G Kelly - Traditional Pie & Mash Shop Review


You may have seen our recent review of S & R Kelly to celebrate their 100th birthday. In that review I said I had saved space in order to eat another pie at their competitor G Kelly, located just down Bethnal Green Road in London. They literally are a couple of moments away from each other. If only such a situation existed on every street.... that's the Pierate dream world!

Originally I had planned one review of both places as a head to head. The only problem was there was a clear winner in my eyes, and it was G Kelly. It didn’t feel quite right to tell S & R Kelly that they are losers on their birthday. But now…. well I am going to have to say sorry guys but G Kelly pipped you to the post on this occasion!

As seems common in the London Pie and Mash world, these two shops were founded by members of the same family but now are in separate hands. The pie in question at G Kelly was very much in the same vein as the S & R Kelly version, as is the tradition (see our article on traditional pie and mash shops for more info). Whilst pie and mash cost the same in both places, G Kelly slightly undercut S & R Kelly with the pie option being only £2. G Kelly was a little run down, but to me this seemed charming. There were more old fashioned features than the relatively modern looking S & R Kelly. The liquor was perhaps a bit too floury at G Kelly but most importantly the G Kelly pie was a bit more moist, and better filled so it takes the prestigious title of Pierate Bethnal Green Road Pie & Mash shop of choice.

Condition – 4.3 out of 7
Colour – 4.0 out of 7
Cost - 6.1 out of 7
Capacity – 4.3 out of 7 – Again, quite small but it was well filled on this occasion.
Chewiness - 4.2 out of 7 – Some nice crunch to the pastry in places but it was mainly soft and slipped down well (and wasn’t chewy like S & R Kelly).
Content – 4.0 out of 7 – Simple and meaty. The pastry tasted a bit flour-y but still nice.
Consistency – 4.0 out of 7 – I would have another

Traditional Minced Beef (G Kelly [E2 0DJ]) 
4.41/7 

SJL

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S & R Kelly - Traditional Pie and Mash Shop Review

At Pierate we know how competitive the it is in the world of Pie. There are so many great pie companies out there so when one celebrates it’s 100th birthday then they must be onto a good thing! On Saturday 14th March 2015 S & R Kelly at 284 Bethnal Green Road in London celebrate 100 years of bringing little pastry packages of joy into peoples lives. It seems appropriate to add them to the pie rankings at Pierate to celebrate this special occasion.


When hunting down S & R Kelly you may notice that there is also a G Kelly on the same road and it is easy to get confused. This kind of thing seems to be common in the Traditional London Pie and Mash scene, with a number of members of the Manze family running their own pie shops such as L. Manze and M. Manze.

As you might imagine given the age of the shop, S & R Kelly is very traditional. This is quick and convenient food, not the gourmet pies served at newer places like Piebury Corner. This is reflected in the price with a pie alone costing £2.10 and pie and mash £3. It seems that S & R Kelly has been renovated somewhat over its 100 years, as whilst it looks old, it doesn’t seem quite as old school as the rival G Kelly but it is still quiet charming. The traditional booths are present and correct and I grabbed a pie and found myself a space. Despite it being lunch time I was a bit concerned by their lack of trade. It did soon pick up though with a flood of people through the doors at once. I wondered whether there is a set time that people traditionally come for their pie and mash or if it was just that G Kelly had run out of pies?

The pie was small for an individual pie, for the completely fulfilling experience I think you really need to get pie and mash (or one of the other dazzling array of options such as 2 pie and mash). The pie came swimming in the traditional parsley liquor rather than gravy, so it is good that I have come to love this particular sauce with my pies. This particular liquor was one of the best. The pie itself had a nice, meaty, minced beef filling and for a sit down pie in London it was fantastic for the price. I found the pastry was strangely chewy, a bit like the Goddards version which we have reviewed previously  . Overall I enjoyed it, I could certainly have eaten another given that it was quite small. But I held myself back, with G Kelly down the road it seemed too good an opportunity not to do a head to head comparison! See how G Kelly scored and which pie came out on top...

