Head of Bakery Operations

Inspired by the pie shops they frequented while travelling in Australia, Jon Simon and Tristan Hogg decided they wanted to revive the once-great British Pie on their return home.  So in 2003 the two friends opened a small pie shop and kitchen on Stokes Croft in Bristol and Pieminister was born. They soon gained a great reputation for making delicious pies and helped revolutionise a flagging pie industry with exciting recipes, responsibly-sourced quality ingredients, great branding and a knack for making exceptionally good pastry.

Pieminister has been making pies in Bristol ever since. A local family business (Jon and Tristan are now brothers-in-law and both their sisters work for the business too), their ingredients are selected for their sustainability credentials as well as taste. 

Every pie in Pieminister’s Classic range is a Great Taste Award winner and includes household names like Moo (British beef steak & craft ale) Free Ranger (free range British chicken & ham with thyme) and Heidi (Somerset Goats’ cheese, sweet potato, spinach & red onion).  There are more than a dozen Classic pies now, including a growing number of plant-based recipes, which are registered with the Vegan Society and carry the Vegan trademark. 

Pieminister also makes gluten free pies. Certified as gluten free by Coeliac UK, they triumphed in the Great Taste and British Pie Awards, with judges remarking that Pieminister’s GF pastry was the best they’d ever tasted.

In 2019, Pieminister launched a range of patties; pocket-sized pastry snacks designed to be eaten on the go.  Encased in a golden saffron pastry, the original range of four includes two plant-based recipes.

As well as running pie restaurants, cafes or pie pubs across the UK, Pieminister also sells its wares through many of the UK’s finest food retailers and at farmers’ markets including a pie stall at London’s world-famous Borough Market. 

Pieminister’s Little Acts of Pie-ness has supported a huge number of charities nationwide over the years, and any surplus pies are donated direct from their Bristol kitchens to FareShare South West weekly who distribute them to foodbanks across the region.  

If there are any other surplus pies, Pieminister ensures they are put to good use and donated to charities and other non-profit organisatons that need the support.  These include St Peter’s Hospice, Wild Goose Café, St Mungo’s, Missing Link and Southmead Community Hamper Project. 

In 2020, Pieminister drew up a series of ambitious goals to hit by 2025.  The goals cover three key areas: animal & ecological welfare, climate change & waste, and human welfare & wellbeing.  They have been aligned with the Sustainable Development Goals; the UN’s blueprint to achieve a better and more sustainable future for all.