The Pie Piper & Doornuts slogan is simple -  Pie and Happiness.  And it's true.  Just try a slice and try not to smile. Pie always comes with a story. Pie rarely is just a pie, pie is something to be shared with others.  It turns a dull day into a brilliant one, and creates that special memory at celebrations.  Every pie has a story and we want to share that story with you.
The Pie Piper was created in early 2014 by Danielle and Suzanne Butler a mother-daughter team who were determined to introduce Kiwis to American style dessert pies. They started small and had a market stall at Howick Village Saturday market, and the business grew. More pies were made and eaten, they attended more markets and events and the business developed into something special. Auckland finally had dessert pie! Yippee!

In 2017 they opened their flagship store on Auckland iconic K'Rd, and called it The Pie Piper & Doornuts. They now offer more than just dessert pie. They make all sorts of treats including cakes, danishes, pastries, cinnamon rolls and made from scratch donuts, under their sister brand, Doornuts. Doornuts is about delivering donuts to your door. Of course, everything made has a North American influence.

In 2019, Danielle still runs the kitchen and business with the help of many Pipers and Donuteers. Suzanne has moved on to study, but still has her opinions on what Danielle creates!  And on 14 Feb 2019, they opened at The Eatery, East Ridge, Mission Bay.  A food precinct that has seven independent eateries under one roof with restaurant seating, a full bar, coffee and yes, dessert from The Pie Piper & Doornuts.

Here at Piper HQ we hand make all our pies and treats from scratch. This means each pie and treat gets our full attention to make it something special just for you.

We have a small and focused menu which changes week-to-week, along with the seasons and our whim.

 

Danielle visiting family in Michigan, USA. 1970
Danielle and her Mum, Janet, making pie.  Fountain Valley, California, USA -1972

Danielle's love of pie comes from her family. 

Danielle grew up in Southern California and came to NZ in the late 1970's when her parents, Robert and Janet (a Kiwi), moved the family to Auckland to be closer to Janet's Mum.   After high school, Danielle moved back to Southern California with her sister, to attend university where she met her husband, and then they boomeranged back to NZ to start a family.

Danielle's pie recipes were handed down from her parents and extended family, along with an appreciation of fresh produce and ingredients.  Danielle learned her pie making and baking skills from her Mum, Janet.  Janet, being a Kiwi married to an American, had to teach herself how to make when she was a young bride now living in the USA.  Robert, Danielle's father, always had a garden and fruit trees, and that produce had to be incorporated into the household somehow.  Janet had to get creative on how to use it all, including preserving anything spare.
 Danielle and her sister, Caroline, in their Dad's garden, Fountain Valley, California, USA- 1973.  Below, Danielle and her Dad.

Here in New Zealand, Danielle's father carried on the tradition of having a big garden. With more space, he also planted numerous fruit and nut trees, and it wasn't long before they were producing.  Although Janet was back home, the ingredients were very different to what was available in California, and she had to change her recipes to suit. With American pie was a relative unknown to Kiwi family members, Janet's pies were always a big hit at events. Now that mantel has passed to Danielle and Janet is taking a back seat at family gatherings - Janet has passed the Pie torch on.

Here at the Pie Piper, we continue family traditions.  We use as many New Zealand ingredients as we can.  We make the most of the seasons, and what's available on the local market.  You'll often find Danielle scouring the local berry farms and at the Avondale Market checking out produce.

And the story continues...now Danielle is continuing to pass on her love of pie, cakes and other North American treats to Aucklander's and New Zealand.

Danielle and her team offer classes at the K'Rd flagship store, and of course, you can always come and visit to have a slice of something special.

You are welcome to contact the Danielle and the Piper team if you have questions on baking too.  Danielle is happy to share her knowledge as it's all about creating something wonderful and delicious to share with family and friends.

On 14 February, 2019, a new store is set up open at The Eatery, East Ridge Shopping Centre.  The Eatery is made up of independent restaurants.  The Pie Piper & Doornuts will be joined by Boy and Bird, Temaki Truck, Noa, Uncle Mann's and Dante's Pizza - all under one roof!

 Pie and Happiness 100%

Although The Pie Piper & Doornuts is driven by Danielle's vision of being the best North American style bakery around, it's been, and still continues to be a shared effort.  It takes a lot of wonderful people, time and passion to run a bakery. 

Isabeau (Izzy) was the first Piper baker back in 2014!   Originally from Arkansas, USA, she has pie baking in her blood as she comes from a long line of bakers.  Her grandmother ran a diner in Arkansas, and even wrote a recipe book.  

Like all the Pipers who come to work with Danielle, Izzy has left her mark. Her chocolate cake recipe was left behind and "Izzy's Chocolate Cake" is always in our store.  Come by for a slice.  It'll remind you of everything happy when you take a bite.

Renee (pictured right) was our first Marketeer. Renee helped us on our market stalls and encouraged Danielle and Suzanne to take more steps by getting involved in special events.  She brought her marketing skills to Piper and helped the business grow.

Today, Renee is working as a Senior Marketing Consultant for Tomahawk Marketing.  Renee still helps Danielle and the Piper team by mentoring the newer members of the team.

Meet Chef Francisco Vargas, Head Pastry Chef at The Pie Piper & Doornuts, nickname 'Pancho'. 

Pancho came on board with Danielle and Suzanne in early 2017 just before they opened their flagship store on K'Rd.  Pancho walked in off the street just as the store was being built and asked for a job.  Originally from Chile, Pancho didn't speak very good English, but between pictures on phones and a little charades, the international language of pastry was spoken.  Pancho started the following day.

Pancho had made many desserts as an experienced Pastry Chef, but he'd never made North American dessert pie.  So Danielle worked side by side teaching him what dessert pie was all about.  It wasn't long before Pancho was making his mark in the Piper kitchen.

Today, Pancho's English is fantastic, and Danielle is still learning Spanish.  When it comes to pie making, Danielle and Pancho often face-off to see who's is best.   We're happy to stand aside, watch, and eat the finished results.

Meet Chef Montserrat Schweitzer, who we call the 'Donut Queen' but she's the boss of our Piper HQ team managing customer services, events, special orders and custom work.

Nickname 'Montse' (pronounced Mon-say)

Montse joined our Piper team in 2017 exactly 3-months and 17-days after Head Chef Francisco (Pancho).  We know that because Pancho gave us a count down each and every day until Montse finally arrived and joined us.  They had been newly married in January that year in Chile, and separated when Pancho came to New Zealand first.

Montse came on board to head our donut team, and soon was creating donuts that still are still customer favourites today.  She was crowned the Donut Queen early on and still reigns supreme over Doornuts.

 Montse is fantastic at finding creative delicious Piper solutions for our customers which involves everything from branding donuts to custom cakes, including creating memorable dessert buffets and catering events.  

Chef Franciso and Monste are the Dynamic Duo here at Piper.
Chef Francisco and Montserrat at The Pie Piper and Doornuts

The Pie Piper's slogan, Pie and Happiness, extends further than what is made in the kitchen;  it extends each team member and customer who comes into the store.

The original Piper team (right) created the foundation of something that continues to grow and evolve.  Today, there are even more tempting offering and every day brings something new.

Come and visit the Pipers & Donuteers and see for yourself.