Piada Bar

Disclaimer: I was invited to a night hosted by Piada Bar where the owners provided complimentary samples of a number of different dishes (including one they made up on the spot). I am writing this review out of my own accord, not because there was an expectation or request by the owners that I do so.
On to the review then!
Piada Bar opened up a few months ago in Soho with the intention of introducing the piada, a type of flatbread from the Romagna region of Italy, to the London general public. The team behind this place are so keen on piada that they’re happy to serve it up for breakfast, lunch and dinner, opening up from 7.30 am on weekdays, and opening till late on Fridays and Saturdays. Piada Bar is very small, and does takeaways only.
I got to try the following:
— Italian ham (classic)
— Fresh cheese (made with cheese no older than 15 days)
— Smoked salmon and cucumber
— Dessert: Nutella and granola
— Dessert (made up on the spot): Fresh fruit
My favourite was without a doubt the fresh cheese piada. I am an absolute cheese nut but I’ve never ever had the opportunity to try fresh cheese before. In fact, I didn’t even know it existed until this event. It was so, so creamy that I’m salivating just typing this out!
The classic ham piada was great as well, but I’ve never met an Italian ham I didn’t like.
I wasn’t as keen on the smoked salmon and cucumber piada, to be honest. It’s not the kind of piada that you’d find in Italy (it comes under the «fusion» category on the menu) but the owner said it was one of their more popular options. Makes sense, as why would you have it on your menu otherwise?
Now, the notion of dessert piada — or any kind of sweet served with a savoury flatbread — may not appeal to you. I loved it though… well, one of them at least! I’ve had nutella served on focaccia before when I was in Italy and was converted then. The saltiness of the flatbread counters the sweetness of the spread, making it a nicely balanced dessert.
As you may have worked out, the fresh fruit on piada didn’t quite float my boat as much as the nutella option did. However, Piada Bar also serves up fresh fruit on its own, and they only really tried to mix things up when we were down as they were on a bit of a piada roll.
The team are really focussed on sourcing authentic, high-​quality ingredients and it really shows when you eat the piada. All ingredients are organic, and the piada itself is made in Romagna using an ages-​old recipe.
As an added bonus, you can purchase some of these same ingredients back home from the small deli section in the shop, including ham and branzi (a type of cheese produced in the mountains of Italy). Piada Bar also offers a selection of salads and soups and typical Italian desserts (tiramisu, cannolo and so on) in addition to piada.
As I mentioned right at the start, I didn’t have to pay the piadas I got to sample at this event. The price points, however, are pretty reasonable, with a single piada costing £4.50, and a main (piada, soup or salad) and a drink coming in at £6.50, pretty much what I’d expect to have to pay for a takeaway meal in central London.
At the time of the event, management mentioned that they had just obtained their alcohol license, so you can expect to see some Italian wine options on the drinks menu very soon!