Pie News

Humble Pie Shop in East Dallas suffers destructive fire in kitchen

Fire at Humble Pie on Garland Road.

Photo by Humble Pie

A pie shop in East Dallas caught fire on March 2: Humble Pie Shop, located at 9014 Garland Rd., suffered a fire in its kitchen, which neighbors said had a devastating effect, with black smoke that was visible for miles.

Firefighters responded to an emergency call that came in at approximately 4:15 pm on Wednesday.

There were no injuries, but the thick dark smoke could be seen straight across White Rock Lake.

Employees in the shopping center said they heard an explosion.

Maeleska Fletes, a nail therapist at Rocket Science Salon, witnessed the fire and said the kitchen looked to be "completely gone."

"I was in the back of the salon getting ready to leave and I heard a loud boom," Fletes said. "I went out front to see what it was and saw black bellowing smoke coming out of the back of the building. At first, I wasn't sure if it was Humble Pie or Suffer City. The owner of Suffer City was there and he went running in to check to make sure it wasn't his."

"I walked over to Humble Pie and looked in the window and could see flames through the window all the way in the back in the kitchen," she says. "I opened the door and hollered in if everyone was OK and the employees came running out."

Photos from Channel 11 show a large burned-out portion in the back of the pie shop, with an exposed interior and broken glass. The two businesses next to the Pie Shop included K9 Club, a dog grooming business which was closed but looked in photos like it had burning on its roof, and Suffer City, a tattoo shop.

It did, however, delay special services at White Rock United Methodist Church, just down the street on Old Gate Lane; March 2 was Ash Wednesday.

Owners Sean and Erin Jett opened Humble Pie in 2018 in a former barber shop. The pie shop had a dining room and counter in front, with all of its pies and equipment in a back room.

The couple was unavailable for comment but Sean said in a post that "food was a total loss. The fire was extensive."

The shop posted an update on its Facebook page:

"Please say prayers. This afternoon the pie shop caught fire. We don't know the extent of it, but all of the staff at our shop and all of the neighboring shops are safe. We will post more when we can."

And signed it, "Sean and Erin, The Humble Family."

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Texas races to the bottom in new list of best states for cyclists

Photo by Garry Neesam on Unsplash

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In what will come as no surprise to cyclists around Dallas, the state of Texas is not a good place for bicycling riding. According to a new report of the "Most Cycling-Friendly States in the U.S.," Texas comes in at No. 47 — meaning that only three other states are worse.

The report, from Philadelphia personal injury law firm KaplunMarx, examines all 50 states based on six metrics: Air quality index, the number of cyclist deaths per one million residents, bike routes per square mile, local government actions supporting cycling, federal funding for cycling projects, and bicycle laws.

Texas musters a mere 31 points out of 100 for its "cycling friendly score."

The most cycling friendly state in the U.S.: Minnesota, which earned 84 points to claim the title.

According to the report's findings, there have been 15 local government actions per capita in Texas that integrate pedestrians and cyclists in transportation projects. Texas' has a 41 air quality index value, and there are approximately 1.2 bike routes per 1,000 square miles in the state.

On cyclist deaths, Texas does a little better, with three cyclist deaths per one million residents in Texas — about nine percent lower than the national average.

According to KaplunMarx founding partner Ted Kaplun, there is an average of 857 cyclist fatalities in the U.S. every year. He adds that every measure or community effort to improve cyclist-friendliness is beneficial for all Americans.

"It's crucial for all states to continually assess and enhance their cycling provisions, learning from both high-ranking peers and their own experiences," he says.

Top-ranking Minnesota has only one cyclist death per one million state residents. It also has about 27.2 bike routes per 1,000 square miles.

After Minnesota, the remaining top five best states for cyclists are Massachusetts (No. 2), Rhode Island (No. 3), Washington (No. 4), and Iowa (No. 5).

At the bottom of the list are Nevada (No. 48), Arizona (No. 49), and Utah (No. 50) — all of which performed far worse than Texas to be declared the three least cycling-friendly states.

The entire country still has areas for improvement when it comes to creating a safer environment for cyclists, regardless of where each state landed on the list, according to Kaplun.

"With over 53 million Americans riding bicycles regularly, the importance of cycling-friendly infrastructure and safety measures cannot be overstated," said Kaplun in the report. "This isn't just about rankings – it's about enhancing the quality of life, promoting sustainable transportation, and most crucially, saving lives."

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