Frankly, I'm not big on sweets. I don't add sugar to my coffee and prefer chili cheese fries to ice cream. But if the occasion calls for dessert, for me, a slice of pie can be blissful. Others seem to agree as "best pie" lists abound in this town, featuring no-brainer notables like meringue varieties from Paris Coffee Shop (recognized by Bon Appétit magazine as one of the top 10 places for pie in America in 2010) and coconut cream from Dixie House Café.
But I went in search for the best pies most folks might not have tried. First stop was a bustling Swiss Pastry Shop (3936 W Vickery Blvd., Fort Worth, Texas 76107, 817.732.5661, swisspastryonline.com). While most lunchtime diners ordered the bakery's famous black forest cake, I went for the server-recommended Texas Crack pie. It's a brown sugar chess pie baked in an oatmeal cookie crust. Dark and dense with vanilla and cinnamon intermingling throughout, the pie has the creamy consistency of custard.
I'd heard the chocolate meringue pie from the Rose Garden Tea Room (7200 Camp Bowie Blvd., Fort Worth, Texas 76116, 817.731.ROSE) is delivered to your table still warm from the oven. Even more, diners order it the minute they sit down because sell-outs are frequent. I dragged my husband to the frilly café filled with ladies who lunch to see for myself. Our server said I was smart to select the pie up front and promptly brought me a slice before we ordered our entrees. Sure enough, the rich chocolaty filling was still heated through, and the wobbly, slightly browned, chocolate sprinkle-coated meringue topping melted upon mouth contact. I ate half of it before my soup and sandwich arrived.
My sister-in-law tuned me into Spiral Diner's (1314 W. Magnolia Ave., Fort Worth, Texas 76104, 817.332.8834, spiraldiner.com) vegan sweet potato pie years ago, and it's still my favorite rendition. A blend of ginger, cinnamon, nutmeg, cardamom, vanilla, almond and molasses combine with mashed sweet potatoes to create a decadent dish that's rich with spice and savor.
"We use fresh, organic sweet potatoes and bake them with the skin on," says Spiral Diner founder Amy McNutt. "It makes the texture just right and caramelizes them just a touch. Other places might use canned sweet potatoes or boil them."
The pie isn't always offered year-round, but can be special ordered with a few days notice.
Of the pies mentioned here, the key lime pie at The Tavern (2755 S. Hulen St., Fort Worth, Texas 76109, 817.923.6200, thetavernftworth.com) might be the most well known. Chef Felipe Armenta, who recently opened his second Fort Worth restaurant, Pacific Table, uses what tastes like a pint of lime juice for each velvety slice. It's topped with fresh whipped cream, sits on a crumbly crust, and is plated with a hefty sprinkling of bright lime zest. It's hard to take any other key lime pie seriously after tasting this one.
Lastly, as an avid fan of Dixie House Café (multiple locations), their mile-high coconut pies have long been on my radar. But when the daughter of owners Theresa and Dale Simon seemed shocked I hadn't tried the café's sopapilla cheesecake, I had to take a piece home, primarily out of politeness. Upon first bite, I was startled. Even my husband wondered why we had never been aware of this addiction-inducing dessert before. (Early in our marriage, we ate at Dixie House two to three times a week.) Now some may debate whether the dessert qualifies as pie because it's baked in a sheet pan and cut into square slices. But it's comprised of three pie-like layers – a buttery, salty, scratch-made crust; a sweet, vanilla-infused cream cheese filling; and a top crust made of flaky, cinnamon-sprinkled dough that resembles a croissant in texture and appearance. I would almost take it over chili cheese fries.
