Stone Flats

My rating is more 3.5.

I finished a full day of work, tired and hungry I decided I'd go to Trader Joe's pick up something for dinner, and groceries for the week before going home. Well, of course, as I parked, I reminded myself of the old adage, "Don't go grocery shopping on an empty stomach/hungry." That's pretty much resulted in buying WAY to much food, most of which ends up going bad - a waste of money and food. So, I had a great excuse to finally check out Stone Flats!

It was relatively quiet when I got there, at most 4 people in the place. But it was pretty early, 530pm on a Tuesday night. By the time I was leaving, things were picking up, and there were people coming and going.

Stone Flats is in Scripps Ranch/Mira Mesa, in the plaza with Trader Joe's. Lots of parking. It's got a pretty prime corner lot spot, with outdoor seating, that I'm sure come Spring and Summer will be great.

I've been by this place a couple of times, and curious about it. By the looks of it outside, I didn't even know it was a pizza place. It's got a modern, earthy/urban/contemporary design. A earthy and metal decor.

You walk into the front door, follow your way along the wall. I told the girl, Alex, that it was my first time there, and she was nice and helpful in giving me a quick rundown of how to order. It's an assembly line restaurant, a la Chipotle, Subway, Quiznos...

I ordered their Flat & Salad combo. The Flat & Salad combo is $7.95, and if you upsize to Mondo, it's an added $1.50 - so, it's a pretty good value for what you get.

For Salad, you get the choice of Romaine lettuce or Spinach, and you can add toppings to your salad. They use the same bins of toppings from what they have for the pizza, so I wouldn't really rate the salads very highly. I wouldn't recommend this place if all you're planning on eating is salad. But, it's nice that they have salads as an option, to add to and round out your meal. I opted for a Spinach salad with tomatoes, olives, and green peppers with the Citrus Vinaigrette dressing. They also have soups available, I don't have much to share, because I didn't really pay much attention to what soups they offered.

For your Stone Flat 'pizza' -
You pick bread size, Regular vs. Mondo, and type, Regular vs. Wheat
Three options for sauce: Marinara, White Bean, or Garlic Olive Oil
Multiple meat, veggie and herb toppings to choose from, like, Pepperoni, Sausage, Bacon, Black Olives, Red Onion, Basil, Cilantro, Tomatoes, Marinated Mushrooms....
Three options for cheese: Mozzarella, Lite Mozzarella, or Goat Cheese

I wanted a personal frame of reference, so I didn't order one of their pre-designed combos. I put together a pizza with ingredients that I would normally get from any other pizza place. The price is the same regardless of how many toppings you get, so, being the glutton that I am, I got a Mondo (that's the large, which is about 8 1/2" x 11") with Marinara Sauce, Pepperoni, Sausage, Black Olives, Marinated Mushrooms, Green Peppers, Lite Mozzarella Cheese, and Fresh Basil.

I was a bit concerned because it didn't look like they put much sauce or cheese on the pizza. But I held off on making any special requests (ie, extra sauce, extra cheese, extra meat) because I wanted to try their pizza based on their standard.

You get to the end of the assembly line, and you pay at the register, they give you a number, and you sit and wait for your pizza to cook, and they bring it out to you. The pizza comes out hot and freshly cooked in about 5 minutes. They cut the pizza into tiny rectangles. As it turns out, the amount of ingredients on the pizza (sauce, cheese, toppings) was just right, not too much to overload the pizza, but they didn't skimp. Aaaand, of course, the whole point of it all, TASTE. It was goood. I don't know if it was the ingredients themselves, or the combination that I put together, or what - but the pizza just came out with a well balanced flavor. The sausage and mushrooms stood out in my mind. Everything just complemented each other.

Definitely like the concept of Stone Flats - "fast food" pizza, which is a pretty healthy version of pizza. Great value, too. I totally didn't realize until after I sat down to eat that they had beer and wine... putting that on the "to do" list for the next time around.

Man, I just LOVE it when i go to a new place, expecting it to suck or just be 'meh' and instead...get kinda blown away! You ever get those ?!

Anyhow, was visiting the Chuck E Cheese (and, no, NOT alone...I had my little nephew) and had to find a place to feed the kiddo. Was worried that around noon time, midweek, this place would be packed. To my surprise, it was pretty empty.

It is a Subway/Chipotle style ordering: menu is over head, you choose what you want, and they kinda 'assemble' it in front of you. You pay, they give you a # (Carl's Jr style for those who of you who are ol' school), and they bring out the flat breads when it's freshly baked.

We ordered the Flat Combo: signature pizza and cup of soup $8.50

- Flatbread: we had their signature mushrooms and sausage. - really good!. Me and the little one gobbled it up and we both are picky eaters. The thin, cracker like crust may NOT be for everyone but I don't care man : it ain't easy pleasing a finicky asian woman and a 3 yr old!

