Founded in 1956, you would think that Spears Restaurant and Pie Shop would modernize with time, but that’s the thing, that’s part of their charm. Spears Restaurant and Pie Shop at one time had 6 locations in Wichita, which attests to their popularity in Wichita. However, when we suggested Spears Restaurant and Pie Shop for lunch, we received polarizing responses. You either loved their pie or you never wanted to eat there again, and I wanted to find out why. To throw a wrench in my research, I do not like pie.
We walked into to Spears Restaurant and Pie Shop on a sleepy Friday around noon and we were taken back in time immediately with the decor. Spears Restaurant and Pie Shop went for an old-timey general store feel and made sure you knew that they had pie. It reminded me of a less commercial Cracker Barrel; I feel like Cracker Barrel also elicits polarizing opinions, but that’s a post for another day.
We were greeted promptly and seated in a cozy booth. The leather of the booth seat appeared to be original and I commented that “they do not make them like they used to”; I have been in reasonably quality restaurants where the leather of the booth seat sagged or ripped with age and it’s just not a good look. I took a peek around at some of the other patrons and we were the youngest group there by several years. I set my expectations at that point, we were either going to receive cafeteria food or food so delicious that people keep coming back year after year.
We ordered a range of items from the menu, including their club sandwich, chili burger, and baked cod, pumpkin bread, and two flavors of pie. All in all, we felt like the food met our standard expectations for the description of the item and we ate until we were stuffed. I decided that the food fell along the lines of better-than-average cafeteria food that might keep people coming back year after year. My meal reminded me of school cafeteria food, but I remember enjoying school cafeteria food as a kid and Spears Restaurant and Pie Shop definitely brought me back to that time. Take that how you will.
As Spears Restaurant and Pie Shop holds a reputation for delicious pie, my colleagues had to save room to order pie. Spears Restaurant and Pie Shop offers a giant menu of pies, but they decided on banberry (vanilla cream pie with banana and strawberry) and french silk. I dabble in pie occasionally, but it’s not my first choice of dessert, so I left it up to them to decide the verdict of deliciousness. It was clear that the star of the show at Spears Restaurant and Pie Shop was the pie.
Spears Restaurant and Pie Shop can appeal to a diverse group of people and just needs the opportunity to shine. I do not necessarily think that it’s bad of a restaurant to stick to what they know and do it well; I would rather eat a standard restaurant that does something well than an experimental restaurant that does something poorly. While I do not think that I would eat at Spears Restaurant and Pie Shop regularly, I could see why peopl
Spears Restaurant and Pie Shop
4323 W Maple St, Wichita, KS 67209
316-943-2783
Monday-Saturday 6:30AM-8:30PM
Sunday 8:00AM-8:00PM