There’s a new smell drifting through Bonnie & Wild, and it’s the unmistakable scent of a proper New York pizza — the kind with a wide, foldable slice, a blistered crust, and toppings that mean business.
Flùr, the Gaelic word for flour, is the latest kitchen to take up residence in Edinburgh’s much-loved St James Quarter food hall, and it arrives with serious credentials. The venture is the brainchild of Ivan Stein, co-founder of The Gannet in Glasgow, who found his inspiration in the great pizzerias of New York — from Queens to Brooklyn, New Jersey to Manhattan — and set about recreating that energy on home soil.
Crucially, home soil is exactly what it remains. Ivan has sourced ingredients from Scottish suppliers, including locally milled flour, ensuring that Flùr’s New York soul is grounded in Scottish provenance. “Flùr is absolutely inspired by the amazing New York pizzas, but I’ve sourced the ingredients from local suppliers, including Scottish-milled flour, so we can really showcase the best of what our country has to offer, which of course fits perfectly with the wider vision at Bonnie & Wild,” he says.
The Expert Behind the Dough
To develop the recipe, Ivan brought in Anthony Falco, the internationally renowned pizza consultant and author who has shaped some of the world’s finest pizza programmes. What Falco found in Edinburgh surprised even him. “The first thing I did when I arrived in Edinburgh was test the water. I think Edinburgh’s tap water is probably some of the best on the entire planet. Water won’t automatically make your pizza great but it’s a huge factor.”
Then there was Ivan’s sourdough culture — something Falco hadn’t encountered quite like before. “Unlike most of my clients, Ivan had his own sourdough culture that he’s been feeding with Scottish rye. That, along with our flour blend, a biga, and 48-hour proof, resulted in some of the best pizza I’ve ever made.” From a man with Falco’s experience, that is no throwaway compliment.
Falco also offered some context on where pizza culture is heading. “When I started as a pizza consultant 9 years ago, everyone was really into wood-fired, Neapolitan, and Neapolitan-ish pizza. I’ve noticed that now in the UK and many other parts of the world, people are really looking to New York for the larger format crispy pizzas and also looking to the new wave of New York pizzerias that focus on fermentation and high quality ingredients.”
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What to Order
Flùr serves iconic 18″ pies as well as individual slices — ideal for a spontaneous stop during a trip through the food hall. The pizza menu takes in well-loved classics like Margherita and Pepperoni alongside more characterful options: an Nduja & Honey pie and a home-made Salsiccia sausage pizza both reward the adventurous. Pasta dishes — Bucatini Carbonara, Tagliatelle with Spring Vegetables, Ziti with Ragu Genovese — sit alongside arancino bites, garlic knots, weekly specials and a children’s menu.
Ivan had already tested the waters with a charity pop-up at the Palmerston before opening, and word travelled fast. Ryan Barrie, Managing Director at Bonnie & Wild, is in little doubt about what Flùr represents: “I love the branding, the vision and most of all the food they’re producing. I think visitors to Bonnie & Wild are going to be blown away by the amazing pizza and pasta from Flùr, and it’s another amazing addition to our Scottish Marketplace from another brilliant chef at the top of their game.”
Flùr is open now at Bonnie & Wild, Level 4, St James Quarter, Edinburgh.
