With flaky pastry, luscious fillings and an instant warming effect, pies are a true winter wonder. This edition of Specials Board is dedicated to the Melbourne venues not only nailing their house-baked pies, but offering them at wallet-friendly prices at dedicated times.

$25 pie floater night, North Fitzroy Arms, Fitzroy North

Ever had a pie floater? The South Australian invention is a signature at rebooted boozer, the North Fitzroy Arms, which has launched a Tuesday night special where the pie is $25 instead of the usual $32. Starring O’Connor beef cheek and Guinness, each pie is served with a scoop of mash, super-green pea soup and house-made tomato sauce.

296 Rae Street, Fitzroy North, northfitzroyarms.com.au

$80 share-sized pies, Reed House, CBD

Pies have just become a permanent fixture at hatted mod-British diner Reed House. Available every day except Sunday, they’re made with the team’s own suet pastry and baked to order, with rotating fillings including ox cheek and Guinness gravy with a marrow bone in the centre. Plus, one pie can feed up to four people.

130 Lonsdale Street, Melbourne, reedhousemelbourne.com

$20 pies, Retreat Hotel, Abbotsford

Twenty bucks is all you need for a hearty Thursday feed at the old-school Retreat Hotel. For both lunch and dinner, there’s a deal on house-made pies, dished up with chips, salad and gravy. They’re usually $27, so that’s an extra $7 to spend at happy hour.

226 Nicholson Street, Abbotsford, retreatabbotsford.com.au

$20 curry pot pies, Silk Spoon, CBD

In addition to the two-hatted Lee Ho Fook, chef Victor Liong also runs city lunch hotspot Silk Spoon, where the curry pot pies are always $20. There’s crisp roti on top and fragrant chicken curry within. “It’s such a clever melding of comfort and quality and is one of my favourite dishes of the year,” The Age chief restaurant critic Besha Rodell wrote in 2024.

Shop 6/500 Bourke Street, Melbourne, silkspoon.com.au

$25 pie night, Vic Hotel, Footscray

West-side watering hole, the Vic Hotel, now does a weekly pie night. Every Tuesday from 5pm, a different trio of pies is on offer, each served with creamy mash and peas for $25. Expect the likes of steak and ale, chicken and leek, and curried cauliflower.

43 Victoria Street, Footscray, vichotelfootscray.com.au

$20 pies, Wilbury & Sons, Moorabbin

In the south-east, this friendly neighbourhood boozer takes pride in well-poured pints of Guinness and well-priced plates of pub grub. That’s particularly true on Fridays – from noon to 3pm – when the house-made pie of the day is just $20 with chips and salad. One of the most popular past flavours? Butter chicken.

4/6 Station Street, Moorabbin, wilburyandsons.com.au

$34 pie and pinot, O’Connell’s Hotel, South Melbourne

Make your Monday a little less mundane at O’Connell’s in South Melbourne. The pub’s wild boar, sweet potato and winter vegetable pie is normally $38, but from noon on Monday, $34 buys you not only the pie but also a glass of Save Our Souls pinot noir.

407 Coventry Street, South Melbourne, oconnells.com.au

$25 pie night, Albion Hotel, Collingwood

Bodriggy beers are an obvious lure at the brewery’s Smith Street pub, the Albion, but weekly specials sweeten the deal. Visit from 3pm on Tuesday to find a rotating pie, served piping hot with chips and salad, for $25. Follow it up with trivia at 7pm.

314 Smith Street, Collingwood, albionhotel.pub

$35 pie and pint night, The Espy, St Kilda

From live music to its recently opened Sunroom bar, there’s always something going on at The Espy. The wintry drawcard on Wednesdays from 5pm is the pie of the week and a drink for $35. That could mean a pie floater with either a pint of Guinness, Carlton Draught or cider – or a glass of house wine.

11 The Esplanade, St Kilda, hotelesplanade.com.au

$25 pie night, St Andrews Hotel, Fitzroy

Right across from Carlton Gardens, this longstanding pub has a wallet-friendly special every night of the week. It’s all about pies on Wednesday evenings when $25 scores you the house-baked pie of the day with a side of buttery mash, greens and gravy.

124 Nicholson Street, Fitzroy, standrewshotel.com.au

$35 pie and pinot, Teller, Brunswick East

Another player in the pie and pinot game is north-side bar Teller. From noon each Thursday, a new pot-pie flavour is available, such as brisket, black garlic and Guinness. It’s $35 with Paris mash and a glass of Holm Oak pinot noir from Tasmania.

81 Lygon Street, Brunswick East, tellerbrunswickeast.com.au