It's an oldie but a goodie - the humble potato top pie has taken out the top prize in this year's Supreme Pie Award competition at a gala event in Auckland last night.
The potato top is a new category in the annual awards and the winning pie, baked by Napier supermarket New World Greenmeadows, beat more than 5000 other entries.
The pie was described by the judges as having the "perfect ratio between a flavoursome filling, a super creamy potato top and a delicious pastry shell".
The 2015 Supreme Pie Awards winner - the humble PotatoTop Pie Photo: SUPPLIED - AMG Group
New World Greenmeadows owner Iain Beaton conceded his baker Shane Forster's creation didn't look like a world-beater, but as they say, the proof of the pudding is in the eating.
"You know, the specialness is in the taste," Mr Beaton told Morning Report. "They're all judged on appearance and technical ability and then obviously the taste is what gets you through at the end of the day."
Mr Beaton admitted the higher-brow aspects of pie judging eluded him. "I mean I just eat pies probably like you do, but it has that just no nonsense approach to pies without the frilly flavours and everything like that.
"But the magic's probably in the potato, because that's where the potato pie has to make its difference I guess - the creaminess of it, and what's in it.
"It's a new category so it sort of appealed to everyone's nostalgia I guess, thinking hey, this is probably undervalued, and we've done a great job in producing a classic potato top pie."
2015 Supreme Pie Award-winning baker Shane Forster (R) and New World Greenmeadows owner Iain Beatton Photo: SUPPLIED - AMG Group
And the big win is already having a positive impact on the supermarket bakery's sales. Mr Beaton said the new top pastry concoction's are selling like hot cakes - or rather, hot pies.
"Yeah no, we got our bakers, we've got extra staff coming in today because we didn't know we'd won the supreme award obviously. We knew we had won a category so we would prep for that but we got a fair bit going on today, yeah."
"Kiwis, we tend to sort of have this attachment to pies and I've already had texts from my mates who say, y'know, they usually go and seek out the pie winners when they're announced and all that sort of stuff, so there are certainly people lining up this morning to have a go, and try them out."
It's just the second year the Napier supermarket has entered the competition. And Mr Beaton won't rule out a pay rise for his baker following his success. "Well that's probably a question that him and I need to talk about... it won't be free pies I guess, he's probably going to see enough of those!"