For now though, if you get a chance, do get down to S & R Kelly to join in the celebrations. They are trying to raise a money for a memorial for the 173 people who died in the Bethnal Green Tube Disaster (see the flyer below)



Condition – 4.3 out of 7 
Colour – 3.7 out of 7 - Perhaps a little overly brown in places
Cost - 6.0 out of 7 
Capacity – 3.7 out of 7 – Not the biggest individual pie and it wasn't completely filled.
Chewiness -3.7 out of 7 – The meat wasn’t chewy but the pastry was, a bit odd.
Content – 4.2 out of 7 – Simple but effective
Consistency – 4.0 out of 7 – I would have another

Traditional Minced Beef (S & R Kelly) 
4.23/7 

SJL

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M. Manze - Traditional Pie and Mash Shop Review

As part of the my challenge to eat pie for every meal in British Pie Week (see all 21 pies in the summary article) I paid a trip to a very special pie shop in London. This was the M. Manze pie and mash shop on Tower Bridge Road, the oldest surviving pie and mash shop in the country. It opened in 1892. This certainly was a traditional London Pie and Mash Shop, serving pies in the traditional way with a parsley 'liquor' alongside the minced beef pies. See our article on Pie & Mash Shops to find out what makes these places so unique.


SJL

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Eel House Pies - Traditional Minced Beef Pie Review

I am quite a fan of the East London traditional pie and mash. It is a shame that the classic combination of minced beef pie, mash and liquor is now becoming more difficult to get hold of.... or is it? Step forward Eel House Pies!

See our article on traditional Pie & Mash Shops to understand more about the history of London Pie and Mash shops and why eels are involved!

Eel house pies are bringing this tradition to ANYWHERE in the UK. For £28.50 you can order a box of four pie meals, complete with mash and liquor. Your order comes in a box like this...

And in minutes you can have a pie and mash meal on your plate like this....


It is just so convenient, I think I may have just seen the future! It isn't even that expensive for what you get and considering it is delivered straight to you. Certainly worth it to share a special occasion with friends (e.g. British Pie Week).

Okay, but Cheapness is just one of the seven Cs, the important thing is what did it taste like? It seems that Eel House Pies have really gone for traditional values. This tastes to me exactly what I think traditional pie and mash should taste like. Not to say that it is perfect when compared to the whole world of wonderful pies which are out there. However, if you are looking for this kind of pie you won't be disappointed.


The pies looked just part, having gone for the classic shallow, oval shape. They arrived in good Condition and had an appealing, but non-uniform, Colour. The Capacity of the pie is fairly small because it goes for the shallower shape but it made up for it by being full of Content. There was a delicious meatiness to the filling and the minced beef was not ground up too fine like it can be with some cheap pies. This meant there was still some bite to the pie. The pastry was really quite tasty with a delicious softness on the inside. It really slipped down well. To get the ultimate texture I would have liked a bit more crispness on the outside of the pastry. They use suet pastry for the base and puff on the top. I am not sure if this is the traditional method but it sure is an excellent combination, we do love a bit of suet here at Pierate. There was a nice little instruction leaflet which asked you to sprinkle the pie in water before putting it in the oven, this was not something I had heard of before but it certainly seemed to work.

So in summary I can say that these pies were Consistently tasty, I should know, I ate a box of four!

Although it doesn't affect the score the mash and liqour also put a smile on my face. The mash was well seasoned and tasted better than I make from fresh even though it didn't have any butter or milk (because it is an old recipe). The liquor was made with real eel stock, which is very traditional and quite expensive these days. I was very impressed and it compared favourably with a pie and mash shop.

It will come as no surprise that this pie scores highly enough to become a 'Pierate Recommended' pie. I wouldn't hesitate to have one again. They are now also being served at Milwall Football Club meaning this pie can be added to our football pies list. The most exciting news is that Eel House Pies also do a lot of private hire. Weddings, parties, gigs, whatever the occasion they will do pies and everything (including equipment, staff, etc) for £6 a head (approx, don't quote us on the price). To me that just seems like a total bargain. I am almost tempted to get married just to have the world's most amazing pie reception! Many thanks to Eel House Pies and best of luck to them as they try and maintain this tradition.

