From Portside Culture <[email protected]>
Subject From Fireman to Pieman: How a Miami Firefighter Baked up a Pie Empire
Date October 4, 2022 12:05 AM
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[Derek Kaplan always had a knack for baking since he was a teen
but took a detour to become a firefighter before reigniting his
passion for piemaking. When he wasn’t helping the good citizens of
Miami, he would bake out of a shared industrial kitchen. Soon, menus
across Miami would proclaim: “We proudly offer Fireman Derek’s
Famous Key Lime Pies.” ]
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PORTSIDE CULTURE

FROM FIREMAN TO PIEMAN: HOW A MIAMI FIREFIGHTER BAKED UP A PIE EMPIRE
 
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Laine Doss
September 30, 2022
Broken Palate
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_ Derek Kaplan always had a knack for baking since he was a teen but
took a detour to become a firefighter before reigniting his passion
for piemaking. When he wasn’t helping the good citizens of Miami, he
would bake out of a shared industrial kitchen. Soon, menus across
Miami would proclaim: “We proudly offer Fireman Derek’s Famous Key
Lime Pies.” _

Derek Kaplan , Courtesy of Fireman Derek’s Bake Shop

 

Miami is filled with a diverse and interesting blend of restaurants
and bakeries but none might be as endearing as the pie shop that’s
owned by a former fireman.

Fireman Derek’s Bake Shop offer pies in an array of flavors — with
each slice the size of the proverbial kitten that firemen iconically
rescue from trees. Derek Kaplan always had a knack for cooking and
baking since he was a teen, but took a detour to become a firefighter
before reigniting (fire pun intended) his passion for piemaking.

“When I was a teenager, I knew how to cook. I wanted to perfect a
good dessert, so I learned how to make key lime pie. It was a natural
fit,” Kaplan tells Broken Palate.

Though he had talents in the kitchen, Kaplan wasn’t yet ready to
devote himself to the culinary arts. “I didn’t know if I felt
passionate about it yet in terms of doing it as a career. I was
figuring out what I liked to do and what I wanted to be,” he says.
Kaplan decided to pursue a career as a firefighter, which he did for a
decade. But baking kept calling to him. “I was a firefighter, but I
didn’t move up in the ranks, because in my spare time I was working
my business,” he confides.

That business — a food truck named Fireman Derek’s Famous Key Lime
Pies — was Kaplan’s side hustle. When he wasn’t helping the good
citizens of Miami (and maybe a few kitties), Kaplan would bake out of
a shared industrial kitchen in the Wynwood neighborhood of Miami. A
dozen years ago, Wynwood was still an affordable area, filled with
warehouses and factories. Kaplan and his father, Joel, would bake pies
until the early hours of the morning on his days off. Then, Kaplan
would sell slices of his key lime pie out of his truck. 

The pies caught on. Restaurants started ordering the pies to offer
diners. Soon, menus across Miami would proclaim: “We proudly offer
Fireman Derek’s Famous Key Lime Pies.” In 2013, Kaplan opened his
first shop, practically next door to his baking facility. The shop was
barely a counter. It was so small that no more than two — maybe
three — patrons could fit in the tiny space. Still, people came —
queuing in the hot Florida sun for a pie. 

Today, Kaplan has since moved his flagship shop to a larger space with
seating for customers just a few blocks south of his original space. A
second pie shop is located in Coconut Grove, and Kaplan is opening a
third shop in Fort Lauderdale any day now. He now bakes out of a
kitchen farther north, in the Little River neighborhood, and has a
dedicated staff who helps him turn out a full line of pies, cakes, and
other baked goods.

Although the key lime pie is the one that put him on the map, it’s
his guavaberry pie that makes my heart sing: Kaplan mixes a blend of
fresh berries with tropical Florida guava, topping the pie with
streusel. 

Other popular pies include a grasshopper, coconut cream, and a dense
salted caramel with an oatmeal crust that reads more like a buttery
pastry than pie. 

Kaplan says he’s honored when people from another city come to take
a selfie in front of his shop. “We are in neighborhoods that are
truly part of the Miami food scene. We’re part of that.”

Kaplan also says there’s no better satisfaction than when he sees
people enjoying some of his pie. “Food is something that you can
share with friends and family. It’s such a delight. The smell, the
sight, the taste — it’s all an experience.”

Next time you’re in Miami or Fort Lauderdale (opening soon), check
out Fireman Derek’s [[link removed]] or
order a pie from Goldbelly
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slice of Miami delivered to your door.

* firefighters
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* Bakery
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