pizza is one of best frozen pizza’s my family has ever had. I wish there were more coupons for this pizza.
Jennifer
January 15, 2009 at 2:08 pm
CPK frozen pizzas are delicious we love them in our house.
Crystal
February 11, 2009 at 4:05 pm
California frozen pizza is sooo tasty. I recommended it to several friend and they feel the same.
michelle bovenkerk
February 18, 2009 at 12:26 pm
we purchaced 2 pizzas and both were freezer burned
Bonnie Tandy Leblang
February 18, 2009 at 1:57 pm
Michelle, may I suggest you call the 800 number of the package — and give them the store where you purchased it and the numbers from the package. I beleive CPK will replace those pizzas for you.
Sharon L. Bossinger
March 11, 2009 at 5:28 pm
My favorite frozen pizza but I do not buy it very often. I wish there were more cupons available.
Casey
May 6, 2009 at 10:05 am
The best frozen pizzas ever!
Barbara
July 20, 2009 at 6:54 am
Where can you purchase them in the Taylorsville & sandy, Utah area?
ron
July 23, 2009 at 9:44 am
Did you ever send sharon l bossinger some coupons?? Seems like you could have a faithful customer at the expense of only a few coupons.
Bonnie Tandy Leblang
July 23, 2009 at 10:27 pm
Barbara, I finally got the answer for you from the CPK team:
Here is the list of retail outlets where California Pizza Kitchen frozen pizza should be available in the requested towns in Utah. You can post to your biteofthebest site accordingly. Sorry for the delay.
Mary Anne
SANDY, UTAH
Wal-Mart Super Center
Albertson’s
Macy’s
Harmon’s
Ream’s
Super Target
TAYLORSVILLE, UTAH
Smith’s
Albertson’s
Harmon’s
Wal-Mart Super Center
J Davis
September 8, 2009 at 1:15 pm
I am sincerely confused by the positive feed back. WE bought 2 different types of pizzas one of them yours. I felt the pizza was singly the worst I have ever had. I would mever purchase again. What did I do wrong? The crust was seriously like cardboard, very small for the price and lacking in flavor.
Crystal
September 8, 2009 at 1:23 pm
J Davis it seems that you may have overcooked the pizza. Quite frankly the only one I dislike is the one with meat on it. Maybe you should try it one more time.
Dorothy Lawrence
September 18, 2009 at 10:28 am
I have been buying CPK frozen margarita pizza for about 2 years now. My husband & I just loved it until recently. TWe see a big change in the crust especially. Have you changed your formula. It seems thicker and almost like a bread consistency instead of pizza. Please comment. Thank you
Joyce (CPK)
September 25, 2009 at 4:55 pm
Dear Dorothy,
We’re sorry you were disappointed in your recent experience with CPK Margherita frozen pizza. We hear what you’re saying and we’re taking every measure possible to get our Margherita crust back to what you expect quickly. But we regret when even one consumer is not satisfied with our CPK frozen pizza. We’d like to make it up to you. If you will e-mail me at Melanie.Morland@kraft.com I’d like to send you a coupon for a free pizza. Sincerely, Melanie Morland, Kraft Foods
Best regards, Joyce
patric kay
September 27, 2009 at 2:47 pm
I LIVE IN PGH PA.WE HAVE BEEN EATING YOUR PIZZA FOR YEARS HOCKEY NIGHT IS ALLWAYS PIZZA NIGHT.BUT LATLEY YOUR PRODUCT HAS NOT BEEN UP TO PAR .WE SHOP AT LOCAL GIANT EAGLE AND THE LAST 5 PIZZAS HAVE NOT HAD ENOUGH CHEESE AND ONE PIZZA ONLY HAD 3 SLICES OF PEPORNI ON IT .AT 7.29 A PIZZA YOU EXPECT THE BEST FROM WHAT WE CONSIDER THE BEST PIZZA YOU CAN BUY.I HOPE YOU CAN RECTIFY THE PROBLEM AS I NOW YOU WILL. THANKS PAT KAY.
Lily
October 3, 2009 at 4:47 pm
I live in Orlando FL and we love your pizzas. Once or twice this summer A Limited Edition Julienne Cut Ham & Swiss was available but then never saw it again. It is definitely one of your best? Why isn’t it in the stores?
Mr. Food
October 24, 2009 at 12:58 pm
Bought the Rising Crust BBQ Chicken pizza which we buy all the time but this one had no BBQ sauce. Am contacting Kraft foods about this Monday morning.
