Honored as Idaho’s best pizza, ‘highly visible’ Boise restaurant is closed, for lease

Regional chain Flatbread Neapolitan Pizzeria got a nice nod last year when it was named the best in Idaho by an international travel website.

But, sadly, its downtown Boise location appears to have folded like a pizza box.

Google labels the business shutdown as temporary. And a sign on the door at 800 W. Main St. indicates that the closure is for “the foreseeable future.” But Flatbread’s phone number has been disconnected. And the second-floor space inside the Zions Bank building has been listed for lease as a “turnkey restaurant” in a “highly visible downtown Boise corner location.”

Flatbread founder Robert Lumsden did not respond to a text message, nor to an email asking if the closure was permanent. Randy Limani of brokerage Arthur Berry & Company acknowledged an email but did not immediately answer whether the restaurant had permanently shuttered.

Here, in part, is Flatbread’s note to customers, still posted as of Tuesday: “Simply put, the lack of humans necessary to properly staff our kitchen resulting in our inability to maintain consistent operating hours has left us with having to close our doors at this location for the foreseeable future.

“After having the pleasure of serving you from this beautiful restaurant for over eight years, we say thank you!

“We invite you to visit our other locations in Bown Crossing, the original of 17 years, and our location at the Eagle Island Marketplace, should you need your Flatbread craving satisfied.”

Flatbread still features the downtown Boise location on its website, with no indication that it has turned off the oven. In addition to its Boise and Meridian destinations, Flatbread also operates a restaurant in Salt Lake City and another in Bend, Oregon.

In 2021, Big 7 Travel chose “The 50 Best Pizzas in the United States” — one per state — and Flatbread was the Idaho choice for its wood-fired pies. “They load the centre up with toppings,” Big 7 wrote, “to create a pizza that is absolutely bursting with flavour through every single mouthful.”

(“Centre”? “Flavour”? Yes, Big 7 Travel is headquartered in the United Kingdom.)

Flatbread’s closure and lease listing were first reported by BoiseDev.