Pi Day

As you nerds may know, last Wednesday was 3/14 or Pi Day. I decided to honor the mathematical constant with a little pie for dinner. Instead of visiting my usual spot in North Hollywood, Republic of Pie, I stopped by the more renown Pie Hole in Downtown.

The first thing I noticed was the logo was jarringly similar to the Republic of Pie.

Which one is the evil one?

I asked the Pie Hole owner if they had anything to do with the NoHo store. He sucked his breath in through his teeth and muttered "Yeahhh the owners were coming in here a lot before they opened..." I glanced over the menu and was shocked by the similarities between the two. Both had sweet and savory options. Both had their own form of mac n cheese (Republic has it in a pie, Pie Hole in a turnover). I was quite disappointed to find my beloved pie cafe was just a a knock off.


That is until I tried the food itself.


Even though the Republic of Pie is a copycat in some aspects, they kicked the Pie Hole's ass in taste. From the Hole I tried the Mexican chocolate and maple custard cream.

Pie Hole's Maple Custard Cream pie

The maple custard was okay, just a tad too sweet and the crust had a gummy consistency to it. The Mexican chocolate was disappointing. I was expecting a rich chocolate complimented with a hint of spice. Instead I got a dark sticky mess consisting of overpowering espresso poorly mixed with cinnamon and too dark chocolate that left a bitter taste lingering in my mouth. On top of everything, they used a graham cracker crust that contrasted too sharply with the heaviness of the pie.

Republic of Pie's Mac n Cheese pie

On the other hand, everything I've tried from Republic of Pie has been wonderful. The mac n cheese pie is gooey and stringy, like a cartoon pizza. The lemon cream pie is wonderfully light in body and the perfect balance of tart and sweet, reminiscent of my Granny Finch's recipe.

The improvements don't stop there. The interior of the Pie Hole was stark and minimalist. But not the attractive kind of minimalist, just really...bare.

The environment at Republic of  Pie is warm and inviting, complete with skylights and soft antique leather furniture. There's even a frickin' TREE!

A safe haven for hopeful screenwriters in NoHo

Bringing it back to the mathematical roots of this hallowed Pi Day: Σ = RoP > PH