Eugene Slowik
October 31, 2009 at 2:18 pm
We really love your Thin Crust Sicilian pizza, but out of the last 5 pizza’s we have bought, 2 of them had very little if any sauce at all. It made for a very dry pizza. We really do enjoy your product, but if we keep buying it and not getting pizza sauce on our pizza, then we will no longer purchase your product. 2 out or 5 is not a good ratio. Please look in to this and correct the problem, as I am sure that we are not the only ones who have ran into this issue…….Thank you… E.Slowik
Sheila Lovin
November 18, 2009 at 12:37 pm
I completely agree with Dorothy Lawrence’s post above. My husband and I also purchase the CPK frozen margarita pizzas on a weekly basis. The last three times we’ve noticed a major difference in the crust, it’s thicker and completely falls apart in the oven! We also noticed that the amount of sauce, cheese and tomatoes was drastically reduced. We are very disappointed and have decided to purchase a local grocery store version of the same pizza. To our delight, the grocery store brand is very similar to the original CPK version that we had loved. Can you tell me if the recipe has changed?
Bonnie Tandy Leblang
November 18, 2009 at 12:42 pm
Sheila…I’ve asked the makers of CPK to respond to the query about whether or not they’ve changed the recipe. I’m still waiting for a response. I will try to email them again!
Sheila Lovin
November 18, 2009 at 1:08 pm
Thank you Bonnie, how kind of you to respond so quickly. I look forward to the CPK makers’ reply to my question.
Barbara Edmondson
November 29, 2009 at 4:54 pm
I am certain the recipe has changed recently. We just opened two Sicilian thin crusts last night, and there was virtually NO red sauce on it. It was so bad, I took photos! What I was hoping was an error on the production line looks like it may be their new recipe. This pizza is way too expensive for them to get stingy with their ingredients. Wish I could post my photo of this sauce-less crust so you could see that I’m really not exaggerating.
Roger Ro
December 5, 2009 at 4:12 pm
I’m happy to find this website and info on the CPK thin crust pizza. I buy 4-5 of these when they go on sale. And I have to agree with the other posters. Recently the crust HAS changed.. Not light like before. The edges look like dense cardboard sort of and too brown when cooked. Also the amount of sauce has gone down. KRAFT! you’ve taken a perfect product and destroyed it. Good grief.. Corporate fools.. Dump the Exec in charge of this latest screw-up and bring back the original product. Roger R
gregory west
December 15, 2009 at 8:04 pm
CPK Thin Crust pizza has definitely changed for the worse. The crust is horrible, dense and heavy whereas before it was a nice light almost flakey . Also the topping has changed with less sauce.
Too bad, i used to have a frozen pizza i could enjoy. No more. CPK if you go back to the original recipe, let me know so i can buy your product again.
Sheila Lovin
December 16, 2009 at 11:03 am
It sounds like CPK has not done a thing about the recent change to their thin crust pizzas, nor have they responded to my question posted November 18th! My husband and I used to enjoy the frozen margarita pizzas, especially on evenings when we were too tired to cook after a long day at work. I will not purchase another one of these pizzas until I know for a fact CPK has addressed this issue and changes the recipe BACK to the original. I know I am speaking not only for myself, but several others on this forum as well.
Barbara Edmondson
December 16, 2009 at 11:08 am
CPK frozen pizzas are now a KRAFT product. I sent a complaint via the website, and heard back from KRAFT people. This is just not the same pizza it used to be. Has anyone tried the Paul Newman thin-crust pizzas? They are good. I am on the hunt for a new favorite brand.
Christie
December 16, 2009 at 11:13 am
Barbara, If you find another brand, please share that information with those of us who are lamenting the changes in CPK
Roger Ro
December 16, 2009 at 2:49 pm
All we can do it keep posting and complaining. I recently complained by calling the 800 number. I asked for a refund for a few pizzas I bought. They send coupons for new pizzas. I won’t replace with the thin crust that is for sure. What fools kraft people are. Destroying a great product. Amazing.
gregory west
December 16, 2009 at 3:27 pm
“All we can do it keep posting and complaining.”
you know Rodger i don’t think that will help. When a big company like Kraft takes over a product they cheapen the product for mass production and ride out the reputation of the name. I doubt they ever plan to go back. Remember what happen to Famous Amos CCC’s when he got bought out. They turned into Chips Ahoy style junk.
