Jaynelle St. Jean
FOR THE CREATOR — AND CREATIVE MIND — BEHIND PIETISSERIE BAKERY, IT’S ALL ABOUT THE PIE
Over the past 10 years, San Francisco native and pie savant Jaynelle St. Jean has grown her Pietisserie bakery from a farmers market pop-up to a wildly popular Oakland shop churning out tantalizing creations, like violet sweet potato and chocolate cream in pretzel crust pies. Even before the pop-ups, it was St. Jean’s ingenuity that set her apart from the bevy of talented bakers in the Bay Area. She handed out free slices of pie from her mother’s Noe Valley kitchen window, then she re-created that pie window nostalgia with a DIY window display she carted around in the back of her car.
That creativity is in full force as St. Jean heads into her next decade of pie. Last April, the impact of shelter-in-place mandates forced her to close her 6-year-old pie shop, but she continued to bake out of a commercial kitchen in Berkeley. Pie lovers’ need for treats like lemongrass custard and rhubarb-laced pink apple during the pandemic fueled a robust delivery business — and, beginning this week, shipping goes nationwide via Goldbelly.
But here’s the really dough-licious news. As early as next month, St. Jean is launching custom pies by design for $42 to $48. In other words, the days of drooling over pie art on Instagram are over. Soon you’ll be able to choose from various pie designs — say, monochromatic citrus pie or dizzying diamond lattice — as well as your Pietisserie filling. Yes.
Until then, look for Pietisserie pies at select Whole Foods markets and independent grocery stores around the Bay Area, including Berkeley Bowl in the East Bay and Sigona’s in Redwood City. Here, St. Jean talks about her creative pie process and what she’s learned over the last decade.
Q
You learned to make pie from a boyfriend’s mom when you were 16. What impression did that lesson leave on you?
A
I was blown away by the pies she would make, and that a few ingredients could make something so beautiful hot out of the oven. I liked that it was simple, though not fast. That moved me. I didn’t think I was going to become a baker. I went to San Diego State to study journalism, but over the years I was the only person I knew that would show up to a gathering with a homemade pie. I learned that pie was really special.
Q
Your flavor combinations are divine. How do you come up with them?
A
I think a lot about color. About using what’s fresh and in season. The raspberry in chocolate pie is delicious but it is also striking, a juxtaposition of black and red. Sometimes I think about a play on the classics, like graham cracker crust, and what else can be made into a crust. That’s how I came up with the chocolate pretzel
pie crust — by eating chocolate-covered pretzels.
QWhat details can you share about bringing pie art to the masses?
A
People find those things on Instagram so compelling, so I’m going to offer an option to order your pie by design, and then the flavor will become second. It’ll be like choosing a shirt and then choosing the color. Fillings will include a tropical pie, double-cherry pie and my pink apple. For our citrus pies, we’ll use matcha, spirulina and turmeric to make monochromatic crusts.
Q
What have you learned over the past decade as a self-made entrepreneur?
A
That it’s important to start where you’re at. A lot of people imagine their business the way they want it to be. They tend to focus on the things they don’t have, or things that are working against them. I really believe in constructing a life out of what you have. After I gave those pies away, I wanted to replicate the experience of my mom’s window. I went to a window shop and asked to borrow a window. I put it on a bookcase and showed up at my pop-ups with it.
Someone with a background in industrial design saw it and said, “I see what you’re doing and I can help you.” Next thing I knew, I had a 7-foottall, 5-foot-wide pie window that I could put in the back of my Tercel and take to farmers markets. But my original creation was a bridge to a better thing.
Q
Do you plan on reopening your brick-andmortar shop?
A
We’ll see. Before COVID-19 I was questioning retail and our location. When the pandemic hit, it became clear to me that staying there could be the death of us. There’s something really unique about owning a pie shop, though. Ninety-seven percent of people are already happy when they walk through the door. But retail is hard. And right now? I don’t have any strong speculations.
Q
You have strong opinions about pie boxes. Can you tell us about your new one?
A
Yes, I’m so psyched about it! It’s a full view of the pie. Like a frame. With the words “A future memory of pie” written in gold leaf. Every other pie box you get such a tiny view, but this one is 360 degrees. I don’t want to hide this pie!
DETAILS >> Order your pies for pickup, delivery or “Pie By Mail” at www.pietisserie.com.