This past weekend, the Shuswap Pie Company was packed and busy turning out pie after pie, despite being closed.
The small restaurant on Alexander Street was transformed into a TV set for Food Network Canada’s hit TV show You Gotta Eat Here!, which wrapped up two days of filming at the Pie Company over the weekend.
“The pie here is unbelievable. The strawberry rhubarb pie is so perfect that when you’re on your last bite it makes you want to cry because there won’t be any more pie left,” laughs host of the show, John Catucci.
The show follows Catucci around Canada, on his quest for the most delicious comfort food that made restaurants famous in their area.
Filming at the Pie Company is for the fourth season of the show that will begin in the new year.
Catucci applauds the Pie Company for focusing solely on pies, and says it has paid off.
“They have really hit the nail on the head with both their sweet and savoury pies,” he says.
“The dough is out of this world, it’s so flaky and light, but it still holds up and keeps everything together.”
He says of the savoury pies that he sampled, the sausage apple sage was his favourite.
“On a chilly and rainy fall day in Salmon Arm, the sausage apple sage pie was perfect, because it’s so hearty it really warms you up.”
Catucci says he samples great food around the country, but he especially enjoys meeting the owners, chefs, and patrons.
“Working on this show has allowed me to travel the country, and I have also met so many fantastic people along the way.”
He explains that the buzz around the Shuswap Pie Company made the filming memorable.
“The show is about food, but what really makes the show for me is the people I meet, and seeing the connection that the restaurant has within the community,” says Catucci.