By 
Note: This location is now closed. You can still visit Fat + Flour’s brick-and-mortar bakery in Culver City. 11739 W Washington Blvd, Los Angeles, CA 90066
I’ve had my fair share of key lime pies since I moved to LA, but none like the one I’m about to tell you about.
Fat + Flour is a pie stand located inside the historic Grand Central Market. It was founded by chef and author Nicole Rucker, who was a pastry chef at Gjelina and the former owner of Fiona Bakery on Fairfax Avenue. Nicole has won multiple accolades, including the National Pie Championship in 2012, and has recently been nominated for a James Beard Award, one of the most prestigious awards in the culinary industry. She’s also been featured in many TV show segments, including Late Night with Seth Meyers!
I found Fat + Flour because restaurants such as Woon Kitchen and Found Oyster featured her famous key lime pie on their Instagram stories, which instantly caught my attention.
When I saw the pictures on the website, I noticed an individual key lime pie, but when I called, they told me they didn’t make it anymore. So, you can either buy an individual slice for $6 or the whole pie for $36.
I highly suggest preordering the key lime pie on their website either on the day of pickup or the day before. For whole pies, 24 hours’ notice is required. Since they sell out of the key lime pie all the time, it’s much more convenient to place your order online the day before and pick it up the next day.
Don’t be like me and drive all the way to Downtown only to find out that they’re sold out. Although they have other pie flavors, if it’s your first time, the key lime pie is a mandatory order. I drove back home, placed my order online, and drove back to DTLA the next day.
The pie was extraordinary. My taste buds were blown away by the richness and the combination of the buttery crust, the creamy filling, and the whipped topping. It was sweet, tangy and cool. The crust was fresh and melt-in-your-mouth delicious, unlike the hard crusts I’ve encountered at many other places. It had that unmistakably homemade quality you rarely find in a restaurant pie.
It was also a hot day in LA, so the combination of zesty lime and cold, creamy filling was incredibly refreshing. Needless to say, I was in key lime pie heaven. I ate it in my car on the street in Downtown LA, and I’m pretty sure passers-by noticed my reaction as I was chowing down on this beauty. It was perfect and I haven’t had a pie of that caliber in the six years I’d lived in LA. It was a completely transformative experience.
They also had the Blueberry Blackberry Lemon Crumble pie, which looked dangerously tempting. This one was available on both visits.
Blueberry blackberry / Meyer lemon filling / buttery crumble. All weekend long!
Finding a good parking spot in downtown is practically mission impossible. However, the parking structure across the street, next to Maccheroni Republic, offered 20 minutes of free parking when I visited. Park, get out, cross the street, enter Grand Central Market, pick up the pie and boom, you’re out. Both times I went there, I did not pay for parking.
In case you don’t want to park, they also offer curbside pickup.
Is Fat + Flour worth the drive to DTLA? 100 %. The guy at the register said that the pie should be eaten within two to three days. This is important to consider if you plan on ordering the whole pie.
If you have any allergies or you’re vegan, please note that Fat + Flour’s cakes are neither vegan nor gluten-free.
The address is 317 S Broadway, Los Angeles, CA 90013.
Hours: Wednesday to Sunday from 11am-5pm.
