Dive Brief:

• California Pizza Kitchen plans to deploy up to 1,000 automated pizza-making kiosks through a partnership with T-ROC Global, a retail technology company, according to an emailed press release.
• CPK and T-ROC will target real estate with high foot traffic, like hospitals, hotels and sports venues, where opening a full-sized restaurant would be impractical.
• Early deployments through the partnership will take place in clusters of at least 20 units across roughly 30 major U.S. markets. T-ROC will operate the automated kiosks.

Dive Insight:

This plan could put CPK in front of more consumers, generating brand awareness that could help stymie the chain’s years-long decline in unit count. CPK has lost restaurants consistently since at least 2021, when it had 167 total locations. At the start of 2026, after 10 net closures in 2025, it was down to 121 restaurants, according to its franchise disclosure documents for 2026 and 2024.

That decline has been concentrated in company-operated units. Its franchised system has been relatively stable in the last half decade, never dropping below 13 or exceeding 15 stores, per its FDDs. The chain saw a net increase of two franchised stores last year. 

CPK has looked to franchising as a key part of its growth strategy for years, adding a domestic program in 2021, opening itself up to refranchising in 2023, and signing a multi-unit franchise deal in Nevada last year. But these efforts have yet to result in a significant expansion.

Michael Beacham, CPK’s president, said the brand’s work on vending machines “accelerated through a partnership with T-ROC, introduces CPK to entirely new occasions and venues where consumers desire quality food on the go.” 

The automated kiosks use Turbo-chef equipment and “data-driven intelligence” to cook restaurant-quality CPK pizzas in about 90 seconds, according to the press release. This speed, combined with a widespread rollout, will allow CPK and T-ROC to reach consumers in new locations. CPK already has vending machines operating in several airports, and the new deal would significantly expand its ability to reach new customers, Brett Beveridge, T-ROC’s CEO, said in the press release.

“Consumers increasingly expect their favorite brands to meet them where they are, and technology is making that possible in entirely new ways,” Beveridge said in the press release. “By combining CPK’s brand, food and loyal following with T-ROC’s nationwide infrastructure and technology capabilities, we have an opportunity to build a new national distribution channel at a meaningful scale.”