Four & Twenty Blackbirds (Baked in a Pie)

Sunday was our first day in New York where we were free from running around Brooklyn to view as many flats apartments as possible. After a jog around Prospect Park with the rest of the Brooklynites we headed down 3rd avenue to grab a slice of Sunday morning pie at Four & Twenty Blackbirds.

The pies available that day were scrawled on a blackboard above the tiny kitchen at the back of the café, and the smell of freshly baked pastry and summer fruits filled the space. People nipped in and out to buy something to take away, others sat working at the communal table, and some slowly sipped their coffee and flicked through the Sunday papers, but there was clearly one reason everybody was here: for a slice of pie.

Four and Twenty Blackbirds is run by two sisters, and their first café sits in the industrial-turning-residential neighbourhood of Gowanus. The menu of fresh pies changes every day, the fruits change with every season: there's no reason not to go at least once a week to try their newest pie creation.

B and I ordered (and then fought over every mouthful of) a slice of salted caramel apple pie (which we may have had a couple more slices of since our first visit) and a slice of peach and raspberry crumble pie. We couldn't have asked for a better introduction to the American world of pie, and we doubt we'll every try any pie which tastes better than this. Crunchy, flaky pastry; sweet, jammy fruit; and a perfect splodge of freshly whipped cream on the side. We're convinced that this pie and a strong black coffee is what every Sunday morning breakfast should consist of.

Four & Twenty Blackbirds, 439 3rd Avenue, Brooklyn, NY, 11215