Cathy has reminded me of my incredible lack of direction and tendency to get lost. I think I'll drive too. Plus, we can use my trunk as an extra table. I'll see if I can find a red checkered tablecloth...

I think with such a little group, I will skip buying a bean pie. But since it's not too far from Miss Lee's or Cafe Medici, if you guys all want to join me in a trip to Village Foods, 1521 E. Hyde Park Blvd., we can try to find one there and split it before heading home.

I would like to join you along with my friend Alice.

Pie Lady wrote:I also just wrote to the Nation of Islam about obtaining a bean pie. If they don't write me back by Monday I'll call them. Wouldn't that be great if I could get one of those? It's only 1.5 miles away from Cafe Trinidad. We can find a nice park for that, or we can all bring tupperware to bring our shares home (it doesn't appear to need refrigeration).

NOI never got back to you?

Pie Lady wrote:I think with such a little group, I will skip buying a bean pie. But since it's not too far from Miss Lee's or Cafe Medici, if you guys all want to join me in a trip to Village Foods, 1521 E. Hyde Park Blvd., we can try to find one there and split it before heading home.

I hadn't tried a bean pie from Village Foods (baked by That's Good) until the other day when my curiosity got the better of me.



Having also tried local versions from Shabazz Bakery, Original Bean Pie Bakery, AM's Sweet Lil MeMe's (these three all now out of business) as well as the Supreme Bean Pie (official pie of the NOI), I'm afraid I'd have to rank the That's Good pie near the bottom.



Flavor is decent enough—very similar to pumpkin or sweet potato pie—but the filling lacks the stratification into a light, custardy main layer and a darker top that makes Supreme distinctive. I found the crust to be simply awful—unpleasantly hard and crunchy at the edges but wet and doughy in the center (I don't remember the Supreme crust being anything extraordinary though it must be better). I'm not sure I got the freshest example however (not an uncommon problem at Village Foods). The bean pie from That's Good ought to give you an idea of the style but, judging from my one experience, it might not be a particularly good version.

That's Good
Chicago
773-310-4785

Village Foods
"It Takes a Village to Offer the Lowest Grocery Prices in Hyde Park"
1521 E Hyde Park Blvd (= 51st St)
Chicago
773-288-8180

Rene G wrote:

Pie Lady wrote:I also just wrote to the Nation of Islam about obtaining a bean pie. If they don't write me back by Monday I'll call them. Wouldn't that be great if I could get one of those? It's only 1.5 miles away from Cafe Trinidad. We can find a nice park for that, or we can all bring tupperware to bring our shares home (it doesn't appear to need refrigeration).

NOI never got back to you?

I called, but they kept me on hold for 10 minutes. I think I already sent an email, but I sent another one today.

Are you coming to our event?

Pie Lady wrote:I called, but they kept me on hold for 10 minutes. I think I already sent an email, but I sent another one today.

Are you coming to our event?

Please do let us know if you find out anything from NOI. Several years ago I arranged for delivery of six Supreme Bean Pies to a dessert symposium I was speaking at. It wasn't as easy as I expected and I'm not sure if the guy I dealt with was associated with NOI or was just a middleman. I've wondered if one could simply stroll into Muhammad University and purchase a pie or if you need to find a pie vendor on the street. As I mentioned earlier, I think the pies are baked at the school on the NOI campus. Did you call Muhammad U (773-643-0700) directly?

I don't think I'll be attending. Honestly, I'm not a big fan of sweets so I'm afraid I wouldn't enjoy a day of pie. I have a particular interest in bean pie though, explaining why I took the extraordinary step (for me) of buying a whole pie.

Rene G wrote:

Pie Lady wrote:I called, but they kept me on hold for 10 minutes. I think I already sent an email, but I sent another one today.

Are you coming to our event?

Did you call Muhammad U (773-643-0700) directly?

I don't think I'll be attending. Honestly, I'm not a big fan of sweets so I'm afraid I wouldn't enjoy a day of pie. I have a particular interest in bean pie though, explaining why I took the extraordinary step (for me) of buying a whole pie.

I did call that number directly. I'll try again in a few days if they don't email back.

If I do get a pie from NOI, that's very close to Cafe Trinidad. You can always show up for those two.

Hi,

If you don't find a bean pie, I will bring one to the dessert exchange.

Regards,

A bean pie purchased Wednesday evening at 79th & Stony was That's Good brand, not Supreme. No time to ask why due to traffic. It looked a lot fresher than the one I got at Village Foods but I gave it away without eating any (I bought it only to try a Supreme for comparison). I wonder if Muhammad U is on summer break, maybe explaining the phone problems and lack of Supremes on the street.

How long do you plan to be at stop #1? I was drafted into serving at the 10:45 a.m. service at church (hard to get folks during summer.) I won't get there by noon, but can make it to the area by no later than 12:30 p.m.

Somehow I missed this event, still getting used to keeping up with older threads... Sounds like such a fun event, too bad I cant make it this weekend! I will definitely love to join for a second pie run!!

Ms. Ingie wrote:How long do you plan to be at stop #1? I was drafted into serving at the 10:45 a.m. service at church (hard to get folks during summer.) I won't get there by noon, but can make it to the area by no later than 12:30 p.m.

Since the first stop is lunch, we should be there until at least 12:30. I'll send you my number so in case you run really late, you can call and we can meet you at the next stop.

theskinnyduck wrote:Somehow I missed this event, still getting used to keeping up with older threads... Sounds like such a fun event, too bad I cant make it this weekend! I will definitely love to join for a second pie run!!

I think with all the places in this area that are open on Saturdays, not Sundays, I may have to schedule a third!

