CALIFORNIA PIZZA KITCHEN INC. / Los Angeles, Calif. Can West Coast Eatery Win Over Wall Street?(A)(The New America)

Byline: Marilyn Much

Investor's Business Daily

Will tandoori chicken pizza, Kung Pao spaghetti and Dakota smashed pea-and-barley soup make Wall Street's mouth water?

California Pizza Kitchen Inc. hopes so. The 15-year-old trendy Los Angeles-based eatery - which has moved eastward and now dots such areas as Manhattan's Upper East Side - is the latest entry in casual dining's bid for investors. It's a game where more players are jumping in every day.

Whether Californ

ia Pizza, which went public early this month, rises to the top remains to be seen. The jury is still out on how successful the 107-unit chain will be as it tries to expand and extend the brand.

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