- Soup: Pulled chicken and rice soup. You can customize soup too (no rice, less rice, etc etc). Broth is ready to go but they add the chicken and rice to order. Nephew LOVED LOVED LOVED this soup. He's a skinny little thing and it's hard to get him to eat. But he truly loved this dish. I personally thought it was 'meh'. But it's piping hot and I appreciate the ability to customize it

On our 2nd visit, we decided to pay $2.00 to get a larger version of the flatbread (it says you get like 40% more or something). Can't say if it's worth the extra $2 though.

BUT, the creme de la creme of the 2nd visit....wait for it...CINNA-FLAT A LA MODE $3.50!!!!!!!!!!!!!

I don't think words can do this dish justice. I ordered it b/c nephew was being obedient (*smiles*) and what the hay, it's $3.50 w/ a scoop of ice cream. Again, I expected a 'whatever' dish.

Well, they bring out this perfectly, beautiful CRISP flatbread w/ thinly sliced apples layered on top , sprinkled w/ a generous amount of sugar and cinnamon. I requested the ice cream to be on the side b/c i have a phobia of cold things melting on top of hot foods (don't ask, I know, it's weird). But holy moly, THIS dish was heaven. Like a really, THIN freshly made churro kinda.

Just a cool , easy place. Sis took her family there for dinner and said the husband felt the flat bread wasn't enough for a grown man. I may have to agree w/ him. I think it's more of a lunch or snack place. But it's definitely a place I'd frequent again.

Stone Flats
SD: Mira Mesa
Friday May 20, 2011
Four Stars

I pass by this place every week while I go to Trader Joe's. Finally, I tried it and was not disappointed. The menu is simple: flat bread pizzas, soups, and salads. We opted for the make your own flatbread $5.50. I got the Mon-Dough which costs $2 more but you get 40% more. (You really can't tell the difference between the two sizes once it is cooked) My Choice of Sauce: Tomato. My Choice of Toppings: Mushrooms, Tomatoes, Pepperoncini, Basil. My Choice of Cheese: Mozzarella. It tasted like a thin crust pizza baked in a wood fire oven. After devouring the flatbread, I felt like I could have eaten three more but surprisingly enough I was full 20 minutes later. Overall, I like this place for an afternoon snack.

it's ABSOLUTELY like a pizza chipotle (haha - i'm totally laughing at the pizpotle post someone stated earlier)! You walk in and look up at the menu. In front of you is the bar - and you just let them know if you want to make your own (they make it for you, but you let them know what kind of meat, cheese, and veggies you want on it) or pick a specialty pizza.

if you make your own, you start off with a super thin flatbread and you have the option for white or wheat. then you can add marinara sauce, garlic olive oil, or some other things - then add your meat (chicken, meat, etc). there are a lot of veggie toppings which i really liked, so I caked them on there! i also had the chicken and rice soup which was DELICIOUS!! The soup and pizza combo was $7.95 + tax, which isn't too bad! For both my husband and I we paid $20, which is pretty cheap for dinner. not to mention the portion size is pretty healthy too, but if you're STARVING you probably want to go somewhere else (.. maybe a place down the road like Filippi's for their huge prime rib portion)

We're definitely a fan and can't wait to go back! There's plenty of outdoor seating so once our sunny sandy ego weather comes around it'll be nice to sit in their patio area. Oh, they have beer and wine too!

If you are looking for a pizza with a dough-y crust then look elsewhere because this place is exactly what the name implies. Stone Flats.

A casual place where you walk to the counter to place your order, get a number and find a seat. Happy Hour 7 days a week 3-5 & 7-9 $1 bud / bud light and half off other beer and wine.

I tried the sausage and shroom flat and chicken apple walnut salad. I like thin crust pizza so I was satisfied. Most of their food is fairly light. The only con was that it did take awhile for the order to come out and there wasn't even that many people in the restaurant. I've taken into consideration that they need to make the flat and cook it in their oven it just took a long time. Other than that the place is clean and the workers are fairly friendly. It is worth giving this place a try.

I've been wondering what this place was whenever I stopped by Trader Joe's. I finally decided to drop in and give it a try. It's kind of like a pizza, soup and salad place. The pizza is served on a flat bread crust. It's crispy and thin and served on a cracker type crust. You can get it in white or wheat in the regular or large size.

