Accuracy measurements, speed, recipe creation, etc. Employees also face live trials in the restaurant. This includes video training and subsequent tests. And that’s something 240-unit CPK’s total “pizza chef program” has aimed at since inception.Ĭooks aren’t placed on the line until they pass the aforementioned certification courses. While the program has nurtured energy throughout the organization, it’s also inspired retention. “For us, it’s like our Super Bowl, no doubt.” It results in two finalists from each coast-a 45-day vetting process that can change an employee’s life, Sullivan says. Twenty or so areas are split up and then face off before local VPs select their best. The way it breaks down is through a regional structure.
Certain pizzas have even made it into restaurants as LTOs. Some uploads have thousands of views on YouTube years later. Once cooks meet qualifications, they post videos and recipes. The Iron Chef-style event drives passion, Sullivan says, and it trickles down from the employee competing to the GM to team members pulling for their respective stores. The finalists spend a few days at a resort and attend CPK’s general manager conference, getting to observe the business from the inside. “We care about our employees when we hire them, and that says a lot.”ĬPK’s annual “Best Pizza Chef” competition is open to all employees who have run through its pizza certification program. “It shows as an organization, as a company, that we care,” he says. The program has changed over the years-winners now garner $25,000-but the purpose hasn’t. Today, the story still resonates for Brian Sullivan, CPK’s senior vice president of culinary innovation. He picked up the $10,000 prize and, once crowned, proposed to his girlfriend, Rachel Nagler, a server at a CPK at Town Square in Las Vegas. In front of more than 600 people and a panel of celebrity judges, including Sopranos star Steve Schirripa, Rodriguez earned top marks in hand-tossing technique, baking, showmanship, creativity, and craveability. Six years ago, Francisco Rodriguez took home the casual chain’s first “Best Pizza Chef,” title, beating out three finalists and a field with 20-plus years of experience. In a restaurant world where employee loyalty is a utopian goal, California Pizza Kitchen inspired someone to get down on one knee.
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