Traditional Minced Beef
5.73/7

SJL

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Goddards at Greenwich - Pie Reviews

Goddards are an important name in the history of London Pie & Mash shops. They have been suppliers of pies to various establishments for a long time as well as having their own shop in Greenwich. They recently moved to new, bigger premises along King William Walk and a couple of Pierateers thought it was about time to pay a visit. After exiting from the hustle and bustle of nearby Greenwich Market my first impressions were very good. There were at least 10 signs outside the shop which said the word ‘PIE’ so we knew we were in the right place. The shop had been done up very well with attractive green livery in a new, old fashioned style.

See our article on traditional Pie & Mash Shops to understand more about the history of these quaint old establishments

Upon venturing inside, we found it was very quiet, probably because it was a bit early for lunch. However, it is never too early for pie and an 11am pie is nothing unusual for a Pierateer. It was good to find that it is never too early for pies at Goddards, they seem to sell pies all day long. The inside of the shop had classic pie and mash shop features. The walls were covered in white tiles and narrow wooden booths were fixed to the wall. These seemed very inviting, like they were asking you to slide in (with a pie in one hand of course). Despite having been recently converted it looked like the shop had been a pie and mash shop for years.

When we came to order it became apparent that this wasn’t just a standard pie and mash shop. Traditionally they just serve shallow minced beef pies which are shortcrust pastry cooked in a pie dish. I don’t know quite how they are made but there is something about these pies which is different to any other pies, particularly the pastry. The tradition dictates that there is also builders tea available as well as jellied eels (the pies were originally filled with eel). The pies must be served with mash and liqour (a kind of parsley sauce). I am a great believer in tradition but the modern pie lover can be quite discerning. As we have demonstrated at Pierate there are so many pies available on the market. This array of choice and completion has forced Goddards to expand it’s range. They have a range of pies, puff pastry, quite tall and in an array of flavours. It was ins-pie-ring as we looked over the counter to see such a sea of pies to choose from. They also sell such modern things as caffe latte, which you wouldn’t be able to get in some Pie & Mash Shops which try and be more traditional. But with Costa Coffee attempting to take over Britain it is clear that it is futile to resist the desire of modern consumers for their hot, milky coffee fix. Both of our reviewers took the op-pie-tunity to accompany their pies with lattes, as if the pie wasn’t already calorific enough (we call this healthy combination: "pie-lattes").

The choice of how to have your pie and mash was quite dazzling simply by varying the quantities of the two basic components of the meal. You could have pie and mash, double pie and mash, pie and double mash or even (would you believe it) triple pie and mash. Is triple pie and mash something that one person is supposed to eat? Neither of us felt up to that particular challenge (although perhaps another time!). There is even the option of the ever popular pie, mash and eels. Pierateer SJL went for the Traditional Minced Beef pie & mash shop pie with an Apple pie for later. Pierateer TJP decided to see how the Steak and Ale pie fared compared to the competition.

Traditional Minced Beef
This pie looked the part, the classic, traditional shape afloat on a sea of parsley liquor. It was in good condition except a touch too much carbon to the upper surface. The sauce did a good job of covering this though. The liquor seeped into the very being of the pie making it hard to tell where one began and the other ended. I just can’t get enough of this particular parsley sauce which I think is why I am such a lover of these quaint establishments. In this case the parsley in the liquor was a bit dry, but it is just the pie which is being rated here.
The pastry was soft on the outside with a bit of hardness in the middle. Ordinarily this could be quite a good combination but it seemed to not quite work in this instance because this pie was pretty cold upon serving. This left the pastry seeming overly Chewy.
The filling was decent, a meaty flavour which certainly pleased my tasted buds. Plenty of gravy meant quite a liquid consistency but it wasn’t wanting for lack of mince. It was sans air gap which is always good to see, but badly needed for this pie, being of the shallow variety. At just £3.70 for pie and mash in a London pie establishment this was very Cheap compared it to the modern equivalents such as Square Pie which will set you back around £6. At the end of the day, that is what these are, a cheap working man’s pie and it was a decent effort. I would get it again if only I could be sure that it would be warmer next time as this sadly left me feeling cold to Goddards Pie & Mash.

