On Dec. 23, Nonie’s Restaurant & Bakery in downtown Peterborough was set to be far from sleepy.
Owners and bakers Greg and Kate Smith, alongside employee Sarah Crocker, were going to be in the kitchen bright and early chopping apples, baking pies and taking last-minute holiday orders. Nonie’s will also be open for diners, so the establishment is sure to be bustling and busy.
“It really gets you into the holiday spirit,” Kate said, adding that when customers come in Dec. 24, they “will walk into a wall of pies ready to be picked up.” During Thanksgiving, the team made more than 100 pies, and they expect Christmas week will be similar. The pies have become a tradition, and many loyal customers come back year after year.
Greg has owned Nonie’s since 2001.
“The first time I walked in there it was like walking through Grandma’s kitchen and I loved it,” he said.
Greg and Kate have worked hard to maintain that comfortable, cozy atmosphere as the town changes and new restaurants pop up around them.
“Nonie’s has always been a gathering place for locals,” Kate said, and the Smiths know it is important to keep the space family friendly and welcoming to the community. They have staved off pressure to offer brunch cocktails, which could potentially be a big money-maker, in a concerted effort keep alcohol off the menu. Kate said there are AA members who frequent the location and “we need to keep it a safe place for them to eat.”
Nonie’s has kept its brand consistent and reliable over the years, and their pies are a holiday item the Smith family works hard to keep alive. From taking family weekend trips apple-picking to buying fresh, local ingredients, Nonie’s is committed to starting with community-grown produce.
“I think you put so much more into a pie, the whole process of preparing it, the tradition,” Greg said.
Kate added, “You make pies for the taste, flavor, experience.”
This year, Nonie’s is offering a variety of pie flavors and holiday baked goods and can accommodate most pre-orders with special requests and dietary restrictions.
“Because we make everything by hand, we can be very accommodating,” Kate said.
This year’s pie options include apple, blueberry, chocolate cream, cherry, Dutch apple, pecan and pumpkin, and the newest addition is a chocolate cannoli pie, filled with cream cheese, ricotta and vanilla and topped with thick whipped cream, bits of cannoli shell and chocolate chips. Kate explained the pie is a tribute to Greg’s Italian heritage, and a popular new flavor. Customers can also order deep-dish apple crisp, pumpkin bread and cinnamon buns.
Like most restaurants in town, the pandemic has been challenging for Nonie’s. It has been tough to keep enough staff, and the bridge project cut off normal downtown traffic for a while. Despite these difficulties, Nonie’s has persisted and given back to the community. Kate said, “One of our proudest moments” was the restaurant’s involvement in Community Meals To Go, a donation-based program sponsored by the Cornucopia Project that paid a handful of local restaurants to prepare pick up meals twice a week in 2021. She said they were providing 150 meals a week, which were in turn given out to those struggling with food insecurity in the area.
The Smiths are hopeful that with the bridge into town newly open, access to downtown restaurants will improve, and they are looking forward to a successful 2022. Greg is excited to have homemade soups back, an effort Crocker is leading. She is currently making three to four soups a week.
“A lot of people just think we are a bakery, but we are so much more,” Kate said.
Nonie’s is open 8 a.m. to 2 p.m. Monday through Saturday, and is closed on Tuesdays. On Sunday, hours are 8 a.m. to 1 p.m. Whole pies can be ordered year-round with 48 hours notice.