... have to be Aussie Gourmet. Pelican pastry is doughy and too thick. Aussie Gourmet have got it right and the sausage rolls are fantastic!

No, not on commission.....

Numero Uno is Jons.
No contest.
Pelicans Chicken curry is nice, and the lady behind the jump (counter) is sweet.

Thanks Carlos, we have added BadaBing to the poll

Quite frankly... I did. I am an Aussie who has been living here for nearly 7 years and I have tried all the pies. When I visit Australia for a month a year I usually average about 2.3 pies a day and yes I am a fat bastard who is obsessed with pies so I hold some authority on this subject.

I base the following 'review' as an Aussie. That means I grew up eating pies squirted with tomato sauce served in a paper bag. Not served with mash and peas and covered with gravy as the English apparently do it.

Aussie Gourmet Bakery
These are in my mind the best pies in town and indeed the closest thing to what you would find in a bakery in Australia. That is probably because Jon the Baker has been making them for 19 years. The pies consist of imported beef and imported industry standard ingredients including special 'fats' used to make the puff pastry lid. They can be found along with sausage rolls at Aussie XL and Pickled Parrot, two Aussie hangouts in the Penh (and maybe Shanghai ?). You will only find plain meat pies at these locations but AGB does do several other flavours which can be delivered or bought from the bakery itself (st 240 near BBWorld Monivong). AGB's pies are a relatively mass produced bakery pie, if you are looking for a rough handmade buttery shortcrust pie, like grandma used to make, this is not it.

Just for the record the best buttery grandma pie in town was Carl from Aussie XL's pies but he has stopped making them in favour of serving AGB's pies.

Pelican Pies
Also made by an Aussie, Randal, these are slightly larger and round as opposed to square, they come in a nicely crafted box and can be easily bought on street 278 at the small street outlet as well as the Gym Bar and the Tavern (last time I was there anyway). These pies are proudly handmade, although they are not rough in texture or buttery like a 'grandma pie'. The pies are definitely not bad but to be totally honest they look better than they taste. My first objection is that the rim of the pie has been crimped together very firmly and protrudes from the pie itself quite far, being a shortcrust pastry lid as opposed to puff such treatment renders the rim very hard when baked. Secondly I found the mince pie to be lacking gravy and a bit dry overall. On a positive note I thought the chicken pie I had at the Gym Bar had a delicious filling. Also the outlet on 278 is very convenient for quick lunch stops.

Rising Sun
According to a forum post on Khmer440 many people find these to be the best. However these pies are what I would refer to as a 'lazy grandma pie', that is because they are essentially mince and gravy covered in packet puff pastry and baked. The problem with this method is that the base, being made of puff, does not receive the air it needs to puff and flake and therefore ends up a bit dense and chewy. The filling is tasty, although the mince is too minced in my opinion, it looks like its been forced through a sieve. These pies are served in the english fashion with mash and peas and the pie itself is absolutely enormous, also available in chicken & mushroom. Don't expect to be able to eat this one on the move.

Pickled Parrot
I had one of these pies and was not overly impressed although I would say it was a valiant effort by a non Aussie or British cook (Vietnamese). The filling was not bad but the pastry was too short and therefore crumbled like an apple pie which was not aided by the fact that it had been microwaved. To be fair these pies might be ok served fresh out of the oven. Pickled Parrot sells many AGB pies and I have never seen anyone eating their own in-house pies, I am not sure they even make them anymore.

BadaBing
Made by an English man, Gary, have not even been mentioned in the voting list?? Now, I have never had a pie in England but in Australia if a pie had such a thick shortcrust pastry and dry filling that it required gravy to be poured all over it, it simply wouldn't fly. Having said that I have eaten quite a few of these and can say that the fillings are tasty and the meat is chunky and usually very tender, especially the guiness pie. I would rate BadaBing higher if Cornish Pasties were a consideration.

Kiwi Bakery
I am not sure who makes these pies but I am quite sure its not a true Kiwi. I have had very few of these and the reason is that they simply are not very good. The mince seems to be made of the lowest grade meat available and the filling itself tastes as if the recipe has been read incorrectly. The one I had most recently (to be fair it was about 2 years ago) seemed like the chef may have mistaken a pinch of nutmeg for 3 heaped tablespoons. The pastry would be acceptable if the pie were warmed in an oven but unfortunately its microwaved, making it chewy and just generally wrong. Sorry Kiwi but you get my lowest vote.

Villi's (Imported Frozen)
As a proud South Australian I have to say this is the best commercially produced pie in Australia. It has a unique flaky pastry and a very rich dark peppery filling. It used to be available at the Green Vespa but since I have not seen the frozen ones in the pantry nor Bayon Supermarket I am not sure if that is still the case. I never rate a frozen pie over a bakery pie but these are the best frozen pie in town. Last time I was at the Pantry they seemed to have been replaced by pies from a NSW bakery (of which I have forgotten the name), they're not bad but a bit pricey.

Four & Twenty (Imported Frozen)
A cheap mass produced pie found mostly scolding peoples laps at Aussie Rules football matches. These pies in my opinion have nothing on Villi's but if you are an Aussie trying to remember what that pie you get at 3am at the servo is like, have one of these.

Other pies around town
There are some other pseudo pies around town, I say pseudo because they have no base. I have heard Irish Alan's guiness pot pies at Paddy Rice are very good, and American Kenny from Cadillac makes a chicken pot pie. Talkin to a Stranger used to make a good one too if I remember correctly. I recently saw a small pie which looked like a french variant (about the size of a British Pork pie) at a cake stall in front of Bayon supermarket, I have not tried it yet though.

I would like to round this up by saying sorry if I have offended anyone with my review. It is only my personal opinion and I have tried to be as honest as possible. I am admittedly a good friend of Jon the Baker but I can assure you that I honestly do find his pies to be the best in town with out being biased.