I don’t think they think in terms of quality, believing most Americans won’t know good food anyway (think Kraft cheese and and how popular Domino’s (although not a Kraft company) pizza is.
I think all you can do is move on… look another brand.
Pat
December 19, 2009 at 9:56 pm
Which is better in oven or microwave? My local store was giving out samples microwaved.
Pat
December 19, 2009 at 9:59 pm
The local grocery store in Lincoln Park, Mi Meijer’s sell them.
Jan Lottmann
December 20, 2009 at 3:42 pm
What Happened to CA. barbeque pizza. I can’t find the thin crust anymore, and the new rising crust is awful!!! Doughy, thick, flavor gonnnnne, and the sauce is not the same. Why change it? I won’t be buying it anymore, pls. change back, it was my guilty pleasure!
James L. Willhide
December 23, 2009 at 2:00 pm
I just baked one of your Crispy Thin Crust Sicilian Pizzas and someone failed to put any sauce on it. It was so dry it was unedible. We have been buying your pizzas for years ans this was our first bad experience!
ROBERT D. THOMPSON
December 28, 2009 at 10:50 am
ON SUNDAY DEC. 27 I BOUGHT A FROZEN THIN CRUST SICILIAN PIZZA. MY WIFE AND I WERE DISSAPOINTED WITH IT. THIS PIZZA WAS PRACTICALLY TASTELESS AND DRY. WE HAVE BOUGHT THIS PIZZA(FOUR TIMES) AND ENJOYED THEM.
THANK YOU,
ROBERT THOMPSON
liz
January 4, 2010 at 1:28 am
at least I know I’m not crazy now. I had the same problem with the crust on both the margarita and spinach cheese. the crust is terrible. thought it was just a bad batch when I bought a few of them a couple of months ago. Thought I’d give ’em one more chance last week, no improvement whatsoever! I’m surprised CPK still put their name on the box—not good. Will NOT be throwing my money away on that brand again.
Roger Ro
January 4, 2010 at 2:09 am
CPK corp doesn’t seem to care. I contacted them and they say to contact Kraft for frozen pizzas. Amazing really that CPK would let Kraft ruin their brand. CPK stock has never been a good performer.. Now I know why. Bad management. CPK also has very low insider stock ownership. That is an indication of management that doesn’t really care.
Susan Prospere
January 4, 2010 at 5:11 pm
I ate the white frozen pizza almost every night for two years. Suddenly the crust was changed and it now tastes like a wet cracker. I used to love the entire pizza, including the crust, but now I find it to be inedible. I cannot get a response regarding the change but assume it’s cheaper and they are making more money. I noticed that the calorie count went up slightly also.
Barbara Edmondson
January 4, 2010 at 5:24 pm
If you ask Kraft directly if the recipe has changed, they will not answer you. They did send me a letter and coupons for free pizzas, but they simply ignored the question. So California Pizza Kitchen made a ton of money when they sold their frozen division to Kraft, but consumers lose out. I have stopped buying KPK — even when they go on sale for $4.99. It’s really a shame.
Roger Ro
January 5, 2010 at 4:03 pm
CALIFORNIA PIZZA KITCHEN LICENSING AGREEMENT WITH KRAFT FOODS TO TRANSITION TO NESTLE
Today I wrote an email to a Wall Street Journal Writer. She had written an article about CPK and it’s founders Larry Flax and Rick Rosenfield. I detailed some of the frustrations we as consumers are having. I also asked her to forward it to either of the CPK founders. They are both back at CPK and currently Co-CEOs and directors. I wonder if Nestle knows of the recent damage Kraft has done to the CPK brand. It’s really very interesting. I can’t imagine how Nestle won’t be burned on this one.
Susan Prospere
January 5, 2010 at 4:08 pm
I wrote something on the California Pizza Kitchen Facebook page. Maybe enough bad publicity will do something. I am furious about the change and about buying several pizzas before I realized how terrible they are now. It would be helpful (maybe) if people join me on the Facebook page. Of course, maybe they don’t care about their reputation.
Susan Prospere
January 6, 2010 at 5:52 pm
I just got a CPK Facebook response saying that the frozen pizzas will be changed to the previous crust so be on the lookout to see if this is true. In the meantime online support wrote that no change had ever been made, which obviously is a contradiction that leads one to wonder.
