California Pizza Kitchen, Arlington, Va.

While David and I were finishing up our brunch Sunday, Robert called. He was head chef for the lodge meeting last night, and he wanted me to go with him to do a Costco run down to Pentagon City so he could pick up some groceries in anticipation. So, I went home and fetched the granny grocery cart and met him down at Pentagon City. We filled up the cart and started to trek home, but the things he bought required refrigeration (like fresh chicken!), and, in view of the 98º heat Sunday afternoon, we ended up getting a Zipcar. The only problem with Zipcars, though, is that once one is done with it, it has to be returned to the pickup location. That put us back down at Pentagon City after the mall was closed and with limited dinner opportunities. Consequently, we ended up at the California Pizza Kitchen there in Pentagon Centre.

Robert ordered the kung pao spaghetti, a pasta dish with a Chinese theme. While he ate it all, I think he had my usual feeling about the "international" pasta dishes at CPK, that they approach an idea, but they never quite drive it in for the touchdown.


I had the CPK Cobb salad—always a safe choice. They have the interesting variation of substituting diced beets for the traditional sliced black olives.


Now, I'd planned just to have brunch Sunday as my only main meal, so the CPK excursion was extra, but, even though I'd been healthy and dietetic with a salad, I opted to get a piece of tiramisu. It's the only dessert at CPK I like (though the chocolate banana royale cake can be good if the cake isn't too dry). I restrained myself, though, and only ate two-thirds of it; Robert kindly volunteered to eat the remaining third.