Joe Cooke's great grandfather opened the doors to the famJoe Cooke is a fourth generation pie maker. His great grandfather opened the doors to the first shop in 1862, the first of a handful of family-run outposts across East End. Today, Hoxton is the only remaining outpost of the business - and whilst the Victorian penchant for jellied eels may be dwindling - the shop remains a thriving and beloved neighbourhood stalwart. 

Mornings are spent at Smithfield’s meat market, sourcing beef flank for the pies, boned and ground by Joe himself in the shop. Everything is made by hand under the caring eye of Joe himself - from the meat pie filling, suet pastry, Maris Piper mash and parsley liquor. (The traditional sauce made from fresh parsley and fish stock - not a drop of gravy not in sight). The only exception is the cherry filling for the sweet pies, Joe chuckles - “as we don’t have a cherry tree”! 

But Cooke’s stands for more than a warming plate of pie and mash. His warmth and gentle philosophy lights up the shop, to whom frequent customers as readily as passing tourists become friends. Pensioners travel as far as Peckham for their meal, whilst Hoxton local Peggy, 91 is so wholeheartedly ingrained in the fabric of the place, that the Cooke’s had the aisle widened between tables to allow her frame to fit through. “It saves me cooking”, local nonagenarian, Peggy grins, tucking in with the traditional fork and spoon.

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