CLOSED! american/pizza: i strongly recommend CALIFORNIA PIZZA KITCHEN

CALIFORNIA PIZZA KITCHEN 
at Xinyi Vieshow, 2F 台北信義威秀影城
No. 20, Song Shou Rd. 台北市松壽路20號2樓
(02) 2722-8383

CLOSED a/o 2015

MRT: Taipei City Hall

website: CPK Taipei's FB page

hours: 11AM - 12 midnight

$$

Kid friendliness: high chairs available and room for strollers.

Visit reviewed: 11/23/2011 & 11/30/2011 & 3/3/2012



It's kind of a strange, but happy sight to see the bright California Pizza Kitchen sign in Taipei. Tucked in the back of the Xinyi Vieshow food court, CPK Taipei just opened a few months ago in December to immediate packed tables. With most of its signature menu items transported from the states, California Pizza Kitchen serves up Cali style salads, pizzas and pastas that will surely draw from the Chili's and Gordon Biersch crowd in the area, as well as the Vieshow movie goers, and those who have been missing CPK (and a good salad!) from back home.

The inside is bright and familiar, with a semi open kitchen and seating good for large groups or couples.

For those not familiar with California Pizza Kitchen, their food is a California twist on Italian pizzas and pastas. In Taipei, it seems to even more fusion with certain dishes like a dessert pizza with tapioca boba on it, or more recently spotted a fried oyster pizza. Luckily, most of their signature dishes escape local tweaking.

There are two types of pizza on the menu- their regular crust, which is slightly more doughy and sweet, and the thin crust, which has a nice crunch without being too delicate or dry. The pizzas are gourmet sized, meaning that they can be finished by one or two hungry people, or shared family style so everyone can try different slices.

I've been there at least once a month (sometimes twice) since it first opened and I'm happy to say that both the food and service have improved with each visit. During the soft opening, I complained noted that the salads were too small and my favorite thin crust Sicilian pizza (NT$480) was too salty (and on my second visit, too bare) and that we had to ask for water to our thirsty table five times. They've been figuring out where to source certain ingredients like the ham locally and how to work the tables and kitchen when they are slammed during prime dining hours, and on my most recent visit last week, it seems like they've found the sweet spot.

Too salty during the first visit

The Sicilian pizza has a mix of spicy ham, Italian sausage and salami and sometimes I add mushrooms to it.

Too bare during the second visit

Just Right

The BBQ chopped salad (NT$320) is one of my favorites from LA, and CPK Taipei's version is definitely one of the smaller salads for the price compared to the big plates you'd get at other Western Chain Restaurants. The main problem I have had with the salad on the past few visits is that the black beans were quite hard, maybe they weren't boiled long enough? And that it's missing jicama and corn. I complained to them about the sizes on my first few visits and I spotted it last week at another table and it seems to have gotten bigger, which it needs to be for the price.

My favorite pizza these days has been the Pear and Gorgonzola pizza which is the best value for your dollar with a nice size serving of greens on top of a thin crust pizza with a sweetness from the baked pears. Or you could try the California Club pizza which is another salad on top of a pizza. Liked the Carmelized peach salad more than when I tried it in LA, which also has dried cranberries, goat cheese and walnuts.

Wasn't a fan of the CPK Taipei version of the Cobb salad- as much as I love beets, it doesn't really belong in a Cobb and there should be chopped avocado.

I also didn't care for the appetizers that I tried in December and haven't ordered them since then, so not sure if they've gotten better. The spinach and artichoke dip (NT$250) seemed to be lacking spinach and something seemed very creamy but not cheesy. I wouldn't order any of the appetizers again.

Pork Rib Quesadillas (NT$320)

Tortilla Spring Rolls (NT$230)

If you have to order one pasta from the menu, get the tequila lime chicken fettucine. It's got a nice kick and twang to it and my favorite pasta at CPK. I remember when I first ordered it at a work lunch when I used to work in Manhattan Beach and I was addicted. Most of my friends had it for the first time at this lunch and it was their favorite pasta as well.

