Will Work for Pie

There’s a little slice of heaven at the Pie-O-Neer Cafe in Pie Town, New Mexico and we’ve had a fondness for it ever since our first visit in 2008.

Pie-O-Neer Cafe Pie Town New Mexico
The Pie-O-Neer Revisited 2015

Although we’ve enjoyed many offbeat places in our travels, only two are so special they give us the feeling that we’ve just steered our rig right into the center of the universe: Luckenbach Texas being one and the Pie-O-Neer being the other. Recently we made a special stop at this favorite haunt when I donned an apron and became . . .

Pie Lady for a Day

Pie-O-Neer, Pie Town New Mexico
Pie Lady for a day in Pie Town New Mexico

Each bite of magical homemade pie from Kathy Knapp’s kitchen is its own little unforgettable piegasm. After 20 years of being a relatively obscure but well-loved roadside attraction, TV personalities like Bill Geist and documentary makers have finally noticed and now the Pie-O-Neer is a foodie destination.

Each weekend Kathy’s magical pies draws hundreds of tourists from far away places, all in search of their own little slice of heaven.

Best pies ever Pie-O-Neer New Mexico

As Pie-O-Neer fanatics, we return as often as we can. Recently Jim was lucky enough to become the go-to guy for maintaining the cafe’s website. “Will work for Pie Credit!” he likes to say, but Kathy and her partner Stanley insist on greenback compensation too.

A few weeks ago when we told Kathy we were coming through to collect on our pie credit, she wanted to know if I’d like to be “Pie Lady for a Day” and help out on a busy holiday weekend.

It’s been a while since I waited tables, but I didn’t think twice. So with my comfy shoes and a fabulous borrowed apron, I spent one afternoon as a “pie runner” delivering slices of ecstasy to drooling customers.

Pie-O-Neer Cafe Piew Town New Mexico
Waitress duty memories returning.

Over twenty years have passed since I waited tables and I was nervous at first, but by noon I was reacquainted with the various nuances of waitressing and having a blast doing it.

In the meantime, Jim helped out doing odd jobs in the kitchen which gave him flashbacks of his own days as a waiter.

Jim preps pies PIe Town New Mexico

As for my table service, I know it wasn’t flawless but I sure had a damn good time trying. I can’t recall the last time left a job smiling after a long hard day.

Have a Piegasm in New Mexico

How could you not have fun in a tiny rural roadside cafe, surrounded by happy people who journeyed hundreds of miles to experience their own piegasms?

Pie-O-Neer Cafe Pie Town New Mexco
The Ladies of Pie Town

Throughout the day we indulged in several types of fresh, hot pie right from the oven. With every delicious bite, my fantasies about losing weight from all that running around disappeared. Still, I didn’t mind one bit. How often do you get to sample gourmet pies right out of the oven?

Pie-O-Neer PIe Town New Mexico

When the long, busy day was over, Kathy and Stanley generously showered us with gifts. But that’s not unusual for them, because they treat all of their employees like family. Their kindness is just one of the magical ingredients that keeps people coming back to the Pie-O-Neer.

Kathy and Stanley have considered hiring workampers to do what we did, only for long-term arrangements for several months in the year. The only problem is: nobody seems to want to work that hard. Hiring dedicated employees is difficult when you’re 1 hour from anything. But they persevere and their hard work has paid off.

Kathy, Stanley, PIe-O-Neer Cafe
Kathy and Stanley from the Pie-O-Neer

As full-time RVers, we keep our wheels turning because there are so many neat places in the country to experience. Still, only a handful leave you with a yearning to return again and again. For us, the Pie-O-Neer is definitely one of those magical must-dos that we’ll always go out of our way to revisit. . . . and don an apron too!

7 thoughts on “Will Work for Pie”

  1. Can you believe we had to skip it after all our discussion? We dallied too long at the Ballon Fiesta and then had to book it to Arizona to catch a flight changing our route. It’s still on my radar and I’m determined to make a stop. I’ll work for a day if I can sample all the pies, too!

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  2. I took my first 200-mile roadtrip to the Pie-O-Neer last month and had an amazing slice of New Mexico Apple. The pie (and the drive) made for a wonderful day! Hope to get up there a couple more times before I leave Bosque in February. What a thrill you guys must have had actually getting to work there for a day!

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    • Oh Lynne I’m so glad you got to go! Had no idea you are in Bosque, it would have been nice to meet up. Next time you go to Pie Town, stop at the VLA if you haven’t already, it’s well worth the visit. Enjoy!

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