"When it comes to meat pies it's all about the perfect ratio between filling and crust. Mr. Cooper's Pies has set a new bar for me. If the pie isn't domed and packed with filling, I'm not interested!"
When I think of comfort food, a rich and flaky traditional British meat pie is at the top of my list! Over the years I've done my fair share of taste tests on my search to find the best pies. At the risk of sounding hyperbolic, when I stumbled across Mr. Cooper's Pies, I can admit to letting out a few expletives of excitement. The crew at Mr. Cooper's Pies are taking a tried and true family recipe and bringing it to the masses because homemade is always best!
The Story of Mr. Cooper
Mr. Norman Cooper was born in Coventry, England in 1914. He travelled to London at the age of 18, where he worked in the food markets. He obtained work with the British Lever Brothers & soon after was sent to Nigeria (British West Africa) where we spent the next twenty years living, marrying & working.
Norman then served as a commissioned officer with the British Armed Forces where he “trained and secured his territory for the Crown”. These were the most wonderful and happiest times of his life – he often regaled his audiences with colorful & entertaining tales of Africa.
Fast forward to a new chapter of Mr. Norman Cooper's life and after a career spanning distribution systems, business consulting, and working at the developing IGA in Edmonton he decided to retire. But that didn't last long.
In 1982, at the age of 68, Norman came out of retirement and, along with his son, Brian, they began Mr. Cooper's Pies. The restaurant quickly amassed a loyal following surrounding their pies and in a few years had grown to have 11 locations. Known for their freshly baked daily quiches, sweet pies, sausage rolls + of course English Meat Pies!
Unfortunately, due to the economic crash in Calgary, Mr. Cooper’s Pies closed but the timeless recipes lived on through our family – all these years. Brian continued to make pies practically raising his kids on them.
A New Era of Pies
The Cooper family, like many small businesses, struggled with COVID-19 come March of 2020. It was at this time that Mr. Brian Cooper teamed up with local community member Shane Dagan, of the Steveston Seafood House. They decided to pivot and the resurgence of Mr. Cooper’s Pies began. Dusting off the aprons and armed with the family pie recipe books, they have been steadily growing and can now, of course, be found on BCause!
Proudly Local
What's better than a delicious meat pie? Delicious meat pies that are proudly handmade in Steveston Village (Lower Mainland, BC). They only source the finest BC farm fresh ingredients including chicken from The Fowl Farmer, based in Richmond, BC.
