Harrows

You know how there are certain smells that just immediately make you remember your childhood? Well, for me, there is no other aroma that is quite as nostalgic as a fresh baked Harrows chicken pie.

We are in Reading, Massachusetts, at the very same spot where a chicken pie empire was born. All thanks to a couple of guys who you may be familiar with. “I'm Wally and I'm Dan, and we're the chicken pie guys.” Wally and Dan Arsenault are the brothers behind this legendary spot, and there is a long history behind these chicken pies.

“In the 1930s, Mr. and Mrs. Harrow opened up a roadside stand. Chicken pies was one of their products. We grew into a restaurant. Our dad owned the business for 40 or 50 years and we took over 30 years ago.”

These days there are no tables, there are no waitresses. It's just takeout and delivery only. “We have Saugus, Medford, Tewksbury, Dedham and Methuen.” So you just walk in here to Reading or any of the other Harrows stores. You pick the pie that you want. Do you want it frozen? Do you want it uncooked? You grab it at the counter and you're in and out the door in under two minutes. “If you want a hot pie, you can get it anytime. Just call us an hour ahead.”

How would I describe the chicken pies here? Basically, it is old-fashioned, scratch-made, New England-style comfort food done right. “Slow cooked chicken, homemade gravy, homemade crust, fresh cooked vegetables. So we use all white meat chicken breasts. We take the stock from that and make the gravy. At the same time, in another room they're cooking vegetables, potatoes and carrots. And then they're also making the crust every day homemade. Then they put it all together and there you go, chicken pie 24 hours later.”

What makes these chicken pies so special and so different from all the other chicken pot pies in the world? You have that signature golden, flaky crust, that rich smooth gravy, and huge hunks of slow-cooked white meat chicken. Some of these pieces look like an entire quarter of a chicken breast in just one forkful.

The pies come in four different sizes, from individual all the way to a jumbo size pie that can easily feed a family of six. You also have the choice between getting a pie with veggies or without veggies, and different customers—and even the owners—have strong opinions about it.

“It’s got to be the vegetables for me every time. You know? And when they don’t get it, I say, ‘what are they thinking?’” I like the no veg because that is just like a Thanksgiving dinner. You’ve got your meat and gravy, potatoes and vegetables on the side. It’s perfect.

I always get them with the veggies. You’re talking about nice fresh diced carrots and potatoes. The potatoes give you that nice little bit of earthiness, and the carrots bring a hint of sweetness and some nice color. But one thing you won’t find in the Harrows chicken pie is peas.

“The main reason is when Mrs. Harrow made her first pie in 1935, she left the peas out. We’ve been loyal to her formula for 90 years. We’re not going to change it now. It’s easy enough to add peas if you need to when you get home.”

And to hold it all together, the glue that brings it together is the gravy. It needs the perfect consistency—creamy but not too thick, flavorful but not soupy—and these guys nail it every single time. “I think having a rich stock makes a big difference, and you can get the chicken flavor right through the gravy.”

For the perfect chicken pie experience, you need a little bit of everything in one bite: the crust, the gravy, the chicken, the veggies all together. It’s piping hot, soft, and incredibly easy to eat. The gravy coats your mouth with this beautiful velvety texture, and then the chicken itself is just incredible—some of these chunks are huge. What is this, like an entire quarter chicken?

To round out your meal, they have plenty of homestyle sides as well. You’ve got cranberry sauce, mashed potatoes, and squash. My personal favorite are the signature Harrows rolls. These dinner rolls are fluffy, light, and the perfect vessel to soak up all that gravy at the end of your chicken pie plate.

And here’s a little inside tip: after you’re done eating your chicken pie, to round out the ultimate comfort food meal, you can get a fresh baked apple pie as well. I love chicken pies, I love apple pie, I love Harrows.

“Harrows Chicken Pies is a perfect solution for a busy family’s dinner. It is homemade. It is fresh vegetables, fresh chicken.” “You give us a call, say ‘give us a hot pie ready at 4:30.’ We’ll have it ready to go. Get a side of rolls, mashed potatoes also made fresh every day, fresh squash. Go home. You’ve got a complete meal ready to go. Everybody’s happy.”

So now you know the history. And now all you’ve got to do is try it for yourself at Harrows Chicken Pies.