Our Story
Baking pies and sharing family traditions since 1986
A Little Girl’s First Pies
Long before Julian Pie Company opened its doors, Elizabeth “Liz” Smothers discovered the joy of baking beside her mother. Born July 20, 1937, and the youngest of eight children, Liz treasured a simple childhood memory:
“One of my fondest memories is standing on a box beside my mother, putting leftover pie dough in a metal jar lid to make a pie.”
Those small pies were the beginning of a lifelong love of baking and sharing something made with care.
After high school, Liz worked as a telephone operator in Humboldt, Kansas. During that time, she married her high school sweetheart, Keith Smothers.
Liz and Keith raised five children: Dave, Joni, Dan, Amy, and Tim. Family was central to their lives, and over the years, several of their children and grandchildren contributed to Julian Pie Company.
A Dream of Her Own
Liz’s path to opening a pie shop began when she and a neighbor peeled apples for a local bakery. Soon she was baking and selling pies, with her son Tim helping after school by rolling dough into pie tins. Two other pie shops recognized her skill and hired her to bake for them.
Liz enjoyed the work, but she wanted the freedom to create a pie of her own. In September 1986, with help from a friend, Liz opened Julian Pie Company.
From the beginning, Liz believed a good pie started with simple ingredients, freshly peeled apples, and a neat, clean bakery. Above all, she wanted to make a pie just like her mother made.
Keith and the Orchard
In 1989, Liz and Keith purchased an apple farm. Keith planted 17,000 trees with help from his sons Dave, Dan, and Tim, and Tim’s high school friend Cliff Manzke.
Keith cared for the orchard, which grew Jonathan and Golden Delicious apples for the pie shop. Keith also purchased Granny Smith apples from other local growers when available. His work extended into the bakery, where he made pie dough under Liz’s watchful eye, peeled apples, and pressed apples into cider.
After the family sold the orchard, Keith began sourcing primarily Granny Smith apples. Their tartness was enough to make a person pucker, and they kept well in cold storage. Once sorted for consistent shape and size, they were easily peeled by the company’s old belt-and-gear-driven F.B. Pease apple peeling machine and, later, its German-built machines. They proved to be the perfect apple for the company’s pies.
Growing in Santa Ysabel
As more local markets began carrying Julian Pie Company pies, the business needed room to grow. The Santa Ysabel facility opened in 1992.
The new facility expanded production, allowing the company to deliver pies to more stores in San Diego and Riverside counties, as well as ship pies throughout the United States.
Through that growth, Liz remained committed to the standards she had established since the beginning. She credited the company’s success to its dedicated bakers and the staff who cared for customers each day.
The Family Tradition Continues
The company remains a family effort. As the oldest of Liz and Keith’s children, Dave carries on the family’s baking tradition at Santa Ysabel. He makes the company’s pecan pies each week and its pumpkin pies during the season.
Dave also brought a taste of the family’s years in Alabama to the pecan pies. In the late 1970s and early 1980s, the Smothers family lived in the small town of Awin, about 33 miles from Fort Deposit, home to Priester’s Pecans. Remembering how delicious their pecans were, Dave arranged for Julian Pie Company to source them directly from Priester’s. It is a connection rooted in family memories and an appreciation for quality ingredients.
His care for the company extends beyond the pies. Every Thursday morning, Dave cooks breakfast for the bakers, taking care of the people who help bring Julian Pie Company’s pies to customers’ tables.
Their youngest son, Tim, guides the company’s day-to-day operations, working alongside family and staff to carry Liz’s standards forward.
Tim’s wife, Brandi, selects the gifts, Julian Pie Company merchandise, and apparel offered in the stores. She also creates the in-store displays, bringing her eye for distinctive pieces and welcoming spaces to each shop.
Their oldest daughter, Cierra, works alongside Brandi on purchasing, restocking, and displays. She also helps tend the outdoor plantings and contributes to social media.
Together, Brandi and Cierra run The Barn Vintage Marketplace, their own business featuring vintage, industrial, architectural, and leather home décor. Their influence can be seen throughout the shops, especially at the newest Julian Pie Company Store. Visitors who enjoy the décor can explore more of their finds at The Barn.
Brandi also welcomes guests to Shady Acres, a vacation home between Julian and Santa Ysabel, with The Barn just steps away. Its eclectic interiors reflect the same personal touches she brings to the shops. For visitors wishing to linger a little longer, it offers a place to settle in and enjoy the area, with a Julian Pie Company pie and cookies included in every stay.
