It looks like pizza. It has toppings like pizza. It might even smell like pizza.

But when it comes to taste and health benefits, it couldn’t be more different. Flatbread is emerging as a popular option in many Pittsburgh-area restaurants as a more artisanal and less calorie-laden menu choice.

“Flatbreads are becoming very trendy, usually as appetizers in restaurants that don’t usually do pizza,” says chef Matthias Bodnar, who instructs a class at Crate Cooking School and Kitchen in Green Tree about flatbread. “People here love pizza. It’s blowing up in restaurants now because it’s a different way to eat and visualize pizza.”

The main differences between flatbread and pizza are the ingredients, as well as the preparation methods, Bodnar says.

“When you think of pizza, you think of a lot of sauce as being a key element, then you look at the cheeses as the main ingredients,” he says. “Flatbreads are not necessarily composed of those elements.”

While pepperoni and banana peppers might be standard pizza toppings, flatbreads can feature anything from salmon to tuna, pesto, roasted tomatoes and more. Some chefs opt to simply swipe them with a little olive oil. Bodnar prefers his with smoked trout and a sprinkling of blue cheese.

But the main focus when it comes to flatbreads is often the dough, which can have a lot more variety than traditional pizza crust. They tend to have much less sauce and cheese than the typical pizza to let those flavors through, Bodnar says.

“The sky’s the limit” when it comes to creating dough, he says. “Whole wheat and all grain are more popular because they are really healthy for you. You don’t have to feel guilty about eating it.”

— Rachel Weaver

BOhèm Bistro

530 Northpointe Circle, Seven Fields. 724-741-6015 or www.bohembistro.com

BOhèm Bistro and Bar in Seven Fields offers an adventurous menu featuring unique flatbread creations.

Selections include a Braised Short Rib flatbread with mashed potatoes and chives ($14.50); Fig and Smoked Moody Blue Cheese with arugula and balsamic glaze ($13); Roasted Wild Mushroom with feta cheese, caramelized onions and balsamic glaze ($13.50); a Rustic Chicken with roasted tomato and fontina cheese ($12.50); and Shrimp with roasted garlic beurre fondue, spinach and roasted tomatoes ($15).

Chef Mark Thompson says flatbread has “a lot of appeal” because of the wide variety of topping options and preparation styles.

“It’s a chance to expand your horizons,” he says.

— Rachel Weaver

Meat and Potatoes

649 Penn Ave., Downtown. 412-325-7007 or meatandpotatoespgh.com

Richard DeShantz likes the idea of shared foods. That’s one of the reasons why he, as owner and executive chef of Meat and Potatoes, included flatbreads in his menu. He designed the restaurant to have the feel of a neighborhood pub even though it’s located Downtown. He also loves flatbreads and enjoys making a variety of them late Monday nights.

His favorite flatbread on the dinner menu, especially in winter, is the Short Ribs ($12), with braised short ribs, fresh grated horseradish, blue cheese, arugula for a peppery flavor and pickled onions.

The Mushrooms ($12) is designed for vegetarians, with taleggio, ricotta, truffle and pecorino romano.

The Salty Pig ($14) is for meat lovers and features cured Italian meats — sopressata, pancetta, coppa secca — with basil.

From 10 p.m. to 1 a.m. Mondays, DeShantz has fun with flatbread options, making, for example, Buffalo chicken or duck confit, always priced at $5.

— Mark Kanny

Bado’s Cucina

3825 Washington Road, Peters. 724-942-3904 or www.badoscucina.com

Bado’s Cucina in Peters changes its flatbread choices daily. But all are made the same way— in an authentic wood-fired oven where temperatures reach 550 to 650 degrees.

The most popular selection is the Mushroom Truffle Flatbread, created with wild mushrooms, shallot tapenade, dried cranberries and fresh parsley and drizzled with white truffle oil. Owner Jerry Volpe also created a flatbread with prosciutto, asparagus, crumbled gorgonzola and tomatoes. He likes to offer vegetarian and meat options, and if he has the ingredients, he will make whatever guests want. All flatbreads are made from an 8-ounce dough ball, and the kitchen is in plain view of the diners. The cost for a flatbread is $12.

