A Cozy, Family-Friendly Dinner at American Flatbread in Stowe, Vermont
Finding a place to eat while traveling with kids can sometimes be a challenge. You want somewhere that feels special enough to be part of the trip, but you also want to look at the menu and know there is actually something your kids will eat.
So when I realized there was an American Flatbread just three minutes from Outbound Stowe, where we were staying, I had an immediate sigh of relief.
We’ve been to American Flatbread in other New England towns and have always had a great experience. One of my favorite things about American Flatbread is that even though there are multiple locations, it never really feels like a chain. The food is consistently good and there’s that same cozy, welcoming feeling, but each location has its own personality. And the Stowe location definitely has a personality of its own.
American Flatbread Stowe occupies the former Rusty Nail, a legendary Stowe music venue, and you can still sense some of that old energy when you walk inside.
The restaurant is beautifully decorated and incredibly cozy, with a great mix of spaces depending on what kind of night you’re looking for. There’s a quieter dining area that works really well for families and another section with more of a lively bar atmosphere.
We visited during the summer and the huge outdoor patio makes it such a great warm-weather spot. But the entire time I was there, I kept thinking about how good this place must feel once that crisp Vermont fall air rolls in. And after a winter day of skiing or snowboarding on the mountain? Pizza in front of those big wood-fired ovens sounds pretty close to perfect.
The staff could not have been more pleasant. The manager, Rebecca, showed me around and told me that people even use the space for weddings.
Once I saw the entire property, I completely understood why.
It would be such a cool, unexpected Vermont wedding venue. They also have private function spaces, making it a great option for celebrations, rehearsal dinners, parties and other events.There’s just something about the building that makes it feel like a gathering place, which makes sense considering its history.
Of course, the real test when traveling with kids is whether they like it.
American Flatbread passed that test pretty quickly.
The staff put a movie on one of the screens for my kids, and you would have thought they had won the lottery. They got to sink into a ridiculously comfortable leather couch, sip their root beers and watch a movie while they waited for their pizza.
Meanwhile, I got to enjoy one of my absolute favorite things at American Flatbread: the Evolution Salad.
If you know, you know.
It is always so fresh and delicious. I’ve honestly gone to American Flatbread just because I was craving this salad before. There’s something about a giant fresh salad followed by wood-fired pizza that just works.
Then came the main event.
We ordered a pizza that was half cheese for the kids and half Vermont Sausage for me. It was absolutely delicious.
And I still don’t understand how the staff manages to cook those pizzas perfectly every single time in those huge open ovens.
Watching them work is part of the experience. You can actually see the pizzas being made and going into the wood-fired oven, which adds to that cozy, old-school feeling that makes American Flatbread so much fun.
There are plenty of incredible places to eat in Stowe, but when you’re traveling as a family, finding somewhere that makes both the adults and the kids happy feels like hitting the jackpot. American Flatbread Stowe did exactly that for us.
The kids had cheese pizza, root beer and a movie. I got my beloved Evolution Salad. We shared a delicious Vermont Sausage flatbread. The staff was wonderful. And we got to experience a building with a really cool piece of Stowe history behind it.
Whether you’re visiting Stowe for a summer getaway, coming up to see the fall foliage or spending your days skiing and snowboarding in the winter, American Flatbread is absolutely worth adding to your Stowe itinerary.
It’s warm, welcoming, family-friendly and still manages to feel distinctly Vermont.
And if you go, do yourself a favor.
Get the Evolution Salad.
-Kate
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