Fasano's Pies Opens New Shop In LaGrange

LAGRANGE, IL -- Fasano Pies, a name as synonymous with “Chicago” as Frango Mints and the Dove Bar, has landed in downtown LaGrange. Fasano Pies, owned and operated by three generations of Fasanos, quietly opened its new shop before Thanksgiving where it quickly ran out of single-serve junior and full-sized pies. A grand opening for the new brick-and-mortar shop at 74 S. LaGrange Road is planned for early 2018.

“We opened quietly, with no significant promotion, really—just a way to say hello again to our most loyal customers, and what we got was a steady stream that at times was almost a stampede,” said third-generation baker Peter Fasano, a grandson of the company’s founder. “We saw a lot of old friends and made a whole bunch of new ones.”

For now, Fasano is selling its most popular varieties, like apple, cherry, blueberry and pecan, as well as cream pies like chocolate, lemon meringue, banana, strawberry banana and coconut. If you want to serve Fasano pies at your Christmas gathering, then you need to pre-order now and pick them in person at the LaGrange shop from 9 a.m. to 6 p.m. Dec. 23 or Dec. 24.

The Fasano Pie Company was started by grandfather, Joseph, who sold pies off a horse- drawn wagon in Chicago during the Great Depression, until he started the family business in 1946. The company closed its doors in the 1980s, but Joseph’s grandson, Peter, relaunched Fasano Pies in 2011 with amazing results. He uses the same recipes that his father and grandfather used when they built one of the most successful pie companies in nation that were “as good as Mother’s and better than others.”

The LaGrange store’s business is take-out, although there are plans for limited seating and beverage service. The new shop at 74 S. LaGrange Road is well situated with ample parking in back and heavy foot traffic in front, nestled among the popular Q-BBQ eatery, Hortons Home Lighting, Cold Stone Creamery and the LaGrange Theatre. Peter Fasano’s son, Peter Jr., manages the LaGrange shop.

“I’ve always been aware of the company history and proud of it,” Peter Jr. said in a news release. “But to hear all the good stories from years ago—from our customers, our bakery workers, our drivers—that made me feel good. Until now, I think I never fully appreciated the positive impact my grandfather and great-grandfather had on so many peoples’ lives.”

The company also helps local schools, libraries, churches, youth athletic associations, Scout troops and other non-profit groups raise funds through special pie sales. St. Joseph School in Summit and St. Cletus in Countryside are among those that have partnered with Fasano.

Re-launched in 2011 after a nearly 30-year absence, the Fasano Pie Company was once the largest pie baker in the Midwest and one of the largest in the nation. Its bakery at 65th and Melvina in Bedford Park, at its peak, produced 6,000 pies an hour, 24 hours a day. Fasano Pies were everywhere: grocery stores, restaurants, school cafeterias and more, as well as the company outlet store on 65th Street.

Over the past six years, Fasano has worked with a commercial baker to produce his pies while he has been courted by municipalities from northwest Indiana through the Chicago area to southern Wisconsin to locate his own bakery. He sells pies at select, high-end grocers and directly off his colorful pie truck.

The LaGrange shop hours are 10 a.m. to 8 p.m. daily, although that may evolve as the shop gets a better feel for its customers. Pie fans are advised to keep up with Fasano Pie happenings by visiting visit the company’s Facebook page to stay up to date on shop hours and special offers.

Photo: Third-generation pie baker Peter Fasano (right), along with Peter Fasano Jr. and Maria Fasano, stand among a wealth of full-size and junior pies in the company’s new shop at 74 S. LaGrange Road. The company is currently accepting orders for Christmas pies. | Provided by Pies By Fasano