Blessed are those hungry in appetite, that they be surrounded by great pies and coffee, and cuisine from Indian to Thai, to exotic (think turtle soup!) and the common (McDonald’s), for they shall find culinary comfort day after day.
Yes I am one of those blessed people. And I say this with sincere gratitude to God. No jokes. Where I work, I am spoiled for choice when it is lunch time. Which makes me very excited every single day. Having worked where I’m working for 2 years + now, I have seen eateries come and go. The saddest exit that I still mourn over, is the closure of the Indian coffeeshop just opposite my shophouse office. Sigh.
But as they always say – when one door closes, another one opens. Hell-ya! Since mid last year, so many cool outfits have opened within 1 km of my office. Hurrah! Chye Seng Huat Hardware, Broers, L’etoile, Suprette are some of the gems that I visit quite so often. They’ve been blogged to death so I don’t see a need to expound on how great they are.
But the latest addition to the neighbourhood – Windowsill Pies have gotten me all hot and bothered, in all the right ways so I have to declare my love here!
Pies/tarts are a tricky thing to bake and through my personal attempts (apple pie, kiwi tart etc), I have learnt how difficult it is to get all the pie-components right. For me, a good pie has to have a: crisp crust and base, decent filling (if it’s an apple pie, give me my apples, don’t stinge!), and a good balance of flavours (sweet & salty is my fav combo at this moment. no surprises there). And I’m very surprised that Windowsill Pies does all these to perfection! Many times, I’ve lamented about the lack of good pie shops (it’s sad to have to go to Starbucks or Coffee Bean & Tea Leaf for a pie fix. it’s a coffee joint for goodness sake!) here. Whoever the pie guru behind Windowsill Pies is, I want to salute you. Your pies are a bit pricey ($7.60+ per slice) and I baulked at it first. But once I tasted the first forkful, I was sorry I complained about the price in the first place.
You guys have got it right in so many ways.
Your pies are a huge draw and better yet, your decor – makes me want to come back again and again.
Such whimsy!
From your wooden larger than life tree, to the side ceiling to floor window area, to your furniture and adorable tree door handle. I wouldn’t mind living in your cafe. This is the exact style I would follow for my own future house. Seriously!
Though I have yet to try their entire repertoire, I am confident that the rest of their pies are great as well. At least that’s what I’ve heard from online chatter.
I did enjoy the two slices I had: The Sam Willows & the Strawberry Lemon Tart. The Sam Willows Pie is ‘a quartet of pear, peanut butter, hazelnuts and rosemary’ (from their site). This is a combination I wouldn’t have thought of myself. Loved the pear and while I was trying to guess the cream layers at the bottom (hazelnut, rosemary and peanut butter), I thought it worked. Like I said – salty, sweet pairings are my current loves. I don’t normally describe pies as fragrant. But this one was. I like sniffing my food. Yes, I’m weird that way but hey I loved the scent of The Sam Willows.
The Strawberry Lemon Tart – if you have a low tolerance for sour, then you shouldn’t try it. Myself, however, I lapped it up like a hungry puppy. I think they used Meyer Lemons (these have a slightly sweet profile, even though it’s lemony sour.) for these. Think of it like lemon curd mixed with tarty sweet strawberry jam. So so good.
Come to this side of the woods if you ever feel like having some good pie. It’s worth a trip I tell you.
As for me, haha, I’m still laughing happily at the convenience of having this place just a stone’s throw away from my office. 
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Windowsill Pies
78 Horne Road
9004 7827
www.facebook.com/WindowsillPies
I have had a craving for pies every since I caught that Tim Burton movie.
You should know which one I’m talking about.
Yes, the one with the super talented Johnny Depp.
Sweeney Todd, Mrs. Lovett and her meat pies.
Not just any meat pies mind you. Human meat pies.
But rest assured, my craving stops at meat pies, no further than that. NO further than chicken, beef or even mutton. I’m no cannibal and besides who in the world sells human meat pies these days?
If you’re short on meat, heck, use potatoes or peas! Okay, I’m just saying. It probably won’t taste any better than meat for sure. Okay enough about pie fillings. Let’s get down to the real deal.
Solid meat pies. Where are they?
My dearest sis and I were really glad when Nora, the lovely lady who owns a certain famous pink cafe (come on, you know which one! I don’t need to say it!) made us some meat pies.
And it’s true when I say I’ve been craving for meat pies. I seldom eat pies, and it’s not because I don’t want to but rather, good ones are hard to come by, especially in Singapore. Okay maybe sweet dessert pies are more common. But meat pies, real good meat pies are a dime in a dozen.
Anyway Nora’s pies are homely and really yummy. It was really sweet of her to bake me pies. I love chatting with her. Our conversations are far from boring and even though she’s more senior (around my mum’s age I think. not that it matters!). She’s really youthful and it helps that we share a common interest – baking! I should learn how to bake these pies of hers.
Here’s one of her chicken pies:
Yep, delibrately ate half so I could show you the insides! See, all chicken! No suspicious filling whatsoever *winks*
When it comes to pies, sometimes beef is better. I like chicken but I think it’s partly the thick chunks of beef that always get to me. I like my meat and beef just feels more hearty and solid. Or maybe it’s just a personal preference. That’s why I always prefer beef stew to chicken stew!
So here’s an inside look at the beef one:
Yummy ain’t it?
There’s also something that’s downright rustic about these pies that make me like them so much. They’re not over-the-top and yet they’re not too delicate. Think home-made pies that your grannie or mum would make.
The crust is really good too. I like the shortcrust kind. I never understood pies that use puff pastry. Hmmm.. again, it’s my personal preference.
Now my sis is bugging me to go hunt for all the places that sell really good and homely pies.
I shall perhaps make that my next quest.
Bring on the recommendations I say 
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