Latest step for Hubig’s Pies a good sign for those missing the beloved New Orleans treat

Among those yearning for the return of Hubig’s Pies, any sign of progress on the journey back to their hungry hands is significant.

And so it was that a simple job posting by Hubig’s Pies set off a fresh round of anticipation.

Hubig’s is starting to staff up. That means the prospect of getting pies back on the shelves is that much closer, a decade after a fire destroyed Hubig’s original home and knocked the beloved hand pies out of circulation.

CATHERINE THRELKELD / THE TIMES-PICAYUNE Firefighters work to put out the 5-alarm fire at Hubig’s Pies, located at 2417 Dauphine Street in New Orleans on Friday, July 27, 2012.

CATHERINE THRELKELD / THE TIMES-

The company is now hiring production staff and delivery drivers. Drew Ramsey, owner of Hubig’s Pies, said he is out to hire about a dozen people for the production side who will eventually make the pies, following the long-established Hubig’s recipe and process.

What Ramsey won’t say yet is just when production will begin. He eschews requests to forecast when the first pies might hit stores.

Racks for Hubig’s Pies, still bare at McKenzie’s Chicken in a Box in Gentilly long after the Hubig’s factory burned down.

Staff photo by Ian McNulty

He said he’s keenly aware of intense local interest in when Hubig’s will be back. But after a series of delays nixed earlier predictions on timing he doesn’t want to set expectations unless he has full control over meeting them.

The company is still working through the regulatory processes, and that includes awaiting approval from the Food and Drug Administration and inspections to its new facility, located off Jefferson Highway near the Huey P. Long Bridge.

Hubig’s will use the same recipes and process to make its pies again, but given the time that’s elapsed since it was last producing them, new FDA approval is required.

Original caption: For almost 100 years Hubig’s Pies have been baked at a little pie factory in the Faubourg Marigny at 2417 Dauphine St. These Thursday, February 21, 2002, photos are of the pies and some of the people who produce them for a feature. Married for 40 years, Theresa and Malcolm Thompson, employees for 31 and 35 years respectively package freshly baked pies.

Staff file photo by Ellis Lucia

Ramsey has made it his mission not just to restart the Hubig’s brand but to bring back its pies in just the same way that people remember. He said his aim is “to produce a product that people recognize and remember and enjoy.”

Meeting that goal has entailed a long process.

Piece by piece

The “feet” of a pie cutting machine at Hubig’s Pies, the New Orleans hand pie maker working to reopen.

Staff photo by Ian McNulty

The new hires that Hubig’s is now recruiting will join a small staff that has been building out the company’s new facility and laying the groundwork for resumed production and distribution. That includes some who worked at Hubig’s before the fire.

Hubig’s was known for cooking from scratch, and rebuilding the company has resembled a scratch-made recipe, too. That has brought an often-painstaking process of hunting down equipment and reconnecting supply networks.

In business since 1921, Hubig’s Pies became more than just a familiar convenience food in New Orleans. The grab-and-go treats, which could be found at the grocery, hardware store or gas station, were inexpensive products that became part of New Orleans’ daily routine, and thus ingrained in the hearts of a city that loves its rituals.

Revelers dressed as Hubig’s Pies walk through the French Quarter on Mardi Gras 2020.

July marked 10 years since the fire threw the company’s future into doubt.

At the time, the owners pledged to return, but a split in the business partnership behind the company led to many years of delays. Eventually, the Ramsey family consolidated ownership and Drew Ramsey took the helm to bring the company back.

Before the fire, Hubig’s produced an average of 25,000 pies a day. Ramsey said the new facility will have the capacity to exceed that number. They’ll be distributed to lots of different outlets, including groceries, gas stations and convenience stores.

Hubig’s Pies were simple handpies that were beloved for generations before a fire destroyed the company’s New Orleans factory in 2012. There are plans underway to get the brand back in business.

Staff photo by Ian McNulty

The lineup of flavors will be the same as before, with apple, lemon, peach, pineapple, chocolate and coconut prepared year-round. Seasonal flavors will also return to the roster for limited runs, including blueberry, blackberry, cherry and sweet potato.

The Hubig’s origin story goes back to the early 20th century, when Simon Hubig set up a bakery in Fort Worth, Texas. He expanded to build a regional chain that reached as far as Cincinnati.

All of the factories folded as the Depression and the rationing of World War II took their toll, with the lone exception of the New Orleans location. It kept churning out the hand pies from the same Dauphine Street building until the 2012 fire.