A brand-new food stall specialising in hand-pressed pies is to open in Belfast’s Common Market.
Pie Eyed was created by brothers Conor and Aaran McGrath after they discovered a gap in the market for well-made, high-quality pies.
In 2018 the duo left Northern Ireland and spent the next five years living in Australia and New Zealand. It was here that they witnessed the size, popularity and quality of the pie scene and decided to bring it back to Belfast.
Speaking to The Irish News, Conor said the main aim of the business is to “change people’s opinions on pies.”
“From what we can gather it’s probably the earliest form of fast food, pie and mash goes back to the 1800s but I think over the years it’s been neglected.
“So, we’re essentially trying to revamp an old classic, from my own perspective the pies that have been on offer here at home compared to the likes of Australia and New Zealand are pretty boring.
“We want to jazz them up a bit and try and come up with different flavours while also serving up good quality versions of some of the classics so that there’s something for everyone.”
Having only set up the enterprise in May last year Conor, who has a background in marketing, admitted that things have progressed “a lot quicker” than they had initially anticipated.
“November was our first gig when we did the Twilight Market at St George’s and we didn’t really know if it was something people were going to like but the response has honestly been insane.
“We don’t really have any previous experience in terms of cooking we’re just very lucky that Aaran is a dab hand in the kitchen and can turn his hand to pies.”
Following their success at the Twilight Market the pair also did a short stint in east Belfast’s Banana Block over the Christmas period where they caught the attention of Common Market.
“Common Market actually reached out to us - I think someone from there had come down and didn’t manage to get their hands on a pie because we’d sold out,” Conor described.
“But they really liked the branding and what we’re about so they offered us a stall.
“It’s been a very quick turnaround because they wanted us in sooner rather than later so we’ve only really had around four weeks to get it sorted.
“There’s been a lot of sleepless nights trying to get it the way we want it but it’s all part of the process.”
Connor hopes having a stall in the iconic market will help the brand reach new customers and provide more inspiration for new and unique flavours.
“It would be silly to say there’s no nerves about opening but we’re really excited,” he added.
“We really want to revamp opinions on pies, have a bit of craic and create a nice atmosphere for people.
“I love having a chat with customers and finding out what kind of flavours and things they’d like to see in the future.
“And we’ll be completely honest with them we’re only new and we’re still learning but I think this opportunity and experience will help us build on our reputation and just get better and better.”