Traditional Minced Beef (Goddards)
4.19/7

SJL

Steak and Ale

I had the steak and ale pie. Costing £2.70, the pie was cheap for eating in. It arrived in good condition, topped with a nice smooth covering of silky gravy. However, the top of the pie did look a little over-browned, as you can see in the part of the little not covered with gravy.



Upon opening the pie for a cross-sectional view, I could see that the pie was packed to capacity with very little airgap. By this point, the lid of the pie had gone a little soggy with the gravy and therefore a bit chewy. I've found that some pies are able to hold their crispiness well even in the presence of gravy, but this pie seemed to struggle a bit here. Despite this, the pastry still seemed to be good quality. I could also see some good chunks of steak within the content.

As with any pie, the truth is in the eating. As I ate this pie, I couldn't help noticing a rather strange texture. I think this photo documents the texture of the pie quite well - especially the bits of content lying loose on the plate at the bottom of the picture. It was almost...jammy. Like how I'd imagine steak jam to taste and feel. For me, this was a bit unappealing and lost the pie marks. I left some of the jammy bits behind on the plate after finishing the pie.



Overall, this pie is a decent price, with decent quality of pastry and is packed almost to capacity, but the content of the pie let it down. The consistency and texture of the content wasn't quite like anything I'd experienced before with a steak and ale pie.

See how we rate our pies on the Seven Cs
Colour - 4.1/7
Condition - 4.5/7
Cheapness - 5/7
Content - 2.9/7
Capacity - 5.5/7
Consistency - 2.5/7
Chewiness - 4.5/7

Steak and Ale (Goddards)
Score: 4.14/7
TJP

Apple

The apple pie at Goddards was unlike any that I have ever had before. The filling was your standard chunks of apple in a sweet sauce but the pastry was hard and a bit salty in places. However, it wasn't hard in a way which made the pastry dry, just a bit firm to the bite. It was quite nice actually in terms of texture as it gave you something to sink your teeth into. The saltiness wasn't strong and didn't detract from the balance of flavour.
The apple was good, it maintained plenty of firmness and was in satisfyingly big pieces. There wasn't too much sweetness but plenty of flavour. It was a nice brown Colour, dusted in sugar although strangely smooth in appearance. The Capacity could have been bigger as this was a fairly shallow pie but for £2.30 to eat in with custard or ice cream this was very Cheap, especially for London. It worked well even though I chose to have it without any additional custard or ice cream which is the sign of a good apple pie.

Apple Pie (Goddards)
5.13/7

SJL

So a bit of a mixed bag from Goddard, it was worth the visit to see how this famous name fared and the restaurant certainly felt the part of a traditional pie and mash shop. However perhaps that is just it, this is in quite a touristy area and while we were there it was mainly tourists who came in. The pies are not bad and there is an impressively big range but in our opinion we think you can get better traditional pie and mash elsewhere.

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I've come here to Clerkenwell, London, to sample a pie from Clarks Pie and Mash Shop.

It looks to be quite a traditional pie joint, with a brown and green painted shop front that promotes the sale of eels and pie & mash. A man hovers outside. He is on the phone, and appears to poke his head in and out of the door several times.

Once inside, I see a hand-written price list on the wall. It seems to be quite non-specific - giving the price for 'one small pie and mash', 'one large pie and mash', 'two large pies and mash', and 'eels'. There doesn't seem to be a list of pie fillings that I can see anywhere. When I am served, I ask for a 'large pie' in the hope that I'll be given a list of fillings I can choose from. I am not. I am instead just served,  at an acceptable cost of £2.20, one non-specific 'large pie' in a take-away container. Well that's fine, I think, perhaps they only do one type of filling. And then as I left the shop, it struck me - perhaps this pie joint is so traditional that it is actually an eel pie?