Journey helps manage the Julian property and counter staff and contributes to social media and marketing. Her years managing a busy coffee roastery and coffee bar gave her a particular passion for the company’s in-house coffee offerings and the customer experience, from a well-made cup to a welcoming interaction at the counter.
Rayven works alongside Yolanda Gonzalez in the bakery, learning from her experience and helping bake the pies. She also takes pride in keeping the outdoor spaces at all three locations welcoming and beautifully maintained, overseeing landscaping and maintenance. Her work extends to helping design and develop new equipment and making pie deliveries when needed.
Lyric balances high school with weekend work in the family business, primarily at the Julian shops and occasionally at Santa Ysabel. She especially enjoys working alongside some of her closest childhood friends. She also brings a keen eye to selecting Julian Pie Company apparel and branded drinkware, helping choose items visitors can take home as a reminder of their visit.
Yolanda and Victor: Growing With the Family
Yolanda Gonzalez was just fifteen when she began working as a busser at the Julian Pie Company Restaurant. The Smothers family opened the restaurant on June 10, 1998, and sold it in June 2000 while retaining the name, choosing to focus on making pies. Yoli continued with the company in the bakery.
One day, when an employee attempted to organize a walkout, Yoli quietly stepped to the front of the production line and kept the day’s baking moving. The team followed her lead without missing a beat. Liz was awestruck. That day, she recognized something special in Yoli, who earned her place as production manager and has carried Liz’s standards forward ever since.
Her husband, Victor, joined the company a few years after they married. He makes pie dough, drives trucks, operates the fruit mixer and chicken pot pie equipment, and helps care for the outdoor properties. He is also Yoli’s biggest supporter.
Together, Yoli and Victor bring years of skill, loyalty, and care to Julian Pie Company. The Smothers family is deeply grateful for their place in its story.
Remembering Liz and Keith
Keith passed away on March 15, 2010. Liz continued baking and guiding the company while entrusting more of its daily operations to Tim.
Liz passed away on May 3, 2022. To her family, she was much more than the founder of a pie company. She loved a family gathering, a porch swing, and a glass of iced tea. She loved her children and grandchildren, and she cared deeply about the people who worked alongside her.
Her attention to detail shaped the business. Her affection for people gave it its character. Both remain part of Julian Pie Company today.
A Place to Remember
Liz and Keith rest together at Haven of Rest Cemetery, on the hillside just above the Julian shop she founded. Between their names on the headstone is a sunflower drawn by their granddaughter, Journey, a personal tribute from one generation to another.
Closer to the bustle of the shops, a bench dedicated to Liz and Keith sits in the courtyard between the original Julian location and the Julian Pie Company Store. Journey also drew the sunflowers that adorn the bench. Her artwork connects these two places of remembrance, one on the hillside and one among the visitors her grandparents loved to welcome.
The swings around the shops have a story, too. Liz loved sitting on a porch swing with an Arnold Palmer, enjoying the simple pleasure of iced tea and lemonade and a little time to relax. The family placed the swings in her memory so others could share something she enjoyed.
Visitors who settle into a swing or take a seat on the bench share a small part of what made this place home to the Smothers family.
In Her Own Words
Inside the Julian Pie Company Store at 2229 Main Street, Liz’s story continues in her own voice.
Videos playing in the store show her sharing her memories, demonstrating how to make a pie, and explaining how to bake one of the company’s frozen, unbaked pies at home. Visitors can also watch a TODAY Show feature narrated by Al Roker about Liz, her family and the business.
The piano music accompanying Liz’s personal videos has a family story of its own. Tim plays the introductions, background music, and closing passages using chords from “Who’d Have Thought?”, a song he wrote for his mother years ago.
For the family, these recordings preserve something precious: the chance to hear her voice, watch her work, and share those moments with people who may never have met her. Visitors are invited to stop in, spend a little time with Liz, and hear the story from the woman who started it all.
Remembering Amy
Tim and Dave’s sister, Amy Chacksfield, worked in the family business at different times throughout her life. She passed away on June 10, 2024, after a recurrence of breast cancer. She remains a cherished part of the family’s story.
Come Share a Slice
Today, visitors can find Julian Pie Company at the original Julian shop at 2225 Main Street, the Santa Ysabel location at 21976 Highway 79, and the newest Julian Pie Company Store at 2229 Main Street.
Whether someone stops in for the first time, makes a visit part of a family tradition, brings home a pie from a neighborhood market, or receives one in the mail, the Smothers family is grateful to be part of those moments. Together with their staff, they continue the work Liz began: making pies with care and welcoming the people who enjoy them.
