Elaine's Pies

They say you shouldn't go shopping on an empty stomach, and it's probably true. I ducked into Dickson this lunchtime after a meeting, just to get some cash and pick up a couple of things. My list was tiny, but wandering around the supermarket at midday with the sweet smells of the bakery in the air, it was quite a challenge not to buy too much. I did end up with too much bread, though I suppose I can freeze some. And I have some of those microwavable soups and two boxes of cereal. Oh well, could have be worse, I could have got half a dozen choc iced donuts for a mere $3, for instance...

Anyway, I was hungry, and there was Elaine's. I don't know who Elaine is, but her pies are brilliant. The street address is an unhelpful "Shop 1, Dickson Shopping Centre". If you know Dickson, the shop is in the block next to Woollies and across from the library, just on the corner of the building with the Baker's Delight outlet. It's a simple sandwich bar and pie shop. They bake their own pies, pasties and sausage rolls.

The pies are huge domed affairs. I took a quick snap with my phone before digging in; it's not the best but I was in no mood to wait. The pastry is a simple short crust, competent but not dramatically special, and the filling is excellent. Huge thick chunks of steak and kidney in this case, in a tasty not too liquid gravy. Elaine's has a range of pies - minced beef, steak and mushroom, chicken, potato topped. There are vegetarian and meat pasties and sausage rolls, too. I've had a few and they've all been good, even though I actually don't like Elaine's sausage rolls that much. This is not because they are bad, but because I have odd tastes. They are too big and meaty for me; I prefer my sausage rolls smaller, milder and with more breadcrumb. But the flaky pastry on them is very good.

Elaine's serves the breakfast and lunchtime crowd at Dickson from Monday to Saturday. If you buy a pie, the sauces are there on the counter for free - no prissy little extra cost packets - and they will offer you a plastic knife and fork. If you're not heading straight home, take them. These pies are too big and too full of filling to eat one handed. They are around $5, which may seem a little pricy, but they are well worth it.