HUNTINGTON — The fan favorite of late spring — Jim’s Steak and Spaghetti’s Strawberry Pie Week — won’t take place again in 2023.
Jim’s Steak and Spaghetti House on 5th Avenue in Huntington would be packed with customers annually during Strawberry Pie Week, a five-day sprint beginning the Tuesday after Mother’s Day when the restaurant would serve up its legendary dessert to customers who wait in a line wrapped around the block. More than 10,000 slices of pie were usually served in a week.
However, on Thursday, the restaurant posted to its Facebook page that the event had been canceled for the fourth consecutive year. The post said the restaurant’s head chef and kitchen manager had not been working due to medical issues and is the only person qualified to make the limited-time pie. The restaurant’s post also said Jim’s would need to hire at least 30 extra workers to help make the pies, which isn’t possible in current conditions.
Bradley Tweel, the restaurant’s general manager, said he would love to continue doing Strawberry Pie Week, but under current circumstances, it simply isn’t possible. Tweel said the restaurant is understaffed for regular hours, let alone what it would take to pull off strawberry pie week.
The event was first canceled in 2020 due to the COVID-19 pandemic and has yet to make a return since. Tweel said he doesn’t know when, or if, the event might return. Jim’s celebrated 45 years of Strawberry Pie Week in 2019.
Last year the restaurant allowed patrons to enter their names into a drawing to win a free strawberry pie. Tweel said it is still being determined if such a possibility will be allowed this year.
The iconic Huntington restaurant will celebrate its 85th year in business on June 9 with a limited discounted menu, music and free cake.
