But the "Pie Mobile" days are long gone, as Abril has finally found a permanent home for Fookem’s Fabulous key lime pies in West Coconut Grove near the Coconut Grove Farmer's Market at 3606 Grand Ave.
Today, it's hard to miss his new sky-blue storefront with a pink awning, which is an ode to his signature pink umbrella-clad cart that he used to park outside of his driveway selling pies.
Although it's only been a couple of months since Fookem's Fabulous' soft opening, Abril tells New Times the entire neighborhood has already come out to support him. "The first day of the soft opening the whole neighborhood eventually ended up trickling in," Abril recalls. "They kept saying 'I'm so proud of you!' and it felt great because it's true. These are all my people. They've watched me grow this from a driveway operation, and they know how much work I put into it. The whole neighborhood rooted me on.'"
Fookem’s Fabulous' original "Pie Mobile" where Abril sold his original key lime pies.
Fookem’s Fabulous photo
From Selling Pies Out of the "Pie Mobile" to a Storefront of His Own
Back in 2020, when Abril lost his job as a reality TV assistant producer, much like most people in the TV industry, all he had left was a key lime pie recipe he was proud of. With nothing to lose and much time to spare, he saw it as an opportunity."I lived right on Oak Avenue, which gets a lot of visibility," he says. "In the beginning, I would slice the pies to eight slices, and if I sold all eight slices, it was a great day. I would bake one pie, pour myself a coffee, and walk along the water. It was amazing. I liked the idea of this growing it into something, but I didn't have any real faith in it until neighbors started coming up to me, telling me that it was going to go somewhere."
As more neighbors came looking for a slice, Abril had to figure out a way to properly sell them. He recalls not knowing where to source containers and relying on friends in the food and beverage industry and kind bakers behind a Publix counter for help. "The first time I sold a full pie, I realized I didn't have a container for them to travel with, so I had my father — a complete introvert — go to Publix and bother the people at the bakery."
After learning how to properly source containers, his next step was finding a way to be mobile. While searching on OfferUp, Abril found what he dubbed his piemobile. He would go around with the pink bike with a large pink umbrella and his logo on the side, waving down anyone who would pay attention."No kidding, at the time, drunk college kinds out at 3 in the morning were my best clients," he laughs.
Years of Trying to Find the Perfect Space Led Him to West Coconut Grove
While the pie mobile business started becoming a neighborhood gem, he says it felt real when he turned down the first opportunity to be back in TV. "If you work freelance, you don't turn down anything, but when I saw the brand kind of taking root, I didn't want to let it go. I remember I had just won the 2022 New Times Best Key Lime Pie." (Check out his 2022 New Times award for Best Key Lime Pie).Abril was fully invested in his pie business, but it was still difficult to stay afloat. He compared how he felt to running on a treadmill; every year he saw the business grow but the accessibility of things felt one step ahead.
At the time, Abril was working 16 to 18 hours a day, yet people didn't see it.
"I have gotten more support than I ever could have asked for from neighbors, from family, from friends, but I feel like I got overlooked by the institutions that you'd think are set up to help you," Abril says. "That really kind of pissed me off because they would tell me they didn't want this type of business on certain spaces because of the grease trap, but then a coffee shop would pop up there."
Finding a space felt impossible, but when doors closed a block from his house, Abril turned to West Coconut Grove (where most of his clients were from, anyway). In an ever-changing neighborhood, one of the main things that attracted him to the area was that it still felt like Coconut Grove.
"I've lived in so many places around the world, but all the neighborhoods I've loved that felt like villages within the cities got gentrified on me," he says. "So, I was very keen on sticking to my guts, keeping it here. This is where Fookem’s Fabulous should be. There's a lot of us that are keen on pertaining that heritage, if not visually because the Grove is changing, then at least in terms of the attitude and the ambiance."
Sky blue walls and a pink awning indicate you've arrived at Fookem’s Fabulous.
Fookem’s Fabulous photo
The menu includes full-size pies for $30; individual ones start at $6. A variety of key lime pies are available, including special flavors like coconut, espresso, guava, pineapple, and pistachio.
With four years in the making (and baking), Abril tells New Times it finally feels like he is coming off the treadmill. He has his own space, the pies are in high demand and can be found on menus at five area restaurants, two markets, and a vending machine in downtown Miami’s Julia & Henry’s food hall.
From the beginning, Abril emphasizes that he depended on his neighborhood, but slowly the local gem has become more mainstream — and he's proud of it.
"People that don't know Coconut Grove traditions and don't come here often might have read about me before and heard that I had a good pie," he says. "But generally, it still looked like a lemonade stand. Having a space seems to have given the operation a sense of legitimacy for the general crowd."
His hope for the business is to first stabilize what he sells in the new space, to become a neighborhood hub for his community, and also a bucket list location for all traveling to Miami.
Fookem’s Fabulous. 3606 Grand Ave., Coconut Grove. Open daily from 5 p.m. to 8:30 p.m. Thanksgiving hours are different.
