Date night has rolled around and you’ve finally managed to secure a babysitting routine that works for your family. You’re excited; you want to ditch your mom uniform to experience something new. You waver back and forth between that usual, tried and true spot and something adventurous…even, dare we say it — hip. We recently discovered a new grown-up spot that’s hidden right inside your usual family restaurant. This new opening is the best of both worlds: family dinner in the front and grown-up hang out in the back. You don’t have to trek too far to mix and mingle at the new Pie Society.
What is Pie Society?
Driving by 17th street in Costa Mesa, you might’ve noticed that a different kind of pie joint replaced the old Marie Callender’s. It’s a new pizza restaurant known as Pitfire Pizza, a family-friendly hotspot that serves up wood-fired pizzas and fun, colorful clay (no crayons here) for your kid’s active fingers. In the evening, the back of the restaurant secretly transforms into the newest date night spot to hit the OC: Pie Society. Pie Society morphs into a hopping, grown-ups only speakeasy lounge. Intrigued yet?
The Libations
Yummy artisanal libations are mixed up by well-known SoCal native, Steve Garcia. The drink menu includes creative, original creations such as the Piesobar House Martini (Ford’s gin, Wodka Vodka, Cocchi Americano, Dolin Blanc Vermouth, bergamot oil, and lemon peel). Twists on the classics are also available such as the Hemingway Daiquiri and The Boston Sour. If you’ve been wedded to the sippy cup lately, New Society is an ideal environment to revive your love of cocktails.
Finger Foods Just For Grown-Ups
Chef Jason Neroni from Venice’s highly praised Superba Snack Bar makes food fun by imbuing the menu with childhood favorites such as the Cheeseburger Hot Pocket, Tater Tots, and Superba Fried Chicken. Light snacks include bread and butter pickles with sriracha and dill, smoked marinated olives, and pastrami peanuts with smoked sea salt. We love that the food is downright delicious without the price tag that usually comes along with grown-up faire of this caliber.
Fun Fact
Curious about the origins of the name, Pie Society? We discovered that the name is a clever way of paying respect to the old time way of making pies. Plus, the delicious finger food you’ll nosh on is served up on an actual piece of Marie Callender’s former pie oven.
Parking and Hours
A convenient parking lot is available, but be sure to plan your date night around Monday, the one night of the week Pie Society is closed. The rest of the week from Tuesday to Sunday, you can enjoy sanctuary from tedium beginning at 5:00 pm until closing.
Pie Society
Located at Pitfire Artisan Pizza
353 East 17th Street
Costa, Mesa Ca
949-313-6335
Hours: Tuesdays-Sundays 5:00 pm to closing
Online: piesocietybar.com
We gotta admit — this story was fun researching. Tell us about your visit to the new Pie Society in the comment section below.
— Sommy Rhee
Photos courtesy of Pie Society and Geoff Shivley