Scott Decker
January 6, 2010 at 7:09 pm
Do you people ever check your product or do you just release it for sale?
Tried my first “For One”, Margherita Crispy Thin Crust tonight. It failed, for the following reasons:
1 The “EASY OPEN CLEAR PLASTIC BAG” from step 1 of your directions is pathetic. I don’t have large fingers yet I could not grasp the corner to pull the bag open because the area was so tiny and would not seperate. Tried to use my very sharp kitchen scissors on the bag. They could hardly cut it, it was a struggle to get to the pizza.
2 The pizza tasted good except I had to throw out over 1/4 of it because you forgot to put cheese on that part.
Sorry, but I wrote the truth here.
gregory west
January 6, 2010 at 9:51 pm
“I just got a CPK Facebook response saying that the frozen pizzas will be changed to the previous crust.”
The response i got from Kraft was that it was probably a temporary problem in the production line. But i think i was being fed a line, judging from all the responses here from 2 months.
Would be curious if they really do change it back. I’ll wait and see. In the meantime i’m looking at other brands. Funny enough, while in the frozn ailse today a friend recommended Freschetta Pizza. So i’ll give it a try and report back.
Roger Ro
January 7, 2010 at 1:41 am
Interesting news Susan. I just added a comment to yours on the CPK Facebook page. Yesterday I posted on the Nestle Facebook page. A Kraft sales rep responded that there has never been a change. He said we were “misinformed”. I mentioned our eye and taste provided the info we needed. Lets hope that they do make an effort to change the product back. I asked for more details on the CPK post.
Susan Prospere
January 7, 2010 at 1:45 pm
I will wait a bit and then buy one; I assume it will take time to make the change. Let’s just hope they don’t think they can fool us again!
Susan Prospere
January 7, 2010 at 1:50 pm
I have also noticed that in addition to the crappy crust, the topping is much sparser.
I don’t expect that the pizzas would have exactly the same look as the time in the freezer, cooking conditions and photograph conditions are not exactly replicated… BUT! The changes are OBVIOUS! Different crust and less topping especially around the edges. The crust looks like a cookie dough cutout… Since we’ve all had pizzas like this for four months to say it is a “production line” issue would not be possible.
Roberta
January 17, 2010 at 6:38 pm
Decided to try this since they were on sale at the local grocer. Seriously – CPK Four Cheese Pizza for One – easily the WORST frozen pizza experience ever! Thick cardboard crust with tasteless sauce and cheese. Never again.
gregory
January 17, 2010 at 8:26 pm
“Funny enough, while in the frozen aisle today a friend recommended Freschetta Pizza. So i’ll give it a try and report back.”
reporting back:
tried the Freschetta Flat Bread Ultra Thin Crispy Crust 5 Cheese Pizza. And it was pretty good. As they say the crust was “really” thin, which i like, and crisp. In comparison to the the “previous good” CPK it tastes a little more like store bought frozen than the CPK but wasn’t better than “store bought”. Wasn’t much sauce in this one but maybe that’s because it was 5 cheese. Overall it was pretty good taste.
Susan Prospere
January 18, 2010 at 12:27 pm
I tried the DiGiorno flat crust pizza and the crust looked exactly like the new CPK crust–same assembly line indentations and same taste. I looked on the box and sure enough, it was a Kraft product. I think therein lies the problem. I’m giving it some time to return to the original crust per indications from CPK that it will change back. I’ll let everyone know if I find one that meets my own standards and may call Michelle at CPK again.
In the meantime if anyone finds something really good, please post.
California Pizza Kitchen Frozen pizza is one of best frozen pizza’s my family has ever had. I wish there were more coupons for this pizza.
CPK frozen pizzas are delicious we love them in our house.
California frozen pizza is sooo tasty. I recommended it to several friend and they feel the same.
we purchaced 2 pizzas and both were freezer burned
Michelle, may I suggest you call the 800 number of the package — and give them the store where you purchased it and the numbers from the package. I beleive CPK will replace those pizzas for you.
My favorite frozen pizza but I do not buy it very often. I wish there were more cupons available.
The best frozen pizzas ever!
Where can you purchase them in the Taylorsville & sandy, Utah area?
Did you ever send sharon l bossinger some coupons?? Seems like you could have a faithful customer at the expense of only a few coupons.
