Hilary and Jeremy pull no punches in quest to find the most car-friendly pie

In the wake of the prestigious Bakel's New Zealand Supreme Pie Awards, Hilary Barry and Jeremy Wells decided to test a crucial factor the awards ignore: how easy is it to consume these pies in the car? Because while the award judges assess nuances of taste and texture, every true pie eater knows that a pie that can't be scoffed on the run is confronting. And so Hilary and Jeremy hit the road with the goal of testing nine Gold medal winners in the Auckland region. Which pies would litter Hilary's car with annoying pastry flakes? Would some of those lauded fillings splurge dangerously from their cases? The pair's verdicts are ruthlessly unfiltered.

First stop Richoux in Ellerslie where it's pouring with rain and the queue is just about out the door. Jeremy makes the dash inside to purchase pies.

Back in the car, the first judging commences.

Hilary: "That is some serious pie. Oh my gosh that's so good. This is very good for a car in terms of solidity but that pastry is a bit flaky for a car ride. I love it, it's award winning, it's almost too flaky."

Jeremy: "Yeah, it is incredibly flaky, in fact your car's gonna be completely covered by the end of it. Luckily it's not too hot actually. The creaminess is delicious."

Verdict: Great pie with very flaky pastry but tricky to eat cleanly in the car.

Fourteen kilometres across town between Mt Roskill and Titirangi is Blockhouse Bay. Time for a classic Bacon and Egg which is Jeremy's least favourite pie genre. Hilary's a fan but believes it's the one pie on which tomato sauce is compulsory so that's going to add a degree of difficulty in the car. As it turned out she did spill the sauce, but the filling held strong.

Hilary: "It's a really solid pie. Nothing's going to drop out of that."

Jeremy: "Bacon's good, that bacon tastes nice. There's a lot of bacon in it. "

Verdict: Very solid filling makes it great for car eating but mind the sauce.

Further west in Henderson is Taste Bakery and Roast.

Hilary: "Lovely pastry, very flaky. I'm dropping a lot of flakes."

Jeremy: "Nice and light pastry. I'm also slightly worried that this is going to spill out everywhere. Gravy's a tricky one to eat in the car."

Verdict: Gravy didn't leak so that was a plus but again, very flaky pastry made quite a mess, so eat this one at home, not in your car.

Leaving the west and heading to the North Shore, home of the Supreme Winner.

Jeremy: "See I think that it's quite difficult eating a potato top. I'll tell you what is hard, keeping the gravy part warm in a potato top because otherwise you heat the top up too much."

(20 seconds later) "This is actually quite a good pie to eat in the car."

Hilary: "I think it is because the bottom pastry isn't too flaky and you don't have that flaky top. I think this could not only be the supreme winner but potentially... "

Jeremy: "Oh man."

Hilary: "It's good eh."

Jeremy: "There's not too much mince and gravy where it's just spilling out all over the car and you haven't spilt any on your top which is good."

Hilary: "I'm not even a big fan of potato top pies but that is exceptional."

Verdict: A very good pie to eat in the car.

Across to East Coast Bays, where Euro has two Gold-winning pies. First, the Vegetarian.

Hilary: "Oh that's good, that's got plenty of asparagus in it. That's delicious. Okay this is really flaky, this is currently making a mess."

Verdict: Stunning pastry but too flaky for the car. Filling has the potential to spill too.

Jeremy: "The mince here with the gravy is so tasty. It's beautifully salted and look, there's just enough of it so it's not going to go everywhere."

Verdict: Again, stunning flaky pastry with the potential for mess. Filling stayed well put though.

In Silverdale we meet Ketaka Lao and sample the Gourmet Meat Winner, which is pāua.

Hilary: "Oh that's lovely and that's got a good solid bottom to eat in the car. That's hot. That's the hottest. Delicious. Slightly runny filling for me."

Jeremy: "Wow, this is quite a hot one which is good if you're going from one place to another and you've got seafood. There's a good amount inside. The base is a bit 'breaky'."

Verdict: Good for car consumption but mind the hot filling and remember to blow on the pie before eating. Also extra points for Ketaka's warm welcome.

Found everywhere. Sold in service stations around the country. Surely designed to be eaten on the run. We chose a classic Mince and Cheese.

Hilary: "Because they are commercial pie operators they know how to make a non-combustible pie so that it is not flaking anywhere. And it probably has a bit less filling than some of the other ones."

Jeremy: "It's a good solid pie. It's a good commercial pie. Cheese is nice. Not too hot. That's a good car pie."

Verdict: As expected Dad's delivers on a good car pie. Pastry is less flaky than other contenders.

Last pie. We're nearly bursting.

Hilary: "Lovely flavour. It's very flaky on top but it's not flaking off."

Jeremy: "Good meat. That's a nice pie. The one thing I'll say, this is not a car pie. It's got way too much stuff in it. It's really full, which is great, it's what you want."

Hilary: "If you were taking it home it would be perfect."

Jeremy: "If you were eating it on a plate with a knife and fork."

Hilary: "It's going to spill out isn't it?"

Jeremy: "This is a knife and fork pie."

Verdict: Delicious pie but better suited for home than the car.

Jeremy: Rosedale Bakery and Café, Albany. Potato Top Pie

Hilary: Dad's Pies. Mince and Cheese

Though all the pies we ate were delicious, if you want to ensure a clean meal in the car then a potato top is probably your best option.

Also noted by the judges was the number of award-winning pies from Silverdale, which sparked an idea.

Surely it's time for Silverdale to honour its pie makers with an appropriate statue. After all, Ohakune has the giant carrot.