Thanksgiving Pie Ordering Guide for the Fort Wayne Area

Thanksgiving week is the busiest stretch of our calendar. We typically bake 80–120 pies between Tuesday afternoon and Wednesday evening for Thursday-morning pickup, and we close orders for the week roughly two weeks before Thanksgiving. Here is the practical guide we send to every Fort Wayne, Columbia City, Huntertown, Larwill, and Whitley County customer who orders for the holiday.

Order by mid-October

For a Thanksgiving pickup, place your order by mid-October. We accept orders later than that, but availability narrows fast — by the first week of November, several pie varieties (especially Sugar Cream Pie, Pecan Pie, and Pumpkin Pie) are already sold out for Thursday pickup.

If you are ordering a custom Thanksgiving cake or a decorated holiday pie (a hand-cut leaf top, a flag pie, a personalized monogram), order three weeks ahead. Decorative work is a different lead time than a standard pie.

How many pies to order

A 9-inch pie serves 8 standard slices, but Thanksgiving slices are smaller — most hosts cut them into 10. The reliable formula:

• 4–6 guests: 1 pie (one variety)
• 7–10 guests: 2 pies (two varieties — typically pumpkin or sugar cream plus apple or pecan)
• 11–16 guests: 3 pies (three varieties)
• 17–24 guests: 4 pies
• 25+ guests: roughly 1 pie per 6 guests, with a mix that includes at least one chocolate option

Most Fort Wayne hosts order one fruit pie (apple or cherry), one custard or cream pie (pumpkin, sugar cream, or French silk), and one nut pie (pecan or peanut butter). The mix matters more than the count — guests almost always want options.

Which pies travel best for Thanksgiving

All of our pies travel well, but a few hold up notably better through a long Thursday: Apple, Dutch Apple, Cherry, Sugar Cream, and Pumpkin can sit at room temperature for 4–6 hours without textural change. Chocolate French Silk and Peanut Butter Pie should be refrigerated until about an hour before serving — they hold beautifully cold but soften quickly at warm room temperatures.

Thanksgiving pickup window

During Thanksgiving week, pickup is Wednesday afternoon (1:00–6:00 PM) and Thursday morning (8:00–11:00 AM) at our Columbia City, IN kitchen. We send the exact pickup address with the order confirmation. Most customers prefer Thursday morning — pies are at peak freshness within 24 hours of baking.

For customers driving in from Fort Wayne, Huntertown, Churubusco, or further east, plan an extra 15 minutes for Thanksgiving morning traffic on US-30 and SR 14. We start pickup at 8:00 AM specifically so customers can be home by mid-morning.

How to order

Browse the menu at birdiesbakingco.com/menu, add the pies you want to your cart, and check out. Pickup time is selected at checkout. If you want a custom mix or a quantity larger than 6 pies, email hello@birdiesbakingco.com directly — we coordinate large family orders by hand to make sure the bake schedule fits.