The other pastas won't have as much unique flavor in contrast, but the bolognese penne or fettucine alfredo with chicken could be a good option for kids.

CPK is known for quite a few of their fusion pizzas. While Tandoori chicken didn't make its way back to Taipei, many of the Chinese themed ones did. Our table was not a fan of the Peking duck pizza (NT$380) with the gooey sauce and strange combination of toppings, and left it mostly uneaten.

The Smoked Salmon pizza (NT$420) fared much better with my friends- it almost seemed like a flatbread topped with smoked salmon and veggies. Other unique pizzas include Thai Chicken, Roasted Garlic Chicken, Greek Pizza, Banana and Chocolate...

I recommend sticking to the CPK classics, like the Original BBQ chicken pizza (NT$350) which has a slight sweetness with bbq sauce replacing the tomato sauce underneath the cheese...

or even good old pepperoni pizza.

I was so happy to hear that CPK was going to be in Taipei, and happy that the result is similar to what you'd find in the states. A lot of good memories for me eating there over the years with friends in Manhattan Beach, Tustin, Redondo Beach and West LA, and now Taipei. When the weather gets warmer, I can imagine the first floor patio seating will also get popular. Who would have thought when I first started this blog that there'd be a CPK here? Not me! What's next? Cheesecake Factory? Krispy Kreme?

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CLOSED/Snapshot/pizza: i strongly recommend 15 PIZZA at GuangFu

FIFTEEN PIZZERIA NAPOLETANA
No. 36, Lane 280, GuangFu S. Rd,
(02) 2721-8994
(updated 2019)

MRT: SYS Memorial Hall

hours: Sun-Thurs 11:30AM-10:30PM;
Fri/Sat 11:30AM- 11:30PM

website: fifteen.htm.tw Chinese only

$$

Kid friendliness: lots of kid friendly flavors

Visit reviewed: 2/15/2010
previous review: 12/2009


Finally got to try the Fifteen Pizza at its new location off of GuangFu, as well as its "buy large, get small free pizza to-go" deal available every month on the 15th (of course.)

I accidentally ordered the Truffle Genovese instead of my usual Portobello Mushroom when ordering in Chinese (I order a "mo goo" pizza not knowing the Chinese for portobello). But it turns out to be a happy accident. The truffle oil gives the pizza a fragrant earthiness and I easily can eat the whole pie (but I don't!). The crust is still wonderfully chewy and springy, and the pizza while thin is not dry.

The deal is pretty good considering their 8 inch is not much cheaper than the 10 inch, so it's a good time to try a new flavor on the house (and their prices have gone up quite a bit since I first discovered them in 2009). The downside is that you gotta leave the restaurant before you can dig in. Maybe sneak a bite in the car if you can't wait until you get home.

ORIGINAL LOCATION:

No. 4-1, Ln 118, Heping E. Rd, Sec 2
(02) 2377-1142
MRT: Technology Building/Brown Line

western/steak: i strongly recommend NO. 168 PRIME STEAKHOUSE

NO. 168 PRIME STEAKHOUSE
at Grand Victoria Hotel, 4 FL
No. 168, Jingye 4th Road
Dazhi, Zhongshan District

(02) 6602-5678

MRT: JianNan Road

website: www.grandvictoria.com.tw

hours: Weekday Lunch 11:30am-2:30pm; Dinner 6:00-10:00pm
Weekend Lunch 12:00pm-3:00pm; Dinner 5:30pm-10:00pm

$$-$$$

Kid friendliness: high chairs available. lots of pastas/pizzas

Visit reviewed: 3/6/2010 & 3/21/2010



Steak lovers will enjoy tender, medium rare steak in a beautifully designed, open kitchen, upscale casual space in the Grand Victoria Hotel. Opened early this year, No. 168 Prime Steakhouse brings the expertise of A-Cut chef Danny Teng to bring the steakhouse experience in Taipei to another level. I never made it to A-Cut despite hearing about how it was "the best steak in Taipei", but after trying eating at a restaurant run by the former A-Cut's founder, I can see how he has a magic touch for steak.



