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{Sweet San Francisco}: Best Pies in SF (and a bit beyond)

Nov 25 by Anita 22 Comments

Mission Pies
 

Although the Bay Area has been enjoying a renaissance of fancy pastry classics like croissants, macarons, and kouign amann, it also has a soft spot for the simpler sweets, like pie. Pie San Francisco style usually means handcrafted with the the best, locally sourced ingredients, original takes on traditional flavors, and, of course, a killer, perfectly flaky crust. I was invited by Expedia’s Viewfinder travel blog to collaborate on this article exploring my favorite places in the city to satiate my pie cravings, whether sweet or savory, fruity or nutty. Follow along for my grand pie crawl.

Tartine Tarts
Tartine’s cream pies, big and small

Whenever a list of best bakeries in San Francisco appears, Tartine never fails to make the cut, and for good reason – or rather, numerous good reasons. There is almost always a line of customers out the door waiting for their morning buns, croissants, and cakes, but my favorite item is their banana cream pie. It’s a cross between the refined composition of a French tart and the more voluptuous abandon of a pie, made of slices of banana sandwiched between billows of whipped cream and pastry cream. What really elevates it all is the layer of chocolate and caramel at the bottom. Everything comes together, from the flaky pastry to the silky cream to the sweet caramel, to perfection. So don’t be afraid of the long line – it moves faster than you think, and it’s worth the wait.

banana cream tart
Tartine’s banana cream pie 

Tartine Bakery
600 Guerrero Street
San Francisco, CA 94110

pecan pie
Three Babes Bakeshop pecan pie. Photo courtesy of Colin Price.

Three Babes Bakeshop has rapidly gained a devoted following for their impeccably crafted pies that combine classic piemaking techniques with a modern sensibility. Their pies are all organic, the flavors influenced by local, seasonal ingredients: Fig and Plum, Gravenstein Apple Sour Cream, Salty Honey Walnut. I prefer their Bourbon Pecan Pie, a boozy-sweet mix of brown sugar, butter, pecans, and bourbon in a flaky crust that’s the stuff of pie heaven. Three Babes Bakeshop currently appear at the Ferry Plaza Farmers’ Market every Saturday, or you can order off their website as well. They even sell their pie dough, if you’re making your pie at home and looking for an ace up your sleeve.

Three Babes Bakeshop
At the Ferry Building Farmers’ Market on Saturdays
1 Ferry Building
San Francisco, CA 94111

The prize for cleverest name goes to PieTisserie. The story behind it is so perfectly sweet: Jaynelle St. Jean recreated a country home window in her mother’s San Francisco home, placing pies to cool on the windowsill and giving slices to passerby. She realized pies were her calling, moved across the bay to Oakland and started PieTisserie; this summer she announced will be opening her own retail shop in the Lake Merritt district. Now her classics, like Blackbottom Walnut and Chocolate Cream Pretzel will have a permanent home, and she has a killer holiday pie lineup: my favorite is the sweet yam with homemade marshmallow fluff, nestled in a golden all-butter crust. Until her shop opens, you can order from her site, and few would blame you if you can’t wait.

www. Pietissserie.com

pear cranberry pie
Mission Pie’s pear cranberry pie

I love the double entendre in the name Mission Pie: it’s located on Mission Street, in the Mission District, and their single mission is to serve some very fine pie. This homey cafe offers pie in all its forms, from tarts to quiches to savory pot pies to sweet pies. I’ve made a meal of their Potato Gratin Tart with Goat Cheese and Peppers and Slaw with Lentils, Fennel, and Satsumas. For dessert, my preference leans towards the crisp-like Pear Cranberry Pie, filled with juicy chunks of pear in an all-butter crust and topped with streusel. Their menu is constantly changing to reflect the seasons, though, so you best strategy is to just walk in and see what’s available – or what everyone else is eating.

Mission Pie
2901 Mission St at 25th
San Francisco, CA 94110

apple green chile pie
Chile Pies’ signature apple green chile pie

Chile Pies is the offshoot of Green Chile Kitchen, a restaurant devoted to the bold spiciness of New Mexican cuisine. Fittingly, their signature pie is an apple pie spiced with green chiles, layered in a cheddar cheese crust, topped with walnuts and and red chile honey. It’s highly recommended that you have this with a scoop of ice cream. Equally adventurous are the pie shakes: a slice of pie blended with ice cream into one deliciously decadent indulgence. Originally pies were part of the menu at Green Chile Kitchen, but they became so popular Chile Pies was opened to focus on the pastries. There are now two locations, both offering a range of pies and select dishes from Green Chile Kitchen. Get spicy for dinner – and dessert.

