Can you handle the heat? Iconic Black Country pie factory preparing spicy challenge for World Cup
An iconic part of the Black Country food scene is challenging customers to tackle the heat through a new spicy pie ahead of the World Cup.
Spice lovers and patriotic England supporters alike are being invited to take on a new and very hot challenge at an iconic Black Country restaurant.
The team at Mad O’Rourke’s Pie Factory in Tipton are putting the finishing touches on a beef vindaloo pie ahead of the start of the 2026 World Cup on June 11.
The pie will be available for people to buy and try, with a certificate being handed out to anyone able to complete the pie.
The pie comes as the result of a post on Facebook from the restaurant asking for ideas for a special World Cup pie and manager Jenna Morris said the majority of replies had been for vindaloo, invoking the spirit of the Fat Les song from 1998.
She said: “We put the post on Facebook a couple of weeks ago as we didn’t know what pie to do for the World Cup and people said vindaloo.
“We then thought that we should make it into a challenge, which is why we’ve got the certificates as well, so we’re going to try and make it as spicy as we can and there’s a lot of people who’ve said they’d love to give it a go.
“Customers have been coming in and asking about it, so I think they’re all really intrigued, and I think a few men will, after a few pints, want to have a go because they’ll want the certificate.”
The new pie is the latest creation by the Pie Factory, following on from the Tyson Fury pie, made of brisket and onions, the Andy Murray curry pie, the Tipton Mafia Bolognese pie and the Chicken Kyiv pie, which was chicken in a rich garlic sauce.
Ms Morris said it was nice to be able to create pies customers wanted to try and said she was looking forward to trying it herself, as was the owner Pete Towler.
She said: “We like to be different and I like to speak to customers and get their ideas, because that is, ideally, who we want to please.
“We’re going to launch it on June 11 and we’ll see how it goes, but obviously, we’d like to keep it on for the duration of the World Cup, or at least as long as England are in it.”
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