When I texted Mr. Hungry to tell him we’d been invited to an event called “Pie and Prosecco”, he immediately wrote back, “Isn’t that basically your dream event?” When I told him it was to celebrate the opening of Pie Junkie’s new Kensington location (tucked right in behind Red’s and across the street from Midtown) and to sample a selection of their fresh pies, he lost the ability to form sentences. I’m a big fan of Pie Junkie and as you may remember from my Pi Day 2017 post, a variety of their pies, galettes and tarts left me with joy in my heart and butter-based pastry crumbs on my face. Thanks so much to Kristen at Wild PR for organizing this beautiful event. Wild PR is a very cool local firm focused on outdoorsy/health/wellness-related brands, so I consider myself very lucky that my greasy, buttery blog made it onto this guest list!

Tonight was fabulous. So much joy, so many buttery crumbs. We walked in from some cold, blustery weather and were greeted by the sight of a steaming hot row of savoury pies on the left and a mouth-watering row of sweet pies on the right. Being greeted by the smell of pies baking and the soft hiss of a glass of sparkling wine got me right in the mood to start sampling!

The list of what we didn’t try is shorter than the list of what we actually tasted, but I’ll do my best to keep this short.

My absolute favourite the first time I tried a selection of Pie Junkie flavours was the potato galette and it remains near the top of my list. Flaky crust surrounding creamy layers of potatoes – what’s not to love?

I loved this one way more than I expected. It was mild and not too sweet as some butter chicken recipes tend to be. The tomato-based curry made a great substitute for gravy. Would 100% order again! We tried the classic chicken pot pie as well (not pictured) and found that both flavours were packed with large pieces of meat, which made for a satisfying bite.

I decided I had to choose between the above British classic, steak & kidney, and the Australian/New Zealander classic beef (pictured below). I chose the Aussie beef in the end and absolutely loved it. For anyone unsure of what all the fuss is about, picture shepherd’s or cottage pie without all the fussy veggies in the mix.

That’s a pie I can see myself craving in the near future!

The brie and chutney was Matt’s favourite (not that it hurt my feelings, either!) We loved the creamy, gooey cheese and the sweet, fragrant chutney that oozed out of this when we naively tried to take a neat little slice. So much the better, because everyone knows the messier a food is, the less reasonable it is for anyone to ask you to share!

We tried all of the hand pies and determined the Jamaican was our favourite – it packed some nice heat but wasn’t overwhelming. Neither of us were blown away by the three cheese & onion or the Italian job, but it’s also hard to convey just how good a hand pie is to someone who’s only going to be taking one bite, so I’m definitely open to giving these another try in the future.

A pork sausage roll was served with these later and we did grab a tasty bite, but the photo is practically indecent so I’ll leave it to your imagination.

The quiche was such a lovely surprise as I wouldn’t have thought to stop at Pie Junkie for one of these, but it was absolutely packed with flavourful fillings and the crust held up well against the moist, eggy centre. Matt especially loved this one and I suspect it will be on the brunch menu at our place sometime in the not-too-distant future.

Key lime everything all the time, please! I was so excited when I first saw this on Pie Junkie’s menu earlier this year and heard from a little bird at the event tonight that key lime will be here to stay! Matt is usually a hater, but even he had to admit it was terrific. The custard was mild and refreshing with natural lime flavour rather than those sour, artificial numbers that can pack too much of a punch. Delicious!

Mexican chocolate was a fun way to mix it up! We loved the sprinkling of cinnamon that complemented the chocolate so nicely. Cream pies are my biggest temptation and this was no different!

The apple salted caramel came out steaming hot with huge slices of tart Granny Smith apples doused in a house made caramel sauce. Yeah, enough said. If you’re an apple pie person, you’ll dig (right into) this.

The salted honey was a cool choice! It’s quite new on the menu at Pie Junkie and they’re curious to see how it’s received. We were both immediately drawn to it. I would describe it as a mix between an egg tart and a creme brûlée with a nice, custardy centre and a pleasantly browned, sugary layer on top. Matt said he liked it more with each bite, so don’t overlook this pie despite its humble exterior!

I felt that it was important for all of you to see this – look at those huge chunks of chocolate, the nice toasty pecans and the gooey, sugary filling poking up from underneath? I need this at my next holiday meal!

I know I’ve been going on about how much I love Pie Junkie, but I really am so excited about this small local business that’s now expanded into a great location in super trendy Kensington. It sounds like they’ve been doing a lot more single-serving sales at the Kensington location and they’re offering a lot more flavours of pie by the slice to accommodate the denser, more urban market here, but their menu options remain the same at both locations. Definitely check Pie Junkie out from Tuesday to Sunday at either their flagship Wildwood location (8 Spruce Centre SW) or their new spot in Kensington (1081 2nd Ave NW) to make all of your pie dreams come true.