Where to find great pies on Long Island

A freshly baked blackberry pie at Hometown Bake Shop in Centerport.

Diane's Bakery Cafe

Diane's Bakery Cafe (23 Bryant Ave., Roslyn): More info: Diane Margaritis strives to get her pies and tarts as close as possible to the ones she makes at home. For her apple pie, for instance, this means using fresh New York State apples and as little starch as she can get away with: She'd rather have a runny filling than one that's too firm. She also eschews cinnamon in favor of nutmeg and lemon juice, which heighten the appleness rather than masking it. No matter the time of year, customers clamor for Diane's three-berry pie, a delectable combination of blueberries, raspberries and strawberries under a lattice top. More info: 516-621-2522, dianesroslyn.com

Hometown Bake Shop

Hometown Bake Shop (2 Little Neck Rd., Centerport): The Hometown style--equal parts homey and avant-garde and exuberant--can now be enjoyed at a second, Patchogue location. Cakes, muffins, scones, biscuits, pastries and sandwiches are all recommended, but don't miss Danna Abrams' pies. Regular sweet flavors include apple, mixed berry, strawberry-rhubarb, pecan, black-bottom bourbon walnut and coconut-, banana-, and chocolate-cream pies. Savory pies include chili-cornbread, Nanna's meatball pie and Bubbe's pie, filled with brisket and topped with a latke. (Other location at 16 Havens Ave., Patchogue.) More info: hometownbakeshop.com

Youngs Farm

Youngs Farm (91 Hegemans Lane, Glen Head): Located on a bucolic lane in Old Brookville, Youngs is a picture-perfect farm stand selling produce, prepared foods, preserves and baked goods. The pastry for the terrific pies is made in an unorthodox fashion: Shortening and flour are blended with a handheld mixer, a method that results in large batches of pie dough that taste like small batches. Seasonal apple pies rule this time of year, along with raspberry-peach and pear crumb. The dark-cherry pie, made from Washington state Bing cherries and topped with lattice, is a revelation. Youngs' pies also are sold at Sweetie Pies on Main in Cold Spring Harbor. More info: 516-626-3955, youngs.farm

Briermere Farms

Briermere Farms (4414 Sound Ave., Riverhead): With its cultlike following, Briermere Farms is Long Island's pie colossus. On a fall weekend, hundreds of people (some of whom have parked a quarter mile away) converge on the old farmhouse to choose from among the more than two dozen pies. According to Clark McCombe, whose family has owned Briermere since 1960, almost all the fruit used is grown right there on the farm. The signature style is the "cream pie," an open-faced pie filled with fluffy cream and topped with fruit. More info: 631-722-3931, briermere.com

Carissa's The Bakery

Carissa's The Bakery (68 Newtown Lane, East Hampton): Carissa Waechter sells a double-crust apple pie and a seasonal fruit pie crowned with peaks of golden meringue, but the rest of the stock is subject to the market and the baker's inspiration. It might include local Concord grape pie, cranberry-pear maple meringue pie, pumpkin-delicata squash pie or apple pie with bacon lattice and rosemary crust. (Other location at 221 Pantigo Road, East Hampton). More info: 631-527-5996, carissasthebakery.com

Jericho Cider Mill

Jericho Cider Mill (213 Route 106, Jericho): Jericho Cider Mill is Nassau County's go-to location for all things apple-related. There's an unsurpassed selection of varieties, all from New York State, and that bounty is used to make a number of ne pies, including apple, apple-cherry, apple-peach and apple-cranberry. More info: 516-433-3360, jerichocider.com

Kerber's Farm

Kerber's Farm (309 W. Pulaski Rd., Huntington): From its establishment by Peter Kerber in 1941 until the death of its last owner, Kay Makinajian, in 2008, Kerber's was Huntington's go-to spot for fresh poultry. When Nick Voulgaris III reopened it in 2013, the focus shifted to prepared foods and baked goods. Among the smashing pies are apple, blueberry, cherry, coconut-cream, s'more, strawberry-rhubarb and the inevitable Kerberry, with strawberries, blueberries, raspberries and orange rind. More info: 631-423-4400, kerbersfarm.com

Torta Fina Bake Shoppe

Torta Fina Bake Shoppe (80 Deer Park Ave., Babylon): Torta Fina always has apple pies on hand--traditional double-crust, streusel-crumb and caramel--plus key lime and peanut butter fudge. In the fall, they round out the selection with more apple variations (with berries and cranberries) plus coconut-custard and the holiday staples, bourbon-pecan and pumpkin. More info: 631-669-0824, tortafina.com

Wickham's Fruit Farm

Wickham's Fruit Farm (28700 Main Rd., Cutchogue): Many of Wickham's 300 acres have been cultivated for more than 300 years, and it's one of Long Island's premier fruit farms. Only Wickham's fruit winds up in Wickham's pies. During the summer, Wickham's freezes surplus fruit so there are strawberries, blueberries, raspberries, blackberries, apricots, plums and nectarines to work with as the weather cools down. (There are hardly ever surplus peaches, so peach pies are available only during peach season; they are worth the trip to Cutchogue.) Take the pie home and buy some doughnuts to eat in the car. More info: 631-734-6441, wickhamsfruitfarm.com

Olish Farms

Olish Farms (75 Eastport Manor Rd., Eastport): Olish sells too many pies to use exclusively local fruit, according to owner Donny Olish, so when he has exhausted local produce, he heads to Pennsylvania's farm country to attend farmers' auctions. Some of the fruit is frozen so it can be used out of season. The kitchen puts out more than 30 varieties of pies, including peach and the bestselling "fruit of the forest," with berries and rhubarb. More info: 631-325-0539, olishfarms.com