Lovett Pies – takeaway/restaurant review

Tucked away in the seemingly shabby but very chic former shipping containers of Cargo in Wapping Wharf, Lovett Pies has just opened its first permanent premises.

On first glance, this little hideaway is easy to miss. Consisting of just two small tables and a tiny counter, it’s definitely a set-up more suited to dining either solo or as a duo, and you certainly couldn’t swing a cat in there.

Although space isn’t this shop’s friend, the simplistic style of the container makes the most of what room there is. The interior has a fresh Scandinavian feel, with industrial style, exposed light bulbs and a wall washed with paint to give the place some colour.

If you’re here early, choose the breakfast slice (£3): sausage, black pudding, beans and smoked bacon, perhaps accompanied by coffee from Bristol roasters Little & Long. 

All the pies here cost £4.50, to eat in if there’s space or to take away, from a company founded in 2011 by two friends who met while working at the Chequers pub in Bath and went into business together four years later.

The vegetarian pies look equally as appetising as the meat options, and they may have swayed me if my inner carnivore hadn’t ordered the chicken, gammon, leek and thyme pie first. 

Other options include beef, ale and blue cheese; lamb, rosemary, garlic, potato and honey; and puy lentil, Welsh rarebit and kale.

To accompany my pie I chose a side of ‘bubble’ (£2.20) and some gravy (75p) to finish off the meal.

It was served in a takeaway box, but the lack of crockery didn’t detract from how delicious the food looked; it merely gave a street food vibe to the experience. 

The pie was a good size, with a ‘C’ for chicken delicately stencilled on the top in poppy seeds.

As I made that all-important first cut into the thick crust, it was full to the brim with big chunks of tender, free range meat. The sauce inside was subtler than expected and so the gravy complimented it nicely by making sure that it wasn’t too dry.

There’s definitely no cutting back on filling here and the portion of bubble was generous too.

Placed into the box with an ice cream scoop, I was momentarily taken back to my school years as the bubble was served. But once I tasted it, all visions of canteen food disappeared.

Far from regular mash, the potato was well seasoned with a mix of savoy cabbage, onion, garlic, cream and other veggie goodness.

Co-founder Phil Roseblade divulged that what gives his bubble its squeak is the way that the veg is cooked off before the potato is added, so that the flavour can really seep in. 

Lovett Pies’ new shop and takeaway is focused around the concept of good, hearty, proper food; with a literary name referencing a character from Sweeney Todd, history’s most infamous pie maker.

If Pieminister remain the gold standard for Bristol pies, Lovett run them a very close second and there is no doubt that their first permanent premises will lead to bigger things in he future.

Lovett Pies, Cargo, Wapping Wharf, Bristol, BS1 6WP

www.lovettpies.com

Read more: Corks open third Bristol store – and first bar