My first experience at Marie Calendars

When I was young (elementary school/Jr. High), living in Koreatown, my friends always told me how they went to Marie Calendars and how they relished the experience. I used to ask if it was a restaurant, and they'd tell me that they'd have desserts. So it was a place you went to get pie and coffee? It just didn't make sense to me. And that cloudy vision of Marie Calendar remained with me for the next 20 years. What do you do there? Its like a cafe, mostly for desserts and soups? Why would anyone go there for that? And how could it be that good? Well, I went there for the first time on Friday. And it turns out that its pretty much like a Denny's, but of higher quality. Since it was my first experience, I went for the full Marie Calendar experience. That's right. I got the chicken pot pie. That's what they are known for. Just ask Costco. At one time of my life, I really liked chicken pot pies although I've only had one kind of chicken pot pies in my life. I never had a Marie Calendars frozen chicken pot pie (I always thought they were expensive, and one took at the Nutritional Facts sealed the fate that I would never buy one). I only buy the $1 kind with light blue packaging. It was cheap, and I can enjoy it.

So what was the Marie Calendar's pie like? Well, I can say for sure that it was probably the best pot pie i've ever had. But to be fair, its not hard to beat a $1 pie with a $12.85 pie. There is some magic in the crust (probably butter or shortning). When the crust is broken off and dropped into the white cream on the bottom, the stars align. Earth stands still. You spoon the combination of crust and pie center into your mouth, and as you press your tongue to the roof of your mouth, an explosion of goodness happens. The tonge has taste buds for sour, salty, bitter and sweet, but trust me on this one, we have taste buds for fat, and it is revealed to you when you eat something like this. The fat dissolves instantly when it makes contact, and its like someone turned on a switch in your brain, that hasn't been switched on for a long time. And you think "huh....yeah, there is something special about this."

Unfortunately, I wasn't feeling like chicken pot pie, so I didn't savor the experience, but I ordered it anyway to get it out of the way so I never have to wonder. To finish off the original Marie Calendar experience, we ordered individual pieces of lemon marange, cherry, and banana cream pie.

The entire experience itself was ok. I'll go back when I feel like eating some chicken pot pie.