Barbara, I finally got the answer for you from the CPK team:
Here is the list of retail outlets where California Pizza Kitchen frozen pizza should be available in the requested towns in Utah. You can post to your biteofthebest site accordingly. Sorry for the delay.
Mary Anne
SANDY, UTAH
Wal-Mart Super Center
Albertson’s
Macy’s
Harmon’s
Ream’s
Super Target
TAYLORSVILLE, UTAH
Smith’s
Albertson’s
Harmon’s
Wal-Mart Super Center
I am sincerely confused by the positive feed back. WE bought 2 different types of pizzas one of them yours. I felt the pizza was singly the worst I have ever had. I would mever purchase again. What did I do wrong? The crust was seriously like cardboard, very small for the price and lacking in flavor.
J Davis it seems that you may have overcooked the pizza. Quite frankly the only one I dislike is the one with meat on it. Maybe you should try it one more time.
I have been buying CPK frozen margarita pizza for about 2 years now. My husband & I just loved it until recently. TWe see a big change in the crust especially. Have you changed your formula. It seems thicker and almost like a bread consistency instead of pizza. Please comment. Thank you
Dear Dorothy,
We’re sorry you were disappointed in your recent experience with CPK Margherita frozen pizza. We hear what you’re saying and we’re taking every measure possible to get our Margherita crust back to what you expect quickly. But we regret when even one consumer is not satisfied with our CPK frozen pizza. We’d like to make it up to you. If you will e-mail me at Melanie.Morland@kraft.com I’d like to send you a coupon for a free pizza. Sincerely, Melanie Morland, Kraft Foods
Best regards, Joyce
I LIVE IN PGH PA.WE HAVE BEEN EATING YOUR PIZZA FOR YEARS HOCKEY NIGHT IS ALLWAYS PIZZA NIGHT.BUT LATLEY YOUR PRODUCT HAS NOT BEEN UP TO PAR .WE SHOP AT LOCAL GIANT EAGLE AND THE LAST 5 PIZZAS HAVE NOT HAD ENOUGH CHEESE AND ONE PIZZA ONLY HAD 3 SLICES OF PEPORNI ON IT .AT 7.29 A PIZZA YOU EXPECT THE BEST FROM WHAT WE CONSIDER THE BEST PIZZA YOU CAN BUY.I HOPE YOU CAN RECTIFY THE PROBLEM AS I NOW YOU WILL. THANKS PAT KAY.
I live in Orlando FL and we love your pizzas. Once or twice this summer A Limited Edition Julienne Cut Ham & Swiss was available but then never saw it again. It is definitely one of your best? Why isn’t it in the stores?
Bought the Rising Crust BBQ Chicken pizza which we buy all the time but this one had no BBQ sauce. Am contacting Kraft foods about this Monday morning.
We really love your Thin Crust Sicilian pizza, but out of the last 5 pizza’s we have bought, 2 of them had very little if any sauce at all. It made for a very dry pizza. We really do enjoy your product, but if we keep buying it and not getting pizza sauce on our pizza, then we will no longer purchase your product. 2 out or 5 is not a good ratio. Please look in to this and correct the problem, as I am sure that we are not the only ones who have ran into this issue…….Thank you… E.Slowik
I completely agree with Dorothy Lawrence’s post above. My husband and I also purchase the CPK frozen margarita pizzas on a weekly basis. The last three times we’ve noticed a major difference in the crust, it’s thicker and completely falls apart in the oven! We also noticed that the amount of sauce, cheese and tomatoes was drastically reduced. We are very disappointed and have decided to purchase a local grocery store version of the same pizza. To our delight, the grocery store brand is very similar to the original CPK version that we had loved. Can you tell me if the recipe has changed?
Sheila…I’ve asked the makers of CPK to respond to the query about whether or not they’ve changed the recipe. I’m still waiting for a response. I will try to email them again!
Thank you Bonnie, how kind of you to respond so quickly. I look forward to the CPK makers’ reply to my question.
I am certain the recipe has changed recently. We just opened two Sicilian thin crusts last night, and there was virtually NO red sauce on it. It was so bad, I took photos! What I was hoping was an error on the production line looks like it may be their new recipe. This pizza is way too expensive for them to get stingy with their ingredients. Wish I could post my photo of this sauce-less crust so you could see that I’m really not exaggerating.
