Follow Me Foodie to The Sweeter Part of The Mission District in San Francisco!
The Mission: Bakeries, Pastries & Pies… in The Mission.
See – The Mission: Tacos… in The Mission.
The Mission District isn’t necessarily known for its bakeries, pastries and pies, but there are several in the area – old and new. Being that I’m a huge fan of this category, I was not going to miss out in Follow Me Foodie to San Francisco. I came primarily to explore the Mexican food and specifically the taco scene, but the bakeries were on the itinerary from the start.
I did not even have a list narrowed down and I was playing it by ear. The whole Mission District is rather walkable, and it was hard not to stop at every eatery let alone bakery. Unfortunately I did not have enough time to try all the Latin bakeries, which is another category on its own. I actually regret not doing that because who knows how long they will be around for? I already mentioned the issue of gentrification, so I hope these Latin mom and pop bakeries are not displaced or forced to close.
I had a limited time to explore the bakeries, pastries and pies in The Mission. I’m not even obsessed with pies, but there just happened to be so many places specializing in them or offering them. Pies were a “food trend” from a couple years ago, so I wasn’t surprised and they’re still going strong in San Francisco. New places have moved on from the pies though, and I had to try the “old news” bakeries and the new ones to get a better idea of what The Mission bakery and dessert scene had to offer. I wish I had more time to explore, but I tried what I could and hit some worth revisiting spots!
To see more about The Mission District see – Follow Me Foodie to The Mission District in San Francisco (exploring tacos)!
Follow Me Foodie Legend
No diamond – Not recommend (Under 29%)
♦ – Okay, not necessary to try. (30-49%)
♦♦ – Good, with some hits and misses. (50-69%)
♦♦♦ – Very good, dining itinerary worthy. (70-89%)
♦♦♦♦ – Excellent, make a trip out for it. (90-100%)
♦♦♦♦♦ – Follow Me Foodie Must Try! (Bonus marks! 100%+)
1: Poor 2: OK 3: Good 4: Very good 5: Excellent 6: FMF Must Try!
Follow Me Foodie to Bakeries, Pastries & Pies… in The Mission.
Restaurant: Mission Pie
Cuisine: Bakery/Desserts/Pastries/Pies
Last visited: May 7, 2013
Location: San Francisco, CA (Mission)
Address: 2901 Mission St
Phone: +1 415-282-1500
Transit: 24th St. Mission
Twitter: @MissionPie
Price Range: $10 or less
Mission Pie caught onto the “pie trend” early and opened in 2007. I hadn’t heard much about it, but after tacos at El Gallo Giro Taco Truck and La Taqueria, it was time for something sweet. This wasn’t on my original itinerary but it happened to be just a few stores away from La Taqueria, so why not?
It is a neighbourhood cafe serving old fashioned sweet and savoury pies as well as other casual fare. They source from local farmers and their menus are seasonal and for the health conscious. Their pies have less sugar, use whole wheat flour and they offer a couple vegan options. It is very home style and a bit hippie or granola, so it is nothing fancy, but it’s affordable and good for all ages. It’s a charming pay at cashier restaurant open all day until 10pm.
Banana Cream Pie – 3/6 (Good)
- $4/slice, $22/whole pie
- This is their signature pie that is available all year and it came highly recommended.
- The filling and cream part was fine, but the crust tasted stale and a bit cardboard-like.
- I am not sure if it was stale, or if it was due to the whole wheat flour used.
- The hand rolled all-butter crust is 1/3 white and 2/3 California grown whole wheat pastry flour.
- I couldn’t taste that buttery flavour I enjoy in a pie crust, and if I didn’t know they used whole wheat flour I would have thought it was stale.
- It wasn’t a super banana-y banana cream pie, but there were chunks of sliced firm banana sandwiched between vanilla pudding.
- The vanilla had a few specs of vanilla beans so I wouldn’t have minded a bit more, but it was nice and not too sweet.
- The crust is as important as the filling, so I was only into half of the pie and I just really wish the crust came through.
- Another great Banana Cream Pie I tried was from Emril’s in New Orleans – see Emeril’s Banana Cream Pie.
Menu features/highlights: Popular favourites are the Banana Cream Pie and the coconut macaroons, but I didn’t try the macaroons.
Pros: Clean, comfortable, fast, healthy options, local ingredients, good variety, affordable, family friendly
Cons: The signature item wasn’t too impressive and the healthy aspect sacrificed the flavour a bit.
Tips: Grab a taco at La Taqueria just a few stores away.
Overall Rating: n/a, didn’t try enough
To be continued…
… sneak peek…
Coconut Cream Pie & Mixed Berry Frangipane Tart
Matcha, Vanilla & Coconut Cake
