California Pizza Kitchen debuts in MexicoCalifornia Pizza Kitchen debuts in Mexico

LOS ANGELES The first California Pizza Kitchen restaurant in Mexico opened Tuesday, the first of 15 planned over the next 10 years by franchise partner Grupo Calpik S.A. de C.V.

The 5,900-square-foot CPK is located in the Parque Duraznos mall in Mexico City. Franchisee Grupo Calpik is known for introducing the McDonald’s brand to Mexico in the mid-1980s. The company now operates 17 casual-dining brands there.

“Working with Grupo Calpik to open Mexico’s first CPK restaurant has been a wonderful experience,” said Rick Rosenfield, co-founder and co-chief executive of California Pizza Kitchen Inc. “We are thrilled to finally see the doors open and have a presence in this growing market.”

The CPK unit in Mexico is the 16th international location and the first outside Asia. California Pizza Kitchen, based here, operates 183 restaurants and franchises or licenses another 32. Among those are 25 limited-service California Pizza Kitchen/ASAP locations and one company-owned L.A. Food Show Grill & Bar.