Rite of Pastry Passage

Mince, steak, chicken and potato top pies are amongst a few of the popular pastry to be sampled in a two-week tasting marathon undertaken by Vancouver Courier reporter Michael Kissinger. According to a 2005 Statistics New Zealand Household Economics Survey, New Zealanders eat a total of 68 million pies a year. That’s more than 16 pies for every man, woman and child. Kissinger stops in at the Ponsonby Rugby Club where pie-maker Tony “who calls me ‘bro’ a lot” urges him “to explore the outer limits of New Zealand pies, namely nacho, Tandoori and seafood pies.” “I resolved to meet him half way. I would try to eat one pie every two days and sample as many flavours as my stomach would permit. But most importantly, I would let pies shape and colour my gastronomical journey of New Zealand and self-discovery.”