Harry's Pantry Kendal wins bronze at British Pie Awards

Wagtail Kitchen, near Crook Road, were declared reserve winners for their steak and kidney pie. 

Harry Pantry was given a bronze award by the judges for his steak and stilton pie, which was judged on cook, filling, pastry and presentation. 

The pantry, which is on Shap Road, is owned by Sam Berry (34) and his partner Bethany. 

This is the third time Sam has travelled from Kendal to Melton Mowbray (Image: Submitted)

The business now has six award-winning pies from the past three years it has entered the British Pie Awards. The awards have been running since 2009 and 'aim to celebrate the heritage of the British pie.' Melton Mowbray is known for being the home of the pork pie. 

British Pie Week 2024 was from 4-10 March, Monday to Sunday at St Mary's Church. 

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Sam said: "We're happy with the result. We made them on Monday 4 (March) and delivered them down to Melton Mowbray by hand. We wanted to make sure it was the best quality possible."

His pie was judged on Wednesday, 6. He said that there was a panel of 20 judges that were split into teams to assess the different categories, of which there are 24 in total. 

Sam submitting the pies to be judged (Image: Harry's Pantry)

"We've won awards before for steak pies," Sam said. "It just gives us a bit of recognition, it's a good morale boost for the staff - another pie in our collection."

Because it is the third time Harry's Pantry has attended the award, he felt more excited than nervous, and enjoyed the opportunity to speak to other piemakers from across the country. 

Harry's Pantry takes its name from its founding owner, Harry Davenport, who established the business in 1966. Sam has no relation with Harry, but has kept the name as it has become an established brand in Kendal. He joked that he often gets mistaken for Harry.