Ciao Baci, the sexy Hillcrest gastropub, has one, and it's appropriately sexed up, if you find snails sexy. KFC has one, even if its components seem determined by some odd kitchen slot machine, where in place of cherries and lemons the displays spin around to recipe-dictating images of popcorn chicken, corn and brown gravy. Dixie Cafe has a shepherd's version, although shepherds probably never bothered to first make a meatloaf to have something to crumble in it, and I bet they did without a melted cheddar gloss on top. And Cracker Barrel, I'm disappointed in you: I thought you, protector and defender of home cooking, would have one every meal of the day, every day of the year, but turns out you only have one at lunchtime on Wednesdays, and not at every location.
   My wintertime search for the perfect carryout pot pie yielded mixed results, although the actual climatological conditions that make one yearn for the likes of pot pie can be equally as mixed; it's possible that by the time you read this, the ideal wintertime food in Arkansas could be gazpacho.
   But let's assume a few more cold spells, and that you even value a good pot pie in the first place, and not those grocery-store frozen jobs with the gnarly bits of meat and the undercooked (but brightly colored ) vegetable cubes. While the escargot pot pie at Ciao Baci was tempting, and the advertisements for the chicken bowls at KFC are almost convincing (the ones that purport a bowl filled with popcorn chicken, corn, mashed potatoes and gravy constitute a Platonic ideal of Sunday dinner, instead of what it really is, a frozen TV dinner that was run through a salad shooter) we opted for the only place we could find, in a cursory search of likely candidates, a true chicken pot pie as a full-time menu item.
   Restaurant: Mimis Cafe, 11725 Chenal Parkway, Little Rock, (501) 221-3883.
   Order up: The chicken pot pie ($11.59), which comes with the menu endorsement of a lighted streetlamp icon, Mimis way of confiding that she considers herself really good at making it.
   Time factor: The wait time was probably double the estimated 10 minutes.
   Like many high-concept eateries (Mimis' concept is to be the kind of New Orleans-flavored bistro so in touch with its French roots that it serves a Thai Chicken Wrap), Mimi's Cafe has a dedicated To-Go counter, but a longer-than-expected wait there gives you a view of the bustling waiting area /cafe, where Sheffield Nelson and one of the members of the Christian singing group Point of Grace were recently spotted lingering.
   Container Integrity: Mimis' packaging is as slick as her concept: Generous and sturdy plastic tubs for the pot pies, and another for the two loaves of bread that accompanied them, sacked up in a handled carryout bag. We can't report on how the pot pies are presented tableside, but two of the three individual pies we ordered remained intact as pies, as opposed to becoming pastry-topped (and bottomed) bowls of thick chicken soup.
   Hot or not: Even with a post-Christmas-shopping stop at nearby Target between pickup and eating, the dishes were still acceptably warm at consumption.
   Final take: Mimi is justified in shining her lamppost toward her pot pie. The lack of modern tinkerings -- no intrusions of cheddar cheese, or curry, or poppyseeds, or anything else that might modernize the simple dish, is exactly what makes the one-pot meal a reassuring winner. This version boasts a bounty of white cubed chicken, peas and large chunks of carrots and celery, a flaky crust and a hearty cream base that needed only a bit more pepper.
   Hopefully Mimi will be rewarded with the perfect climate conditions for her wintry specialty; the pie is willing even if the weather is weak. Spork Report is a monthly take on takeout. E-mail your favorite Styrofoam stop-offs to:
   

kbrazzel@arkansasonline.com

This story was published Friday, January 05, 2007