KeithA Posted December 17, 2010 Share Posted December 17, 2010 Okay so earlier this week I stopped by Ardeo/Bardeo and expressed my disappointment in the "flatbread." I had a very constructive conversation with the Chef who understood that I had expected "flatbread" and not pizza. The restaurant was struggling with heat in the oven he said. I told him that I wanted flatbread not pizza. Well... fast forward to this evening where I repeated the dinner I had Friday night. Wow... seriously that flatbread was good. The new version has a very crisp, thin crust... a true flatbread though in the shape of a pizza. So what makes something "flatbread" and not "pizza"? I personally like my pizza with a thin, crisp crust (Vace nearby is a good example), so I'm confused on your yes to the flatbread the second time, when it still sounds like a pizza. I didn't try Ardeo's flatbread, but the several ones I saw on other tables looked like pizzas. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dave Pressley Posted December 17, 2010 Share Posted December 17, 2010 So what makes something "flatbread" and not "pizza"? I personally like my pizza with a thin, crisp crust (Vace nearby is a good example), so I'm confused on your yes to the flatbread the second time, when it still sounds like a pizza. I didn't try Ardeo's flatbread, but the several ones I saw on other tables looked like pizzas. I'm no expert, but I've always understood that "flatbread" contains no yeast in the dough, isn't always topped with cheese and is always supposed to be thin and crispy. I'm not completely positive though. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mame11 Posted December 17, 2010 Share Posted December 17, 2010 So what makes something "flatbread" and not "pizza"? I personally like my pizza with a thin, crisp crust (Vace nearby is a good example), so I'm confused on your yes to the flatbread the second time, when it still sounds like a pizza. I didn't try Ardeo's flatbread, but the several ones I saw on other tables looked like pizzas. Great question... the crust was crispy like a cracker that's what makes it a flatbread and not a pizza. Like a lavash... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
weinoo Posted December 20, 2010 Share Posted December 20, 2010 Flatbread is simply bread that's flat, no? Pizza qualifies. Focaccia qualifies. Lavash, too. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
deangold Posted December 20, 2010 Share Posted December 20, 2010 Flatbread is simply bread that's flat, no? Pizza qualifies. Focaccia qualifies. Lavash, too. According to Wiki Flatbread is unleavened and that would rule out most pizza, which is made with yeast. Vace, IMO, is definitely in the pizza category with a crust that has some crispness but not the cracker crispness typical of flatbread. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sthitch Posted December 20, 2010 Share Posted December 20, 2010 According to Wiki Flatbread is unleavened and that would rule out most pizza, which is made with yeast. Vace, IMO, is definitely in the pizza category with a crust that has some crispness but not the cracker crispness typical of flatbread. So where does that put American Flatbread? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
weinoo Posted December 20, 2010 Share Posted December 20, 2010 According to Wiki Flatbread is unleavened and that would rule out most pizza, which is made with yeast. Vace, IMO, is definitely in the pizza category with a crust that has some crispness but not the cracker crispness typical of flatbread. According to Alford and Duguid, in Flatbreads and Flavors, "half of the recipes in this book call for some form of leavening, if only for texture and flavor." And according to Reinhart, in his seminal The Bread Baker's Apprentice,"A large classification called flat breads includes both yeasted and unyeasted doughs whose primary attribute is low height. This family embraces, but is not limited to, pizza and focaccia, crackers, matzo, lavash, and tortillas." I'll take Reinhart and Alford/Duguid over Wiki any day. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DonRocks Posted December 20, 2010 Share Posted December 20, 2010 whose primary attribute is low height. So DC is a flatbread; NYC is a pizza. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
weinoo Posted December 20, 2010 Share Posted December 20, 2010 So DC is a flatbread; NYC is a pizza. Works for me. I think . Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DanielK Posted December 20, 2010 Share Posted December 20, 2010 So where does that put American Flatbread? Closed? Are we overlooking that the crowds might have missed AF because they didn't realize that *pizza* was being served inside? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RWBooneJr Posted December 20, 2010 Share Posted December 20, 2010 Are we overlooking that the crowds might have missed AF because they didn't realize that *pizza* was being served inside? I have actually had a conversation with someone who was not aware that it was a pizza place. "Flatbread" is a dumb word. It is almost always just a fussy way to say "pizza." Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
deangold Posted December 20, 2010 Share Posted December 20, 2010 I'll take Reinhart and Alford/Duguid over Wiki any day. Sorry, its on the internet so it must be true! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sthitch Posted December 20, 2010 Share Posted December 20, 2010 Closed? Not quite yet, plus there will still be one in Ashburn. I was simply pointing out that one place that gets quite a bit of mention on this board is serving up something that always struck me as pizza and calling it flatbread - I just figured I had to be from Vermont to understand the difference. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mame11 Posted December 21, 2010 Share Posted December 21, 2010 I have actually had a conversation with someone who was not aware that it was a pizza place. "Flatbread" is a dumb word. It is almost always just a fussy way to say "pizza." the first time I had something called flatbread it was a deliciously crisp crust with yummy toppings. It was most definitely not pizza. I've always thought flatbread was different than pizza because of the leavening aspect (i.e. no yeast...) When I found out that American Flatbread was basically a pizza place (albeit with fancy toppings and the like), I didn't really care to go... pizza is pizza. Flatbread is hard to find... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
astrid Posted December 22, 2010 Share Posted December 22, 2010 Pizza nowadays encompasses basically anything starchy with topping, so "flatbread" definitely fits in that definition. I've even seem recipes for polenta pizza. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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