photo by: Josie Heimsoth/Journal-World

Aunt Netters Cafe, pictured on July 3, 2024, was declared fourth place for best pie shops in the United States, according to USA Today.

A Lecompton cafe has made its way into the Top 5 on USA Today’s reader’s choice list of the best pie shops in America.

Aunt Netters Cafe, a family-owned eatery offering homestyle meals to the Lecompton area, ranked fourth on USA Today’s list. Many of the community’s favorites include coconut cream, peanut butter chocolate and caramel apple pecan. Annette Nally, co-owner and baker, said all of the pies are made from scratch with homemade crust and filling.

USA Today, describing the cafe’s pies, says: “Cream pies span from key lime to peanut butter chocolate, while the restaurant’s Dutch pies come loaded with a healthy serving of pralines to sweeten the deal.”

photo by: Adobe Stock

The coconut cream pie at Aunt Netters Cafe in Lecompton is a community favorite.

“It’s pretty crazy,” Nally said of the accolade. “I do it because I love it, but it makes the hard work and long hours worth it a little bit more. ”

Nally said she had always loved to bake, and she taught herself how to make pies. The cafe was the perfect place to continue her passion.

“Once we got the restaurant open, I started selling pies here. Everybody loved them, so that’s how it all got started,” she said.

Nally said the cafe had to wait a month for the final announcement of its appearance in the Top 10 after it received a surprise email declaring a spot in the Top 20.

At the end of the day, the community and its voters thought Aunt Netters was some of the best in the pie-making business, and it was the only Kansas cafe to make the list. The pie shops ahead of Aunt Netters are Pie Junkie in Oklahoma in third, My Sugar Pie in Indiana in second and Stockholm Pie and General Store in Wisconsin in first.

Aunt Netters Cafe – getting its name from Annette herself – was established in 2014 by Nally. She and her husband, Jamin Nally, and members of their family grew up in Lecompton, and Nally said she doesn’t know where the business would be without the community’s supoort.

“It just feels like a big family,” Nally said. “The customers that have come in here have become family to us.”

In addition to its well-known pies, the cafe also offers cupcakes and cinnamon rolls. The cafe serves breakfast and lunch options throughout the day, with Jamin leading the kitchen.

“He’s been in food service for over 20 years,” Nally said. “He’s also probably one of the best breakfast cooks I’ve ever met.”

For those interested in baking their first pie, Nally said practice makes perfect.

“You learn as you go and don’t give up if the first pie doesn’t turn out the exact way you like,” Nally said.

The cafe, at 340 Elmore St. in Lecompton, is open Wednesday through Sunday from 7 a.m. to 2 p.m.