Chile Pies (& Ice Cream)
601 Baker St
San Francisco, CA 94117

Chile Pies (Sweet & Savory)
314 Church Street
San Francisco, CA 94114

To see what else you can do in San Francisco after eating all that pie, check out these great images of the city on Expedia’s Viewfinder Image Gallery. What pie are you eating this Thanksgiving?

Filed Under: San Francisco, Sweet Spots Tagged With: bay area, chile pies, mission pie, pie, pietisserie, san francisco, sponsored, sweet san francisco, sweet spots, tartine, three babes

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« Out and About: Tidbits from the Last Month
A Mission Tour with Negra Modelo and Rick Bayless »

Comments

  1. 1

    Cara of Stylish+Geek Blog says

    Nov 25 at 10:33 am

    I never say no to pie! Love the SF selections you made and I will definitely check them out…not just one but all of them! As I said…I never say no to pie! Thanks for sharing 🙂

    Reply
  2. 2

    Rachel @ Bakerita says

    Nov 25 at 11:00 am

    Drooling! Those pies are gorgeous and look amazing. I love pecan pie! We’ll be having apple and pecan at my Thanksgiving 🙂

    Reply
  3. 3

    Shipra says

    Nov 25 at 11:17 am

    Om.nom.nom. I think I’ll bring my fat pants and be right over to eat all the pie possible! Yum! <3

    Reply
  4. 4

    Brooke @ You're In Brookelynn says

    Nov 25 at 11:23 am

    Man, these all look so delicious! My favorite pies are definitely pumpkin and french silk 🙂

    Reply
  5. 5

    Erica says

    Nov 25 at 11:53 am

    Those all look so good, if I’m ever in SF I will make sure to try one of those places!

    Reply
  6. 6

    Rosie says

    Nov 25 at 12:10 pm

    Drooling. This looks amazing especially the pecan one. Thanks
    Rosie
    http://www.rosedogandco.blogspot.com.au

    Reply
  7. 7

    Bianca says

    Nov 25 at 12:51 pm

    Love the pies! And I love San Fran. Going to save this for my next trip! thanks!

    Reply
  8. 8

    Deidre says

    Nov 25 at 1:05 pm

    Looks like it is time for a SF trip!!

    Reply
  9. 9

    Lix says

    Nov 25 at 4:47 pm

    Oh my god, so many delicious-looking pies. *___*

    Reply
  10. 10

    karissa says

    Nov 25 at 8:18 pm

    Oh Yum, I love pie. Can’t wait till Thanksgiving, my mom makes pies.

    Reply
  11. 11

    Alyssa says

    Nov 25 at 8:26 pm

    WOW! These look way too yummy.

    Reply
  12. 12

    Nancy says

    Nov 25 at 10:25 pm

    I LOVE that first picture of the dessert, I think from Tartine Bakery? You got (photography) talent, lady!

    Reply
  13. 13

    Brenda says

    Nov 25 at 10:43 pm

    You just talked about all my absolute favorite pie places in town! I love using good eggs to get them when I needed a bit of a sweet snack.

    Reply
  14. 14

    Amanda Love says

    Nov 26 at 7:51 am

    Now I know where to go if I’m ever in San Francisco. I’m a big pie lover but have never been to SF.

    Reply
  15. 15

    Selbe says

    Nov 26 at 8:56 am

    Oh, those all look delicious! Pie is one of my favorite desserts!

    Reply
  16. 16

    Candace says

    Nov 26 at 9:00 am

    I miss SF so much this hurt me to read. Oh SF bakeries! So wonderful.

    Reply
  17. 17

    Maryann says

    Nov 26 at 12:24 pm

    Dang– I was just in sf last week! The pear cranberry sounds amazing.

    Reply
  18. 18

    What the Bride Wore says

    Nov 27 at 7:11 am

    YUM! Those look delicious!

    Reply
  19. 19

    Rebekah says

    Nov 27 at 7:24 am

    Oh my gosh that banana cream pie looks amazing!

    Reply
  20. 20

    Lindsay says

    Nov 28 at 12:26 pm

    What a perfect looking pie 🙂

    Reply
  21. 21

    Jenn @ EngineerMommy says

    Dec 2 at 10:08 am

    I love pies, and these look so delicious! Thanks for sharing!

    Reply
  22. 22

    breanna says

    Dec 2 at 10:16 am

    What a bad time to read this post. I am starving and those pies are to die for. Most especially the pecan, my fave!

    Reply

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about pastrygirl

Anita Chu, also known as pastrygirl, is a baker, writer, and photographer with a passion for pastry. She trained at Tante Marie's Cooking School and is the author of Field Guide to Cookies, Field Guide to Candy, and Lollipop Love. Anita lives in San Francisco with her husband, baby girl, and rescue cockapoo Snickerdoodle. More about pastrygirl

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