I cut open the pie just to check. Luckily it doesn't look like any eel I've ever eaten (eel is actually quite nice, but I just wasn't in the mood for that sort of thing today) - it looks like it is probably minced beef. Potentially.

As you can see from the picture, the pie looks a little strange to me. The pastry, rather than being flaky, feels to me a bit rubbery and looks quite anaemic and flabby. The base of the pie is suffering from what Mary Berry would call "soggy bottom", and although the top crust of the pie is firm, it is not crispy and has no crunch. I also feel the pie looks quite small for a 'large' pie - but perhaps the 'large' actually referred to the mash (which I didn't order) rather than the pie itself? The condition the pie was presented to me wasn't great - in an oversized polystyrene box. What some of the pie vendors these days are doing are selling their pies in clever cardboard boxes - a much nicer presentation I think.

I am still none the wiser about the content of this pie - but this can often lead to a pleasant surprise! But unfortunately I wasn't pleasantly surprised in this case. The filling - I'm not sure, some kind of miscellaneous minced meat, likely candidate beef - looked and smelled a bit like cat-food to me. I know that sounds a little harsh, but I really couldn't get this thought out of my head. I'm quite glad I didn't order two pies, which I was considering, because even after one pie I felt a little queasy. I had to stop by at a local newsagent to buy a strongly-flavoured fruity soft drink to remove the cat-foody taste from my mouth. For a shop that specialises in 'pie & mash', I would have expected much much more. This was just my opinion though, I have heard good things about this shop.

2.3/7
TJP

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L. Manze - London Pie & Mash Shop Review

Eel and Pie Houses have been providing traditional London pies since the 19th century and although less of the historic shops can be found today the Pierateers certainly weren't about to let this noble tradition pass them by. The L. Manze shop on Walthamstow High Street came highly regarded as one of the oldest having been established in 1928. The Manze family are a famous name within the Eel and Pie world having 3 different members of the family still with shops bearing their names today.

See our article on traditional Pie & Mash Shops to understand more about the history of these quaint old establishments

It is so unexpected to see such a lovely old fashioned eatery stuck inbetween the pound shops of Walthamstow. Upon entering it is like stepping back in time. There is a lovely marble and tile interior with narrow wooden booths. It is good to see a healthy stack of empty pie dishes on the counter and also a sign saying they had sold out of eels that day, clearly business is good. Although saddened that I couldn't grab myself some jellied eel that is a story for another day as of course I had my eyes on the pies.
I grab myself a mince pie and settle down in a booth. I'm not sure I have ever sat in such an uncomfortable seat, they were so very narrow it seems hard to imagine they were designed for real people. Fortunately for Manze's 'comfortable' is not one of the 7 Cs and this will not affect their rating.


But the real question is, do these pies provide anything special? While the offer of jellied eel is special, are their pies any different from the local chippy? The answer is most emphatically yes. The pies are served with mash potato and a thick parsley sauce which they call 'liquor' and is allegedly made using eel stock. I loved the liquor and appreciated the uniqueness of the marine flavouring. The pastry itself had a crunchiness around the edges and a crispness in the middle which turned gooey and flaky in the centre. They must use pastry and cooking techniques that I haven't come across before because it really was different. However this worked in it's favour because it isn't often that a Pierateer finds something unique and I loved it. The meat seemed to be consistently good quality with plenty of gravy. Overall I think every pie lover should take the opportunity to try one of these pies if they visit London. If not you can also order online from M. Manze, a separate shop originating from the same Manze family who sell similar pies.

On the way out of this historic establishment I noticed they had put saw dust on the floor. This doesn't happen in my local McDonald's or any other eatery I frequent so I questioned the motivation behind it. They said it was done as tradition and it soaked up spills. This really summed up the experience for me, unashamedly traditional. Please find a pie and mash shop near you and keep this original 'fast food' alive.

Traditional Minced Beef (L. Manze)
5.96/7 

SJL

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