Spanish omelette wheat tortilla of Mexico and neighbouring countries, which is a thin flatbread. In most of Hispanic America, where both the flatbread and potato omelette are eaten, the omelette is called "tortilla española" to distinguish it from the maize tortilla of the region. Because the potato is called "papa" in much of Hispanic America (instead of the term "patata" used in Spain), this dish can sometimes be referred to as "tortilla de papas" in that region as well. The Spanish tortilla ("tortilla de patatas" in Spain) is widely eaten in Spain and some Spanish-speaking countries. While there are numerous regional variations,
Omelette during the mid-16th century, but the versions "alumelle" and "alumete" are employed by the Ménagier de Paris (II, 5) in 1393. Rabelais ("Pantagruel", IV, 9) mentions an "homelaicte d'oeufs", Olivier de Serres an "amelette", François Pierre La Varenne's "Le cuisinier françois" (1651) has "aumelette", and the modern "omelette" appears in "Cuisine bourgoise" (1784). According to the founding legend of the annual giant Easter omelette of Bessières, Haute-Garonne, when Napoleon Bonaparte and his army were traveling through southern France, they decided to rest for the night near the town of Bessières. Napoleon feasted on an omelette prepared by a local innkeeper,