A Word of Kindness Is Better Than A Fat Pie - A Tale of Two Banana Cream Pies in New York

It's Another Installment of "The Brandy Chronicles" - things to do and see in New York City!
 
Hello LilyOnTheLam.Com Readers:

Happy Saturday!  I am writing this on Friday (from your distant past - oooooooooooooohhh waaaahoooooooooo [this is the sound I expect a ghost to make]).  

By the time you read this, I will probably be sound asleep - sleeping off a Ma Peche by David Chang food coma.  (Side Note:  Ma Peche is a midtown NYC restaurant in the Momofuku chain.  David Chang is the Chef/Owner.  I am obsessed with Momofuku.  Their Ssam Bar, Noodle Bar and Milk Bar are "must visits" for any New York City visit.)

I checked my Twitter account Friday morning.  The restaurant Veselka Bowery (also a "must visit" - see my blog post "The Best Desserts in New York City") had tweeted the Russian proverb "A Word of Kindness is Better Than A Fat Pie" and then accompanied that with "(Still we love a good piece of fat pie.)"  Their tweet included a picture of a cup of coffee with Veselka's own banana cream pie tart.  

I found this Tweet interesting for many reasons:

1) Because I love anything PIE (do a search on this blog and be horrified at how many times "pie" is mentioned), 

2) Because when young I studied much Russian history and had never heard this pie proverb, 

3) Because I love Veselka Bowery and its sister restaurant the original Veselka and most importantly: 

4) I had Veselka's Banana Cream Pie last night after seeing "Lucky Guy" on Broadway.  Obviously Veselka Bowery's Tweets are all about ME.  ;-)   

I gluttonously must admit that I actually had banana cream pie twice yesterday.  Once at lunch and once at dinner.  It's not a crime and I won't be shamed by the likes of you!  

"Pi Day" or "Pie Day" is March 14, to honor Pi as 3.14.  Well in my book, Pie Day was April 4, 2013.  Obviously I'm quite slow in celebrating my mathematics/dessert holidays.  It's not a crime and I won't be shamed by the likes of you x 2!

I started My Own Personal Pie Day (which I believe was the original title to Depeche Mode's hit song now known as "Personal Jesus.") at a restaurant in Williamsburg, Brooklyn, New York "Pies 'N Thighs."  

First off, I celebrate any establishment with miscellaneous abbreviations in its name.  I am reminded of when Miss LM and I were in NYC and saw the beacon of headwear "Wigs + Plus."  (That name is mathematical magic!)

Second, I celebrate any establishment with "Pies" in its name.  

Third, I celebrate any establishment with "Banana Cream Pie" on its menu.  I don't care if it's "Joe's Auto Body Repair + Waterboarding 'N Stuff" - I will be there!

Pies 'N Thighs is a Southern comfort food haven in the middle of Williamsburg.  Since moving to Florida, I have become a Southern food fan "gourmand."  I usually try to stick to Southern food served in the South.  Northern versions tend to be as sad and unappealing as wallpaper paste masquerading as grits.  But the allure of BANANA CREAM PIE - one of my top favorite pies - convinced me to give Pies 'N Thighs a try.

Banana Cream Pie from Pies 'N Thighs

In the looks department, the banana cream pie from Pies 'N Thighs looked like something my Grandmother would have made.  So while it was not going to be winning any international food styling contests, it did exude traditional familial warmth which I think is essential in Southern cooking.  Two fresh vanilla wafers decorated the top - a nod to Southern banana pudding.  

Pies 'N Thighs banana cream pie slice was only half-coated with whipped cream.  I believe this was to not make the vanilla wafers soggy, but for a whipped cream freak like me - I would have liked to see more whipped cream.

The filling was not bad - rustic, a little too overcongealed with chunks of banana.  It was a decent pie filling.  But what I really liked about this pie was the crust.  It was somewhere inbetween a fried cookie and pie crust.  Thicker than your average pie crust.  It was like a marriage between a cookie crumb crust and traditional pastry.  I am not sure what exactly was in that crust but it added a buttery, crunchy component to the Pies 'N Thighs banana cream pie that elevated it beyond it's "not bad" banana filling.

