Many years ago, a reader named Jill let us know that California Pizza Kitchen had a great list of allergens on their website. Recently, a reader “kindly” let me know that the link no longer worked. So I thought I would take it as an opportunity to give this entire post a big refresh.
Fortunately, they do still have great allergen information and even a vegan and vegetarian menu. At last check, it was located here: www.cpk.com/Contents/Downloads/Nutrition-Allergen.pdf. If it moves, please kindly let me know in the comments. They also have labels on their menu for gluten-free and vegetarian dishes.
Of course you must confirm before ordering, and cross-contamination is a potential concern in any kitchen. And allergen policies can vary between different franchise locations of any restaurant. But at last check, I noted that they have some great options for dairy-free diners.
California Pizza Kitchen does not seem to offer dairy-free cheese alternative, but they state that their regular pizza crusts are all vegan, and the gluten-free crust is also listed as milk-free and egg-free. But please take note that they have a “may contain” potential cross-contamination warning on their Wheat Whole Grain Crust. The pizzas can be topped with the Pizza Marinara, Vegetarian Black Beans, or Spicy Marinara Sauce, which are reportedly vegan. The Thai Sauce might be dairy-free (inquire), but it isn’t vegan. So you can build a variety of dairy-free, hold-the-cheese pizzas.
They also have a small handful of regular menu items, like the Banh Mi Power Bowls and Super Spinach + Quinoa Salad that are dairy-free. According to their guide, they can also customize several dishes to be dairy-free and vegan.
Reader Reviews
Thanks to Lillian I. for sharing a quick review on our Facebook page:
I love them! The wait staff was great with answering questions and helped pick out food for my son. The chef would take the time to personally come out to check on how my son liked the food (even asked if he wanted more) and let us know that they used fresh utensils/pots for the food. Always a good experience at our local CPK.
Where to Find California Pizza Kitchen
The chain has over 200 locations in 32 US states and 13 other countries. Their heaviest concentration of restaurants is in, you guessed it, California, and on the East Coast. See their website below for addresses and hours.
Website: www.cpk.com
9 Comments
You should remove this since the links and information are no longer valid.
Or I could just update it! Only the link no longer worked, the info was still valid. Fully updated with new links and more information for you Bailey. Enjoy !
Hi!! I actually work at a CPK and our pizzas are actually possible to have!!! You can get any pizza without cheese! The best I think personally are out Cali Veggie because it is loaded with veggies of the Wild Mushroom!! Our pizza dough is vegan and out gluten free dough is completely allergen free!!! Any pizza Can be made on the GF dough as well!!! Cpk can be super accommodating to a dairy allergy!
Fantastic! Thank you so much for sharing this info on California Pizza Kitchen Ariel!
The CPK crust has whey powder in the ingredient list. That’s dairy, correct?
Yes, whey is a type of dairy protein.
My son has an anaphylactic allergy to Milk and we recently found out that the Gluten free crusts are milk free. We order that crust but leave out the cheese. We ate there for his birthday recently and per request, they made the pizza away from other ingredients to prevent cross contamination. We did add pepperoni. My son loved it!
That’s so wonderful Angie! I know how hard it can be to enjoy a fun meal out with an anaphylactic allergy!
I really like the Eating Out section. I have a handle of reading ingredient lists and cooking dairy free, but it is so hard to figure out what is dairy free when you are at a restaurant.