I’m happy to find this website and info on the CPK thin crust pizza. I buy 4-5 of these when they go on sale. And I have to agree with the other posters. Recently the crust HAS changed.. Not light like before. The edges look like dense cardboard sort of and too brown when cooked. Also the amount of sauce has gone down. KRAFT! you’ve taken a perfect product and destroyed it. Good grief.. Corporate fools.. Dump the Exec in charge of this latest screw-up and bring back the original product. Roger R
CPK Thin Crust pizza has definitely changed for the worse. The crust is horrible, dense and heavy whereas before it was a nice light almost flakey . Also the topping has changed with less sauce.
Too bad, i used to have a frozen pizza i could enjoy. No more. CPK if you go back to the original recipe, let me know so i can buy your product again.
It sounds like CPK has not done a thing about the recent change to their thin crust pizzas, nor have they responded to my question posted November 18th! My husband and I used to enjoy the frozen margarita pizzas, especially on evenings when we were too tired to cook after a long day at work. I will not purchase another one of these pizzas until I know for a fact CPK has addressed this issue and changes the recipe BACK to the original. I know I am speaking not only for myself, but several others on this forum as well.
CPK frozen pizzas are now a KRAFT product. I sent a complaint via the website, and heard back from KRAFT people. This is just not the same pizza it used to be. Has anyone tried the Paul Newman thin-crust pizzas? They are good. I am on the hunt for a new favorite brand.
Barbara, If you find another brand, please share that information with those of us who are lamenting the changes in CPK
All we can do it keep posting and complaining. I recently complained by calling the 800 number. I asked for a refund for a few pizzas I bought. They send coupons for new pizzas. I won’t replace with the thin crust that is for sure. What fools kraft people are. Destroying a great product. Amazing.
“All we can do it keep posting and complaining.”
you know Rodger i don’t think that will help. When a big company like Kraft takes over a product they cheapen the product for mass production and ride out the reputation of the name. I doubt they ever plan to go back. Remember what happen to Famous Amos CCC’s when he got bought out. They turned into Chips Ahoy style junk.
I don’t think they think in terms of quality, believing most Americans won’t know good food anyway (think Kraft cheese and and how popular Domino’s (although not a Kraft company) pizza is.
I think all you can do is move on… look another brand.
Which is better in oven or microwave? My local store was giving out samples microwaved.
The local grocery store in Lincoln Park, Mi Meijer’s sell them.
What Happened to CA. barbeque pizza. I can’t find the thin crust anymore, and the new rising crust is awful!!! Doughy, thick, flavor gonnnnne, and the sauce is not the same. Why change it? I won’t be buying it anymore, pls. change back, it was my guilty pleasure!
I just baked one of your Crispy Thin Crust Sicilian Pizzas and someone failed to put any sauce on it. It was so dry it was unedible. We have been buying your pizzas for years ans this was our first bad experience!
ON SUNDAY DEC. 27 I BOUGHT A FROZEN THIN CRUST SICILIAN PIZZA. MY WIFE AND I WERE DISSAPOINTED WITH IT. THIS PIZZA WAS PRACTICALLY TASTELESS AND DRY. WE HAVE BOUGHT THIS PIZZA(FOUR TIMES) AND ENJOYED THEM.
THANK YOU,
ROBERT THOMPSON
at least I know I’m not crazy now. I had the same problem with the crust on both the margarita and spinach cheese. the crust is terrible. thought it was just a bad batch when I bought a few of them a couple of months ago. Thought I’d give ’em one more chance last week, no improvement whatsoever! I’m surprised CPK still put their name on the box—not good. Will NOT be throwing my money away on that brand again.
CPK corp doesn’t seem to care. I contacted them and they say to contact Kraft for frozen pizzas. Amazing really that CPK would let Kraft ruin their brand. CPK stock has never been a good performer.. Now I know why. Bad management. CPK also has very low insider stock ownership. That is an indication of management that doesn’t really care.
I ate the white frozen pizza almost every night for two years. Suddenly the crust was changed and it now tastes like a wet cracker. I used to love the entire pizza, including the crust, but now I find it to be inedible. I cannot get a response regarding the change but assume it’s cheaper and they are making more money. I noticed that the calorie count went up slightly also.
If you ask Kraft directly if the recipe has changed, they will not answer you. They did send me a letter and coupons for free pizzas, but they simply ignored the question. So California Pizza Kitchen made a ton of money when they sold their frozen division to Kraft, but consumers lose out. I have stopped buying KPK — even when they go on sale for $4.99. It’s really a shame.