I ordered the regular Sausage & 'Shrooms on the wheat crust. It's cooked in a stone/brick oven and the edges were a little on the extra crispy side, maybe they were in a hurry because I came in close to closing time. The taste was okay. I would prefer a bit more sauce. The regular size is okay, but I could eat a large size on my own. The regular sizes start at $4.95 and the large sizes start at $6.95. It's different from a regular pizza place, because it's not as 'heavy' as your normal pizza crust. It's more like an appetizer type of meal.

i'm not sure if i should give it a 2 or 3 stars... so i'll round it up to 2.5stars

This place is clean and the decor is nice. So those are plus.

Food wise - it's okay. It's just a flatbread with your choice of toppings OR you can order their signature flatbread for $6. It's not much, so don't expect this flatbread will fill you up, UNLESS you're a light eater.

They do have salads and soup so you can order a whole combo meal and fill yourself up.

Food like this isn't hard to make, so if i have the choice, i'd rather make it at home and load my flatbread w/ tons of toppings. I dont need to pay $6 for what they serve. Yes it's fresh and it's quick, so i will say it's a perfect place for lunch during work hours.

but if you want food that will fill you up, you might as well go next door to Bruski and order a burger or a real pizza or even a nice big portion of salad.

If you've ever eaten at Subway or Chipotle, Stone Flats has the same concept when it comes time to walk in and put in your order.

We ate here for a light appetizer the other night before we met friends for dinner at Kappa Sushi nearby. Neither of us has been inside before, so we didn't know what to expect. We were hoping for a bar in this spot since we were in the mood for a cocktail, but they don't have one.

The first thing I noticed was the decor of the place, they spent a lot of time, money and effort in making this place feel very zen. I like the big community style table in the middle of the room, it can probably seat a dozen random guests there.

Somehow the decor didn't match the menu, I thought it was a sit down restaurant where they would seat you, take your order and bring it out like a regular restaurant. I was taken aback when we had a limited menu of specialty flat breads to choose from. We went with the one that had pepperoni and whatever else, something simple since we didn't want to pig out on a heavy meal.

The food came out a few minutes later and it was brought to our table. For seven bucks (to pay the extra $1.50 for a bigger sized flat bread), I thought it was worth it for the $20 bucks for our flat bread pizza and two wines.

If you want fresh, simple and tasty pick-what-you-want-on-your-flat bread pizza and you're in the Mira Mesa/Scripps Ranch area, it's worth checking out Stone Flats. They get a plus for having Stone brewery beer and a decent $5-$7 wine selection on the menu, but I can see guys with a hearty appetite maybe ordering two to feel full!

Seems like there's a theme among the reviews here.

Pizza it is NOT. If you go there expecting pizza, you will be disappointed. It's flatbread with toppings, not pizza.

Healthy it IS. Lighter, healthier lunches are what you will find here. Salads and soups to go alongside your flatbread.

My first visit, armed with a Groupon, and I was pleasantly surprised.

I had the sausage and mushroom flatbread and the spinach and bacon salad. The flatbread was tasty, and I really liked the consistency of the crust. Sure, I like me a thick crust or even a deep dish pizza most of the time (Come back Sweet Home Chicago), but when I truly want a light lunch, this place will certainly do. I chose the wheat crust and had it to go, so by the time I actually ate it, it was definitely cold, but still had a nice crunch.

The salad was good as well, not great, but it had a good amount of bacon and eggs. It was a little heavy on the red onion, but I'm sure I can ask for less next time. I usually eat my salads with very little dressing, but what they did give me, went well with the spinach.

The combo cost about $12 and I was satisfied...for a few hours at least. Not the ideal place for dinner, as you may be hungry well before bedtime.

Stone Flats has tons of parking and even more seating. This place is still fairly new, and equipped to seat a large crowd, when and if it catches on. I hope it does because a girl can use all the help she can get to eat healthy.

One of my friends landed the job here at Stone Flats, and she was able to invite friends and family to try out the food here for free. And let me tell you, my first ever flat did not flatter me at all (no pun intended). But the next time I came, the food really changed my mind about this place.

The ingredients are fresh and the way it's cooked (stone-fired) really gives it its unique and delicious taste.

Stone Flats is located in a plaza with other shops and restaurants. I like the atmosphere inside the eatery; it has a modern yet organic feel to it (reason being is because the restaurant holds eco-friendly furnishings and values). Just like a Subway sandwich joint, they make your flatbread for you. First, you pick your flat (white or whole-wheat), then your sauce, then you pick your meats and veggies, then finally your cheese. After that, they pop that bad boy in the stone oven and before you know it, your piping hot flat is delivered to your table (seat-yourself type of restaurant). It's quite affordable (at around $5.50 per flat) and the quality is superb. Whenever I go here, I always order two flats with extra meat on both of them, and always ask them to put ranch after it comes out of the oven.

Overall, this place is great! Good food, good customer service, good environment. Definitely recommend this to people who want to try something and delicious!