While I wouldn't go back to Pies 'N Thighs solely for the banana cream pie, I would go back for their chicken and waffles and faux boho Brooklyn hipster people watching.  (And I gotta try one of their humongous homemade donuts next time!)

After lunch, I window-shopped in Williamsburg and later that night I went to see the Nora Ephron Broadway play "Lucky Guy" (read about my adventures here).  My Pies 'N Thighs lunch had filled me up that I wasn't hungry again until after the play ended.  Where to eat dinner at 10 p.m. on a Thursday in New York City?  Where else but the 24 hour Ukrainian diner Veselka in the East Village!

I was not surprised at 10 p.m. on a Thursday that Veselka was still almost completely full.  I eagle-eye spotted a stool at their wrap-around diner counter and counted my lucky stars.  It's great to be in a 24 hour city again.  I miss my days in Los Angeles where you could get killer Thai food until 4 a.m. every night.  My only Tampa Bay 24 hour city experience is a trip to Walmart.

I ordered dinner but was stopped mid-bite when the two sassy Asian men sitting across from me ordered a whipped cream laden concoction.  I grabbed my delightful, moderately accented server Arthur and hissed "WHAT IS THAT?"  Arthur looked amused by the cloak and dagger intrigue and said "That's the banana cream pie."  I looked Arthur dead in the eye and said "I am going to need that NOW!"  Arthur grabbed my dinner plate to box up the leftovers and within seconds a banana cream pie tart was sitting in front of me.  I think it's safe to say that Arthur saw a ferocious intensity in my eyes that necessitated quick pie delivery service.

The Banana Cream Pie at Veselka

Unlike the banana cream pie at Pies 'N Thighs, Veselka's banana cream pie was not stingy in the whipped cream department.  A happy, fluffy piping of sweet, fresh-tasting whipped cream anointed this gorgeous little tart.  The filling was silky smooth with just this perfect creamy, thick pudding to lovely banana pieces ratio.  It was like eating velvet if velvet were banana-flavored.  This pie filling was exactly what banana cream pie filling should be.

Unfortunately, then I came upon the crust.  I like to think that I am a physically strong person ... a physically strong person who could not do a pull up to save her life, but a strong person nevertheless.  I could barely wield my knife and fork to break into the granite-like tart pie crust.  The bits I did manage to carve off had too much of a raw-flour taste.  I decided my banana cream pie experience would be much better if I just ate the "innards" of the tart.

My sister Squidge makes some of the best pastry pie crust I have ever had, so perhaps Veselka should hire her to be their Senior Crust Maker Extraordinaire. 

Not strong enough to tackle this crust!

If this were a perfect world, there would be one clear winner in this Tale of Two Banana Cream Pies.  However if this were a perfect world, I would be independently wealthy with a posse of Yorkie puppies who all look like Southern California Puppy Star Misa Minnie.  (Read my blog post: Upping the ante on super-cuteness: the ballad of Misa Minnie here.)  Looking at my adorable, but non-Yorkie puppy cats, I can say that while it is a good world; it is not a perfect world.

If you're looking for the perfect Banana Cream Pie in New York City, I would recommend getting a piece from Pies 'N Thighs and throwing away the filling.  Keep the crust and then fill it with the filling from a Banana Cream Pie tart from Veselka.  By joining the two you will have the most amazing piece of pie and have visited two great neighborhoods in New York - Williamsburg and the East Village.  Pie and two field trips?  That's a win-win-win, in my book! 

While I was eating my Banana Cream Pie at Veselka, Miss LM texted me.  I sent her the two pictures above and confessed that I had eaten banana cream pie twice in one day.  Her response?  "I'm sensing a Banana Cream Pie Tour of New York blog coming ..." and then she inserted a crystal ball emoji.  Well Miss LM get yourself to a psychic phone hotline because YOU ARE CORRECT.

So back to the beginning of this blog post and Veselka Bowery's Russian proverb tweet that "A Word of Kindness is Better Than A Fat Pie."  LilyOnTheLam.Com Reader - I think you are fabulous, wonderful, beautiful and a testament to all humankind.

Now give me some pie. 

September 2013 Update:  I am sad to learn that Veselka Bowery has closed.  However their East Village diner-style location is still open - check it out!

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