The first thing I noticed when I entered into No. 168 Prime Steakhouse was the unique details of the entrance and dining room. Wood echoes prominently as a theme in the design, but in a modern, artful way.




The second thing was the large open kitchens and the chefs busy at work, making pizzas and preparing dishes. While they have six private rooms (the largest can seat up to a party of 50), it's a pleasure to sit in the main room.




The third and maybe the most subliminal thing was the open airy space and light from all the windows in the main room. Many of the other steakhouses I've been to are dark and enclosed- Ruth Chris, Robin's Grill, Lawry's- which give it a old fashioned feeling somehow; and No. 168 Prime Steakhouse is the opposite.



If you wander around, you'll see the dry aging room around the corner from the kitchen.





The first time I went was for a party, and there was a set lunch menu that the host selected. The lunch and dinner sets are the best deals, as they include a starter, salad, soup, main dish and dessert. I've heard that the sets are not as expensive as A-Cut's were, and are affordable at around NT$800-$1500 for lunch and NT$1600-$2000 for dinner sets.

We all found it really hard not to resist the complimentary bread- it's spongy and pliable, and tastes freshly baked.



The two starters we had to choose from were the sizzling hokkaido scallop or taraba crabcake. I chose the scallop, which was wonderfully sweet from the right amount of searing, carmelization and flavor from the parsley puree and beurre blanc sauces.




Though Mushroom Cappuccino soups seem to be popping up everywhere in Taipei restaurants, this has to be one of my favorite executions, with a sweetness and smokiness to the soup and airiness from the froth. If I didn't misunderstand the waiter, I think he said there was actually a touch of coffee beans in the soup.



Along with main dishes comes an elaborate set of salts, mustards and sauces to choose- from Himalayan Rose, Hawaiian or French sea salts; dijon mustard, grain and English mustard; to red wine, horseradish or Bearnaise sauces- it feels like the chef has traveled the world to bring you the best accompaniments for your steak.



On my second visit, I copy my friend, who smartly creates his own palette of sauces in a clockwise fashion. That's an engineering major's mind at work for you. I am not sure I could have ever came up with that on my own- and thus I could have never majored in engineering!



The USDA Prime Filet comes in a iron cast skillet with a roasted whole garlic and tomato. The garlic butter had melted already since the servers were running around serving everyone, but the steak is still amazing.



It was also probably the first time I noticed a steak knife like this, it sliced through the meat like butter.



I've never been that crazy about eating garlic (some of my friends in LA adore the Stinking Rose), but I try the roasted garlic clove and its practically melts in my mouth with a sweet creamy texture. Weird! I like garlic!



For those that aren't red meat lovers, there's roasted chicken, quail, king salmon and pork chop and lamb options. Here was a huge roasted chicken my friend couldn't finish.



Out of the three desserts I sampled, my favorite was the warm chocolate cake and after I research for this post, I understand why. Danny Teng was also the founder of Ben Teppanyaki which also had a memorable warm chocolate cake (not to mention the biggest piece of foie gras I'd probably ever had).



The Caramel Affogato looks and sounds good with brownies cubes and carmelized bananas, but the brownies are much drier and harder in comparison to the chocolate cake.



For lighter fare, there's the seasonal fruit tart.



On my second visit, I got a lot of the same- the scallop, the mushroom cappucino, the warm chocolate cake, but this time, I had the Black Angus Top Cap steak and I liked it even more than the filet. It was more tender and juicy and I savored every bite.



There's also pastas and pizzas, which are great to share or for kids. The Porcini mushroom pizza is as addictive as the bread, with its doughy crust.




From the presentation to the ambiance to the food, I can't remember another place where I've had as good steak. No. 168 Prime Steakhouse could be in Beverly Hills or Las Vegas, and it could compete with the best of them.


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