The Year of the Pie

Pie seemed to be the dessert on everyone’s mind this year, but when we tried to pick a favorite sweet spot to satisfy our pie needs during our recent staff meeting, the discussion got a little rowdy. It appears everyone has their own favorite pie hole and no one was willing to relent. So, here we have it, our Top 3 Pie Havens…

Bragg’s Factory Diner

I know this can get a bit confusing. Bragg’s Factory Diner is a relatively recent edition to the family of community businesses and projects found in the Bragg’s Pie Factory building down on Grand Ave, but it’s not called the Bragg’s Pie Factory Diner and maybe it should be.

Ms. Dana Stern is the creatrix behind some of the delectable and innovative pies found at the Factory Diner. Combinations like Blood Orange (my first slice), Apple-Rosemary, and Blueberry-Persimmon (my personal favorite) elevate the traditional to the exquisite, all set in a crust that can’t be beat.

Bragg’s Factory Diner wins my vote for favorite pie every time. Now open Mondays so you can get your fix seven days a week. – Lenore

Ollie Vaughn’s 

I have a baby sweet tooth; never really craving or searching out sweets. But the pies at Ollie Vaughn’s baked with serious love by Lindsey Magee just may turn me into a sugar daddy.

Pumpkin pie, Dutch apple pie, and my absolute favorite the Very Berry Berry Berry, (that’s what I call it any way), pie, is out of the this world.

Magee named her kitchen and bakery after her great grandmother, whom by all accounts was a trailblazing woman for women’s rights, earning a college degree and becoming a rough and tumble sharpshooter – this all in the early part of the century.

Open for lunch from 10am to 3pm, Ollie Vaughn’s is my vote for best pie! -Frank

Mamma Toledo’s

Maybe I’m a bit traditional when it comes to pie, but sometimes you just can’t beat a slice of cherry or chocolate cream pie just like you’d get at a family gathering. That’s what you find at Mamma Toledo’s –  big slices of homemade classics.

And, I’m all for a good success story. Mamma Toledo’s started as a food truck and recently expanded into a brick-and-mortar location with Short Leash Hot Dogs, also of Phoenix food truck fame. Now, you can get a slice of pie from their downtown location, or “The Pie Hole”, on days when the truck isn’t making her rounds.

Mamma Toledo’s has a Coconut Cream Pie that will knock your socks off but I’m also a big fan of their Key Lime Pie as well as the Blueberry Crumb. Tonya Saidi is the “Pie Baking Specialist” behind the Mamma Toledo’s operation.

Make sure you stop by Mamma Toledo’s, truck or shop, and grab a slice, my pick for pie. – Mark