Restaurant Review: Flat Bread Company

Restaurant: Flat Bread Company
Location: Amesbury, MA; Portland, ME; North Conway, NH; Portsmouth, NH; Canton, VT; Bedford, MA; Paia Maui, HI
Website: www.flatbreadcompany.com
Grade: B+

My friend Reppin and his girlfriend recently moved from New York City to Portland, ME (obviously for a graduate program, not the free birth control). Seeing as food is more of a lifestyle than a hobby in the greater 212 area code, I knew I could depend on Reppin to pick out a restaurant that served food "almost as good as they have in New York" (heaven forbid a New Yorker admit that something outside the City actually tastes decent). We decided on the Flat Break Company located 138 Congress Street in Portsmouth (NH).

The decor is typical North Country, complete with futons peppered with "Legalize Marijuana" leaflets and exposed wooden beams. I immediately wondered which charity a portion of the proceeds from my meal would be funding. The rustic look is completed with solid-looking wood tables and a large brick-oven stove in the middle of the dining room.

Naturally, all of the ingredients served at Flat Bread are either organic or free-range, which is a nice touch. We decided on a large Community Pizza (caramelized onions, mushrooms, roasted tomato sauce, cheese, herbs) and a small Punctuated Equalibrium (kalamata olives, rosemary, red onions, oven roasted peppers, goat cheese, mozzarella, garlic cheese, herbs). Both pizzas were complimented with a wonderful, smoky taste courtesy of being baked in a brick-oven. Seeing as my only brick-oven experience has been with Bertucci's and Upper Crust, I was pleasantly surprised by how wonderful and non-commercial everything tasted.

As far as service goes, the Flat Bread got everything right. Crushed red pepper was already on the table (I generally have to ask for it more than once) and the waiter brought a second round of Diet Cokes without being prompted. Also, nobody seemed to mind the fact that the three of us sat around for almost two hours catching up. I seriously wish that the closest location wasn't 45 minutes away.

Flat Bread Company has multiple locations throughout northern New England. According to their website Flat Bread hasn't announced any plans to move in on the Boston area, though there is a location in Bedford for those of you who work/live between the Pike and 495. The location in Portsmouth offered metered street parking or (if you're feeling like a high roller) you can park in the city garage for $1.50 on a weekend afternoon.