CALIFORNIA PIZZA KITCHEN LICENSING AGREEMENT WITH KRAFT FOODS TO TRANSITION TO NESTLE
http://www.businesswire.com/portal/site/home/permalink/?ndmViewId=news_view&newsId=20100105006031&newsLang=en
Today I wrote an email to a Wall Street Journal Writer. She had written an article about CPK and it’s founders Larry Flax and Rick Rosenfield. I detailed some of the frustrations we as consumers are having. I also asked her to forward it to either of the CPK founders. They are both back at CPK and currently Co-CEOs and directors. I wonder if Nestle knows of the recent damage Kraft has done to the CPK brand. It’s really very interesting. I can’t imagine how Nestle won’t be burned on this one.
I wrote something on the California Pizza Kitchen Facebook page. Maybe enough bad publicity will do something. I am furious about the change and about buying several pizzas before I realized how terrible they are now. It would be helpful (maybe) if people join me on the Facebook page. Of course, maybe they don’t care about their reputation.
I just got a CPK Facebook response saying that the frozen pizzas will be changed to the previous crust so be on the lookout to see if this is true. In the meantime online support wrote that no change had ever been made, which obviously is a contradiction that leads one to wonder.
Do you people ever check your product or do you just release it for sale?
Tried my first “For One”, Margherita Crispy Thin Crust tonight. It failed, for the following reasons:
1 The “EASY OPEN CLEAR PLASTIC BAG” from step 1 of your directions is pathetic. I don’t have large fingers yet I could not grasp the corner to pull the bag open because the area was so tiny and would not seperate. Tried to use my very sharp kitchen scissors on the bag. They could hardly cut it, it was a struggle to get to the pizza.
2 The pizza tasted good except I had to throw out over 1/4 of it because you forgot to put cheese on that part.
Sorry, but I wrote the truth here.
“I just got a CPK Facebook response saying that the frozen pizzas will be changed to the previous crust.”
The response i got from Kraft was that it was probably a temporary problem in the production line. But i think i was being fed a line, judging from all the responses here from 2 months.
Would be curious if they really do change it back. I’ll wait and see. In the meantime i’m looking at other brands. Funny enough, while in the frozn ailse today a friend recommended Freschetta Pizza. So i’ll give it a try and report back.
Interesting news Susan. I just added a comment to yours on the CPK Facebook page. Yesterday I posted on the Nestle Facebook page. A Kraft sales rep responded that there has never been a change. He said we were “misinformed”. I mentioned our eye and taste provided the info we needed. Lets hope that they do make an effort to change the product back. I asked for more details on the CPK post.
I will wait a bit and then buy one; I assume it will take time to make the change. Let’s just hope they don’t think they can fool us again!
I have also noticed that in addition to the crappy crust, the topping is much sparser.
http://i3.photobucket.com/albums/y93/kalo93406/pizza-compare.jpg
Guess which one is the one I cooked today???
I don’t expect that the pizzas would have exactly the same look as the time in the freezer, cooking conditions and photograph conditions are not exactly replicated… BUT! The changes are OBVIOUS! Different crust and less topping especially around the edges. The crust looks like a cookie dough cutout… Since we’ve all had pizzas like this for four months to say it is a “production line” issue would not be possible.
Decided to try this since they were on sale at the local grocer. Seriously – CPK Four Cheese Pizza for One – easily the WORST frozen pizza experience ever! Thick cardboard crust with tasteless sauce and cheese. Never again.
“Funny enough, while in the frozen aisle today a friend recommended Freschetta Pizza. So i’ll give it a try and report back.”
reporting back:
tried the Freschetta Flat Bread Ultra Thin Crispy Crust 5 Cheese Pizza. And it was pretty good. As they say the crust was “really” thin, which i like, and crisp. In comparison to the the “previous good” CPK it tastes a little more like store bought frozen than the CPK but wasn’t better than “store bought”. Wasn’t much sauce in this one but maybe that’s because it was 5 cheese. Overall it was pretty good taste.
I tried the DiGiorno flat crust pizza and the crust looked exactly like the new CPK crust–same assembly line indentations and same taste. I looked on the box and sure enough, it was a Kraft product. I think therein lies the problem. I’m giving it some time to return to the original crust per indications from CPK that it will change back. I’ll let everyone know if I find one that meets my own standards and may call Michelle at CPK again.
In the meantime if anyone finds something really good, please post.