Pumpkin Chiffon Pie

In 1931 Robert N. Hearn borrowed $100 from his cousin Stanley, the proprietor of a successful grocery in Wilmington, Delaware, to open a small restaurant in the city with his wife, Edith. This took no small measure of courage, as the nation was in the grip of the Great Depression, and Wilmington, as the industrial hub of the state, was experiencing significant unemployment and economic hardship. A businessman in the city had gone so far as to advise Hearn that his new restaurant would be shuttered within a month.

Undeterred, Hearn forged ahead, and on April 13, 1931, he and Edith opened Hearn’s Restaurant at 2008 Market Street. Under the motto “Good Things to Eat”—twice emblazoned on the sign above its awninged storefront—the restaurant offered home-style meals at modest prices, such as a full-course turkey dinner on Thanksgiving Day, including soup and dessert, for just 65 cents. The 31-seat establishment was soon packing them in.

By 1934 Hearn’s Restaurant was doing so well that it took over the building next door and added an entirely new dining room, boosting its seating capacity to 110. That year the Thanksgiving Day special—a full-course dinner featuring “Roast Delaware Turkey with All the Trimmings”—was still just 65 cents.

It was still that way even through the food shortages the nation experienced during World War II and in the years immediately afterward. “You will be amazed when you dine at Hearn’s that such delicious food can be served at such low prices,” the restaurant promised in a 1948 newspaper ad. Its fastidiousness was another selling point. “When you dine at Hearn’s you are assured of cleanliness in every detail,” another of the restaurant’s newspaper ads pledged. “No soap smudges on the silverware, no lipstick marks on glasses, a kitchen that is spotless and waitresses that wear neat, clean, attractive uniforms, waitresses that serve you in a 100% correct manner.”

By 1956, the restaurant’s 25th year in business, Hearn’s had expanded to two large dining rooms (including the Stanley Room, named in honor of Robert’s late brother and early backer) as well as extensive facilities for banquets, wedding receptions, club meetings, and other such functions. The Hearns, who lived in quarters above the restaurant, had also brought their children, Robert C. Hearn and Irene Hambright, into the business.

The 1970s saw Hearn’s Restaurant introducing such popular menu items as jumbo fried oysters, and all meals were still served its renowned cinnamon buns and rolls. In 1977 the Philadelphia Inquirer succinctly summed up the restaurant’s appeal with this teaser: “It’s charming, it’s cheap, it’s good.”

Robert Hearn died in 1979 at age 84. His obituary in the Wilmington News Journal noted that before entering the restaurant business in 1931 Hearn had worked as a printer, bricklayer, carpenter, and stationary engineer. He’d been a merchant seaman during World War I. And even that wasn’t all: He’d also been a drummer with Leo Forbstein’s Warner Brothers Theater orchestra in Hollywood.

Edith Hearn died at age 79 two years later, just three weeks before the restaurant’s 50th anniversary. Five years later, in 1986, Bob Hearn assumed full control of the family restaurant after buying out his sister and brother-in-law.

By 1992, however, he was feeling the squeeze. Brandywine Village, the once-thriving residential/industrial neighborhood that Hearn’s Restaurant had called home for more than a half-century, was experiencing economic, social, and physical decline, and Hearn was struggling just to break even.

Bob Hearn closed Hearn’s Restaurant on September 22, 1991, explaining to a reporter that he was nervous about getting too far in debt to his suppliers. The restaurant filed for bankruptcy three months later after Hearn failed to find someone willing to buy it. An auction was held on February 19, 1993, to liquidate the restaurant’s assets.

As for Hearn, he soon found a job with a fast-food operation but told a reporter he’d rather not name it. “They have a benefit package I’d never even heard of,” he said. “And let’s face it, that’s the future, fast food.”

Bob Hearn died in 2010 at age 80.

Print Recipe

Pumpkin Chiffon Pie

(No Ratings Yet)

Loading...

One 10-inch pie (serves 8)

This recipe for Pumpkin Chiffon Pie was created by Robert C. Hearn of Hearn's Restaurant in Wilmington, Delaware, who called it "a favorite of our customers." It combines the earthy richness of pumpkin with warm spices and an airy, cloud-like filling.

Ingredients

• 3/4 cup granulated sugar, divided
• 1 1/3 cups solid-pack pumpkin purée
• 2/4 cup milk
• 1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
• 1/2 teaspoon ground nutmeg
• 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
• 1/4 teaspoon ground allspice
• 1/4 teaspoon ground ginger
• 4 large eggs, separated
• 1 tablespoon unflavored gelatin
• 1 pre-made 10-inch graham cracker pie crust
• 1 cup whipping cream plus 2-3 tablespoons granulated sugar, for topping

Instructions

1

In the top of a double boiler, combine 1/2 cup of the sugar, pumpkin purée, milk, cinnamon, nutmeg, salt, allspice, and ginger. Heat the mixture, stirring occasionally, until hot but not boiling.

2

Lightly beat the egg yolks in a small bowl. Gradually whisk a few tablespoons of the hot pumpkin mixture into the yolks to temper them, then slowly add the tempered yolks back into the double boiler, whisking constantly. Cook until the mixture thickens enough to coat the back of a spoon, about 5 minutes.

3

In a small bowl, dissolve the gelatin in 1/2 cup cold water. Stir the gelatin into the pumpkin mixture until fully combined. Remove the mixture from the heat and let it cool to room temperature, stirring occasionally.

4

Using a stand mixer or hand mixer, beat the egg whites on medium speed until soft peaks form. Gradually add the remaining 1/4 cup sugar and continue beating until the peaks are glossy but not stiff.

5

Once the pumpkin mixture is cool, gently fold in the whipped egg whites in three additions, being careful not to deflate the mixture. Pour the filling into the graham cracker crust, smoothing the top with a spatula.

6

Refrigerate the pie for at least 4 hours or until set. Top with whipped cream before serving.

Notes

James R. "J.R." Coffey, who was a baker and pastry chef at Hearn's Restaurant, preferred to prepare the whipped cream for this pie by whipping the cream and sugar together, as he felt that adding the sugar near the end left the topping with a grainy texture. This original recipe from Hearn's Restaurant included uncooked egg whites. If you're wary of using raw eggs in recipes, consider buying in-shell, pasteurized eggs instead.