See you guys tomorrow! Come hungry!

Hi,

I will!

Regards,

Cathy,

Can you take pictures and post please?

pairs4life wrote:Cathy,

Can you take pictures and post please?

I plan on bringing a camera as well.

I was able to switch services with someone, so I should be on time.

Thanks for coming, everybody! That was really something. You should have stayed; Ms. Ingie and I got a free sample of herbal chicken while we waited for my takeout! It was really something, too. The meat was falling off the bone and it was so juicy and a bit spicy. I wondered how much it would cost for them to make me an entire turkey for Thanksgiving. Anyway, I did not get the fried chicken because there was an additional 15-20 minute wait, so I tried the duck. This was some kickass duck. Again, the meat was falling off the bone and it was so rich. I reluctantly offered Mr. Pie a taste and luckily for me, he was satisfied enough with my stew. It also came with collards, fried corn and dressing, all good, which I didn't finish and will be eating as part of my lunch. The corn muffin and biscuit probably would have been better had I not waited two hours before eating.

Pie Lady!

My thanks to you!

I'm glad you tried the herbal chicken, because I heard later that was a solid offering. Nice to know the duck is worth the effort, too.

Thanks for suggesting Cafe Trinidad, I really enjoyed the goat curry roti. The blueberry and peach cobblers straight from the oven were terrific.

Medici's mocha pie with mocha whipped cream was the best of the three pies offered. The peach and apple pies were too clunky with too thick crust, undercooked peaches and gooey interior.

Ms. Lee's refrigerator lemon pie was still on my mind a few hours later. I don't usually like lemon desserts, because they are often too tart. This was more like lemonade cream with a fluffy meringue top.

The sweet potato cobbler was a chunky eccentric, which had enough sugar and juice to still remind me of a peach cobbler.

The buttermilk pie other name is Chess pie and a perfectly good example.

Again, thank you for a delightful afternoon.

Regards,

Surely! I'll have to plan another one. It's been awhile since I went on an eating tour.

Pie Lady wrote:Surely! I'll have to plan another one. It's been awhile since I went on an eating tour.

Hilarious, but true! Get yourself over to Hoosier Mama before the week ends.

pairs4life wrote:

Pie Lady wrote:Surely! I'll have to plan another one. It's been awhile since I went on an eating tour.

Hilarious, but true! Get yourself over to Hoosier Mama before the week ends.

One of these Fridays I'm going thrift store shopping. So I told myself that the best thrift stores are around 1400 Milwaukee.

I've finally gotten around to posting the photos of our Pie Crawl. You'll notice that many of the photos show a lack of food as we were quite enthusiastic and kept digging into our purchases before remembering to take photos.

First stop, Cafe Trinidad, 557 E. 75th St., Chicago. Charles was behind the counter and was especially helpful.







We decided to order a variety of sides. Clockwise starting from top left: Sweet potatoes, Macaroni Pie, Callaloo (a creamy combination of spich & okra), Caribbean boiled dumplings, Collard Greens, and Cucumber Chow. The favorites were the dumplings, Macaroni Pie and the cucumbers. The sweet potatoes were definately sweet. The Roti was huge and delicious. The goat was very tender and the curry gravy/stew was savory, spicy and delicious.



Roti Wrap featuring Goat in Curry Gravy



And finally, the real reason we came - Blueberry and Peach Cobbler, fresh from the oven. I think the peach was the overwhelming favorite.



Next stop, Medeci on 57th, 1327 E. 57th St. (The Bakery side)







We ordered an apple, a peach and a slice of frozen Mocha Cream Pie. The menu say the fruit pie comes in their "famous shortbread crust." We were not impressed. It was too thick and took away from the fruit. It also didn't allow the fruit to become fully cooked. There's nothing worse than crunchy peaches. The true winner was the frozen mocha cream pie.

Apple Pie



Frozen Mocha Cream Pie



Peach Pie





Last stop, Miss Lee's Good Food at 203 E. Garfield. The lines were long, the place was hot and the reviews from the people buying their dinner were nothing short of fabulous. We managed to get the last piece of Lemon Ice Box Pie, which seemed to be the favorite among us. We also picked Buttermilk Pie and Sweet Potato Cobbler.

Buttermilk Pie, fresh from the oven (Also known as Chess Pie)



The last bite of Sweet Potato Cobbler. It was o.k., but I think we should have tried the peach.



Last but not least, the Lemon Icebox Pie. Similar to Lemon Meringue, but creamier.

I mentioned at the event that I wished was trying to figure whether I could get to Cafe Trinidad on my lunch break. That's how good that roti was.

The frozen mocha pie at Medici was officially known as Vaguely Reminiscent. Apparently all the pies we had can also be ordered from the restaurant, but the bakery had fruit tarts that were not on the restaurant menu. The fruit pies were indeed disappointing, way too heavy and bready, and the filling had a viscosity that I can only describe as snot-like. The flavors were fine, and the crusts were plenty tasty, but if they'd cut the crusts down by half or eliminated the bottom and made it a cobbler, cooked the peach more, and switched up the spices so that the apple and peach were discernible from each other, these would have been much better.

My favorite pie of the trip was a tie between Vaguely Reminiscent and the lemon icebox at Miss Lee's, although chocolate anything is usually a frontrunner and I had the VR before, so I was expecting yumminess.

In the back of Medici's, there is a door marked WC. Inside that room, the ladies' is on the left and the mens' on the right. In between, there is a giant blackboard with colored chalk, and possibly still today there remains PLETHORA OF PIE 2011.

I think we need to do this again soon, like early Novemberish? Might as well start our holiday pigout a little early!