— JoAnne Klimovich Harrop

NOLA on the Square

24 Market Square, Downtown. 412-471-9100 or www.nolaonthesquare.com

Flatbreads at NOLA on the Square, Downtown, are more than a simple appetizer.

File that bit of information away if you are considering a visit to the New Orleans-style restaurant. The four flatbread selections are about 10 inches in diameter and topped with a hefty variety of items. They are not for the small of stomach.

Staffers say they sell a great many flatbreads, mostly as appetizers or “share plates.” They are an attractive option for a lunch, but a diner might take several of the pieces home in a pouch.

The offerings are: Roasted Tomato, with mozzarella, red onions, basil pesto ($9) with white anchovies ($2 extra); Butternut Squash, with squash puree, rapini and pecorino ($10) and maple-glazed andouille ($2 extra); Crawfish Tapenade, with crawfish, roasted red pepper, kalamata tapenade, pesto, artichoke, provolone and arugula ($12); and Pissaladiere, with sauteed sweet onions, Tasso ham, gruyere and fresh thyme ($10).

— Bob Karlovits

Willow

634 Camp Horne Road, Ohio Township. 412-847-1007 or www.willowpgh.com

Willow, an upscale restaurant in Ohio Township, offers only one flatbread, but it’s one of the best-selling appetizers on the dinner menu, chef John Mottinger says.

The grilled muffaletta flatbread ($15) is inspired by a popular New Orleans sandwich similar to a sub or hoagie. Topping the flatbread are capicola and soppressata, along with Greek olive salad. Mottinger’s kitchen staff finishes the dish with fresh mozzarella and a topping of baby arugula tossed with lemon-infused, extra-virgin olive oil and shaved parmesan cheese. The muffaletta is also available as a lunch dish.

Mottinger starts off with a rolled-out oval of dough, then he trims the excess dough to make a square. The four-slice muffaletta can serve two people as a light appetizer, and one for a bigger starter.

— Kellie B. Gormly

Nine on Nine

900 Penn Ave., Downtown. 412-338-6463 or www.nineonninepgh.com

The trick to creating the perfect flatbread is keeping the crust crisp on the outside but soft on the inside, says Lee Corbett, the executive chef at Nine on Nine, Downtown. “You don’t want it to be a cracker, but you do want it to have crispness and a little bit of body,” he says.

Corbett has been executive chef at Nine on Nine for about nine months. But flatbreads have been on the bar menu for at least two-and-a-half years.

While the flatbread itself is a constant, the toppings change to reflect the seasons, whatever’s fresh at the market or the creativity of the chef. “We like to keep it fresh for the customer,” Corbett says.

One day, the topping could be wild mushrooms, arugula, brie and red onion. Stop by the next day, and you might find slices of fresh ahi tuna, bits of purple carrot, kimchi, locally grown cilantro, green onions and sweet soy sauce mixed with a little wasabi aioli.

Depending on ingredients, flatbread prices vary between $12 and $13.

— Alice T. Carter

Truth Lounge

51 S. 12th St., South Side. 412-381-9600 or on Facebook

Relying on fresh ingredients that vary by season, executive chef Dustin Gregg at Truth Lounge in the South Side is dishing out two flatbread options that define comfort foods.

For the carnivore, the Seared Tenderloin Flatbread comes smothered in sauteed mushrooms, asparagus, arugula, chevre goat cheese and is finished with black-truffle aioli. If the catch of the day is more your speed, try the Seafood Flatbread of shrimp, scallops, arugula, mussels, oven-roasted Roma tomatoes, Romano cheese and pea tendrils dressed with a grilled-lemon vinaigrette.

“It’s a thing people can share. We do have it mostly as an appetizer, but size-wise, you could definitely eat it as an entree,” Gregg says.

— Kate Benz

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