Joann Vennare grabs a blackberry pie at The Pie Place of Houston for our Thanksgiving dinner. By Scott Beveridge
HOUSTON, Pa. – All it took yesterday was a whiff of a stack of boxed pies to add that brand to my growing list of food addictions.
It happened at a high school in Washington, Pa., when I went to take a newspaper photograph of its band members who were picking them up for delivery in their Thanksgiving-timed fundraiser.
The aroma of the goods from The Pie Place of Houston was mouthwatering. I mean the few of us there were growing so hungry for a slice of one of those pies that some were consider shoplifting or upping the price the musicians were charging to offset their upcoming trip to Disney World.
The urge to steal one of these precious deserts only intensified after we learned that the 180 pies with fillings that include red raspberry, pumpkin and apple were pre-sold and there weren’t any leftovers to salvage.
So today I used my lunch break to drive to the pie shop at 737 W. Pike St., Houston, Pa., to pick up two for Thanksgiving dinner.
There was an older guy immediately behind me who was in such a hurry to place his order that he blurted out his before I had a chance to place an order. As a gesture to gain some badly needed Karma points, I bowed to his urgent need for sugary fruit sandwiched in dough.
In short order he realized he was being rude and turned with a smile. Someone in the universe was paying attention other than the especially polite clerk behind the counter.
“You’ll be lucky when you buy one today if it lasts until Thanksgiving,” he pronounced.
He also said there is a Web site that has deemed these pies the absolute best in this corner of southwestern Pennsylvania.
Well the jury in this family’s kitchen is still out. I bought two; a blackberry pie – one of my favorite kinds – and another overflowing with coconut cream. But, judging again from their smells, you should be jealous that you are not invited to dinner this Thursday with those of us who travel with the Beveridges.
Happy Thanksgiving
No comments:
Post a Comment