Arsenal: Meet Piebury Corner, the pie shop for Gooners

On Sunday, I visited Piebury Corner, an Arsenal-run pie shop that serves supporters before and after match days. Here is their story and how they have become a staple of the match-going experience.

Wander down Holloway Rd before an Arsenal match and you will be swarmed in a sea of red. Shirts. Hats. Scarves. Even those wretched half-and-half ones. This is your typical pre-match scene before a Premier League game in England.

There is distant chanting, a tangible sense of excitement — or nervousness, depending on the ensuing fixture — a feeling that something monumental is about to take place. But it is all drowned out by the need for the commercial. This is about stash, branded keyrings, extortionate food just because it comes from the stadium. Everything is Arsenalified, as is the way before any modern-game match in the Premier League and elsewhere.

But for all of the money-obsessed mire that one must wade through, something significant will happen. Arsenal will play. And for those swaying down the main street, either drawn in by the advertising or desperately trying to avoid it, what takes place in the recently erected Emirates Stadium, which is tucked away behind the rows of shops, stalls and houses, is all that matters.

And amidst the growing chaos, confusion and chatter, there is a humble pie shop spitting out delicious pastries, banging tunes, a throwback atmosphere, nice beers, and the sense of community that has long been lost among the Arsenal faithful.

One day, you might have missed it. It is only open on matchdays, after all. But not now. The blaring beats, the chasms of red, and an increasing flash of yellow with a throwback bruised banana here and there, draw you in. The pies keep you there.

As is customary, all of their pies are named after Arsenal players. The venison, of course, follows the great Thierry Henry. The steak and ale is Tony Adams. I plumped for the Charlie George, a minced beef and onion. Served with roast potatoes, a good splash of gravy and a pint of Camden Pale, you do not get much better. And of course, it all came in the good company of fellow Gooners.

I stood outside, listening to the throwback soul and Motown tunes Paul Campbell, the owner, played on the decks, talking with Arsenal fans about the upcoming match, what would be a three-goal drubbing to Manchester City, debating whether Mesut Ozil should stay, discussing the future of the head coaching position. And amidst it all was a sense of camaraderie and connection that has been so painfully absent amid an increasingly fractious and frustrated fanbase.

Paul, who I had the pleasure of talking to, has been running this business since 2011. It started as a stall in his front garden in Highbury. With demands to the chairman to ‘spend some f*cking money’ and a tag line that echoed their Motown love, ‘Don’t walk on by, walk on pie’, they began to become a staple of the Arsenal matchday experience. Fans would change their journeys to the Emirates just to pick up a pie on the way.

As news broke and custom grew, Piebury Corner expanded. In 2012, the Holloway Rd store opened. The selection of pies grew, people began to take increasing notice of the pre-match ritual, and yet that grounded, down-to-earth, authentic, loved-in feel remained. There is a cheeriness and integrity. Despite the growth, Piebury Corner knows what it is and where it came from, as Paul discussed with me on Sunday.

While football expands globally and Arsenal look to push the envelope of fandom around the world, which is so wonderful to witness and experience, football is a local sport. There is a community to football, a locality, a society that feels connected to the club, the supporters, the place. The stadium is a home, not just a big chunk of metal with some grass in the middle. You breathe in the air. And this is what Piebury emulates: a local place for a global fanbase. What a wonderful combination.

So, if you are ever on your way to the Arsenal and feeling a bit peckish, pop into Piebury Corner. Because, amidst the sea of red and commercialised tat, there is a real Arsenal landmark to visit, and you would be foolish to miss it.