Compared to the iceberg lettuce and canned black olives that most pizza places try to pass off as “salad,” Flatbread’s tasty appetizer is a surprise treat. It’s much more than a bowl of weeds, despite what our fearless (and tasteless) publisher likes to say about mesclun. Whatever you want to call it, Flatbread’s is a damn fine assemblage of vegetables, comprised of organic “weeds,” sweet leaf lettuce, celery and carrots, toasted sesame seeds, arame seaweed, and a berry vinaigrette dressing. There’s a hint of Japanese flavor, but it’s not overwhelming. Crumble some bleu or goat cheese atop the generous mound (I’m partial to bleu), and you’ve got a meal in itself, one that tastes fresh and clean, cold and healthy, and uncloyingly sweet, all at once. If a salad gets noticed at the establishment that won Best Pizza, you know it’s something special.

Flatbread Company | 72 Commercial St, Portland | 207.772.8777 | flatbreadcompany.com