PHOTOS: Fried Key Lime Pie - Marathon

Adam shared these photos with me of the aforementioned fried key lime pie from Porky's Check it out...it's beautiful.

Key Lime Pie Pilgrimage - Finale

2. Robert Is Here [Homestead]

Also a find from the article, Robert Is Here is a tropical fruit farm stand that makes awesome fresh fruit shakes. Their signature is the Key Lime and Strawberry Key Lime milkshake. We stopped by on the way back to Miami and picked up a huge box of tropical fruits: mangos, papaya, jackfruit, etc. I was totally key lime pied out at this point, having already enjoyed two slices of pie earlier that day, but I had to get a shake just to try it. I ordered a Strawberry Key Lime milkshake to mix it up a little and it was so good, I felt sad I couldn't drink the entire shake. They use real key limes so there's actual pulp in the shake. It's refreshing and really flavorful...I'm still mourning the 2/3 full shake I had to throw out.

1. Joe's Stone Crab [Miami]

We asked a bunch of different people where we should eat on vacation and Joe's Stone Crab got the most unprompted recommendations so we had to check it out. The food was good, no doubt, but they had my favorite key lime pie of the trip. It was a classic tangy slice that was super well executed. The filling was cool and smooth and the graham cracker crust was crumbly and buttery. Like I said three posts ago, I'm a big fan of key lime pie and the classic is always a winner in my book so I'm giving Joe's the top spot.

P.S. Joe's has a key lime pie recipe on their website and you can also mail order a pie.

Key Lime Pie Pilgrimage - Part III

4. Chocolate Dipped [Key West]

Key lime pie is everywhere in Key West and chocolate dipped key lime pie on a stick is even more prevalent. Pie on a stick is totally portable for snacking while you walk around town and chocolate just makes it even better. Alton Brown's a fan of this sweet treat and frankly, I wouldn't have tried it had I not read that Alton Brown loves it. Yep, I am THAT food snob. Turns out, it's pretty yummy like a uber delicious frozen ice cream bar. Everyone sells it and you don't need any utensils to enjoy it.

3. Porky's [Marathon]

We're rounding out the top three key lime treats here so it's getting harder to rank them. We also read about Porky's fried key lime pie from the article. Adam would probably disagree with Porky's fried key lime pie at #3 and argue it should have the top spot, but this is my list so ha. Porky's is this BBQ restaurant with no real walls. It's the kind of place you think of when you imagine the keys and the first time we stopped in, I couldn't believe this place existed. They lightly batter a slice of key lime pie and then fry it for 30 seconds and it is really really good. The fried batter envelopes the pie slice like a meta pie crust making it extra crunchy. The filling is not super tart and still cool, even frozen, on the inside. The fried pie was so memorable, we stopped by Porky's a second time for lunch and pie on the way out of Key West. We ate the most Porky's key lime pie hands down tucking in 3 slices of fried key lime pie.

Key Lime Pie Pilgrimage - Part II

6. Flamingo Crossing [Key West]

I love ice cream a lot so I had to try the ice cream at Flamingo Crossing on Duval Street one night. The Cuban coffee ice cream was intensely coffee flavored and wonderful and the key lime ice cream was refreshingly creamy and delicious.

5. Wooden Spoon [Marathon]

We read about the Wooden Spoon in the key lime pie article so we grabbed a slice to go on the drive back to Miami. It's a little yellow dive diner on the side heading away from Key West and they make an interesting pie that's the consistency of whipped cream. It's very light and fluffy and mildly key lime flavored. There was much discussion whether the graham crack crust was homemade or packaged. I vote machine made since it was so evenly pressed, but Adam argued it was homemade by a highly skilled pie maker. The verdict is out, but the filling is definitely one of a kind and tasty in its own unique way.

Key Lime Pie Pilgrimage - Part I

For Christmas, we flew down to Miami to meet up with Adam's parents for vacation and spent a few days in Key West hunting down key lime pies to try using an from the New York Times as our guide, "Searching Margaritaville for the Perfect Key Lime Pie." While I'm a big fan of key lime pie, Adam and his parents are not natural fans of this tart treat, but they really embraced the spirit of our Key West adventures and enthusiastically sampled eight key lime treats.

8. Pepe's [Key West]

I had high hopes for this pie since the article mooned over it. Their crust has cinnamon in it which isn't my favorite. I like the tart filling, but the others preferred a milder key lime flavor. Kind of a weird tasting pie in my opinion.

7. Cole's Peace Bakery [Key West]

We stopped by Cole's Peace Bakery three times in three days, the food was so yummy. Wonderful homemade Cuban bread, delicious breakfast sandwiches and phenomenon sandwiches with home-roasted meats. I bought the key lime pie since everything else was so good and it was alright. Classic key lime pie with a graham cracker crust, nothing special. I don't think they sell many pies so I'm guessing the pies sit in the fridge for a while which might be part of the problem. There are better things to be enjoyed at Cole's and better key lime pies to sample elsewhere.

P.S. The bakery is attached to The Restaurant Store next door, a great [surprise] restaurant supply shop. I bought myself a nice big industrial whisk and 500 cupcake liners. Be sure to check it out.