Tony's

Date of visit: 10th October 2026
Score: 10/10

On the Saturday of my visit, I had a few hours to kill in the afternoon. I was ferrying people around in my car and running errands. I found myself in Waltham Abbey, home of the grave of the last Saxon King of England. In 1066, we spoke a different language - similar to Dutch and German. Then the Normans turned up, defeated a tired English army and polluted the language. Well, sort of. I’m sure there’s a more accurate historical record somewhere.

Anyway, after paying my respects to our King of nearly 1000 years ago, I popped into Tony’s Traditional Pie and Mash shop on the market square. I’ve had Tony’s pies before in Grays and they are very popular. So popular, in fact, that the shop has two delivery vans. He’s been making them for 30 years. Also, the shop was full at 1400 on a Saturday with people coming and going. I managed to get a seat, but I was quick to leave to free it up for others. They sell a lot of pies.

The shop is well-staffed and they are friendly. I ordered a single-single with liquor for £6.50. It was served immediately and was nice and hot. The double-double is £11.40. These prices are reasonable. Gravy is available instead of liquor, if you are that way inclined.

Everything is as it should be. The liquor was gelatinous, the portion of mash was good and the pie was delicious. There was one thing though - the pastry was a bit soggy on the bottom, but otherwise everything was top notch, if a little salty. If this had been somewhere else, I might have dropped a mark, but this is a personal preference of mine. The shop is busy, doing well and people clearly enjoy the food there.

Now the mash was scraped on the plate and there is a debate whether this is the authentic way to serve mash for pie and mash. Let’s leave this for another time. But in the meantime, if you are in the area, pay your respects to Harold and have lunch afterwards at Tony’s. If you can’t, you can get them delivered.

Tony’s Pie & Mash
Address: 10 Market Square, Waltham Abbey, EN9 1DP
Web: www.tonyspieandmash.co.uk
Tel: 01992 652798
Hours: 1030-1700 Mon-Sat