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San Diego Chicken Pie Shop - Unironically Good
2007 review by George Caye
The Chicken Pie Shop of San Diego: it's the actual name of the restaurant and the experience is pulled off entirely without irony and will make a chicken pot pie lover out of you.
I tried to find the irony when a friend invited us, it's one of those nervous moments like when the first time you go to Reno and see one of those guys with smoke creased unhappy faces bent over gambling tables and into their drink and you try to make it mean something funny but it just doesn't.
The chicken pie shop is like that.
The table next to ours consisted of a family of three (father, mother, little kid) and what seemed to be the father's dad. The dad was like one of those WW2 vets with jolly face and heavy set and tattoos. The father had long hair and a wrestling shirt, as well as tattoos. He also was eating/slurping his gravy out of the little dish that they give you if you ask for extra gravy. Then the father later ate his pie with his hand, polishing it off in a couple of bites. All without irony, mind you.
The chicken pie shop is like that. The wait staff are mostly aged 40-60 and look like they've been doing it awhile.
They only take cash and have a sign on their front door telling you so and they have an old school cash register with those punch buttons and flying number signs, I think, maybe I made that up.
Their food wins out, even the greens. Don't even look at the menu, just order their pot pie dinner/lunch special. You get a chicken/turkey mix pot pie, mashed potatoes, greens (all with gravy), a side of cole slaw and dessert for like $5.50. All done without irony.
OK, I didn't eat the cole slaw but someone said it tasted like KFC slaw, and they liked it, for what that's worth. The pie was fantastic, the meat and gravy and peas and little carrots and perfectly cooked wafer crust all mixed up with their delicious gravy and mashed potatoes. The greens were even good, something I would never cook at home and would only usually eat if they were in a curry or Mexican sauce or something.
The dessert was good too, I had the chocolate cream pie.
The entire meal cost $5.50. You can't find that anywhere.
Drinks are extra but they were attentive with their water refills (free!).
Listen, to tell you the truth I wanted to hate this place, I did, but I just couldn't and neither can you, unless you are vegetarian. I couldn't hate it, there was a table of special-education kids led by a teacher, plenty of white hair hunched over their pies in carribbean blue booths and the ubiquitous plastic cups of water that you find in diners all over the country. The food was good too. You can't hate that. You can't even smirk at it, so wipe that all-knowing shit grin (yes, shit grin) off your ugly face and make sure you hit the atm beforehand.
As for irony, well the chicken pie shop beat it, trumped it solidly. By irony you know what I mean, those retarded hipsters looking for a thrill who hang out at Red Fox Room thinking it's authentic, whereas the true piano bar is eternally at Albee's beef Inn, and they frown on irony there. Check it out. You'll see what I'm talking about.
eat here now:
Chicken Pie Shop San Diego
2633 El Cajon Blvd
San Diego, CA 92104
(619) 295-0156
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