These Restaurants Serve The Best Pasties In Michigan (2024)

Michigan

By Serena Maria Daniels

|Updated on March 29, 2023(Originally published March 28, 2023)

×These Restaurants Serve The Best Pasties In Michigan (1)

Serena Maria Daniels

Author

Serena Maria Daniels is an award-winning freelance journalist in Detroit, by way of Chicago, by way of the West Coast. She writes about Michigan for OIYS. Serena enjoys learning about language and culture and taking road trips with her beagle Ralph.

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While much of the Lower Peninsula is pretty much Coney Country, once you cross over the Mackinac Bridge, you’re taken to Pasty Paradise. The pasty (pronounced PASS-TEE), that savory meat pocket pie, is rooted in the UP’s history in mining. When miners went off to work, they brought with them these hearty handhelds as a means of having something filling to eat, without having to leave the mine. In fact, when they were ready to munch, they placed the pasty on a shovel and held it over a candle to heat it right up. Talk about innovation. The methods of preparing these portable meals varies, with some using carrots, while others go for the sweeter rutabaga. No matter your preference, we’ve identified some shops with the best pasties in Michigan that will have your mouth watering.

These Restaurants Serve The Best Pasties In Michigan (2)

900 Co Rd 480, Marquette, MI 49855, USA

These Restaurants Serve The Best Pasties In Michigan (3)

Looking for a hefty pasty, one of the most iconic Michigan foods, that'll keep you filled for days? The ones made here are a pound and filled with both pork and beef. For more information on Crossroads Restaurant and Lounge, visit the Facebook page.

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These Restaurants Serve The Best Pasties In Michigan (4)

Lawry's Pasty Shop, 2164 US Hwy 41, Marquette, MI 49855, USA

The pasties here are made using the original recipe created by Madelyne Lawry in 1946. If you don't live in Michigan, you can order Lawry's pasties online. To learn more, visit the website.

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These Restaurants Serve The Best Pasties In Michigan (8)

Toni's Country Kitchen, 79 3rd St, Laurium, MI 49913, USA

Toni's utilizes rutabaga (not carrots) and potatoes, in addition to big hunks of beef and the essence of sweet onions, making for a hearty, savory filling. For more information, head to the Toni's Country Kitchen Facebook page.

These Restaurants Serve The Best Pasties In Michigan (9)

Uncle Peter's Pasties, 6215 Sashabaw Rd, City of the Village of Clarkston, MI 48346, USA

This spot came almost by chance when the owners purchased a former pizza shop and intended on installing a deli in its place. Pasties were added as an afterthought but quickly became a hit. Visit the Uncle Peter's Pasties website to learn more, view other locations, and order some pasties, arguably the best food in Michigan, online.

These Restaurants Serve The Best Pasties In Michigan (10)

Lehto's Pasties, 626 N State St, St Ignace, MI 49781, USA

This spot has been around since 1947 and stands out for its moist, flaky crust, well-seasoned filling, and a homemade feel. To learn more, visit the Lehto's Pasties website.

Ready to grab a pasty or a tray-full, yet? Tell us where have you found the best pasties in Michigan? Please let us know in the comment section.

Interested in learning about other iconic Michigan foods? Head over to this post.

OnlyInYourState may earn compensation through affiliate links in this article. As an Amazon Associate, we earn from qualifying purchases.

More to Explore

Best Pasties In Michigan

Melissa M.|May 21, 2021

What other foods is Michigan known for?

Michigan foodies, unite! If you're looking for iconic Michigan foods, be sure to add the following culinary masterpieces to your bucket list:

  • Fudge. If you’ve never had Mackinac Island fudge, you are certainly missing out. This is the one thing you have to get when visiting the island. Just follow the smell of chocolate wafting through the air and you will be led to one of the many places that makes and sells it.
  • Pizza. If you like pizza then you’ll love Detroit-style pizza which is rectangular-shaped and has some delicious crust that’s both crispy and chewy, sauce, and cheese sure to make your mouth water.
  • Cherries. Come summertime, tart cherries are all the rage here!

What are the best diners in Michigan?

The Hut Diner of Redford is a lovely roadside stop with friendly service and delicious eats like coney dogs, hamburgers, and other classic diner fare. It’s a small place but packs a big punch in terms of tasty food. If you prefer to eat at an iconic spot that’s been around since the 1950s, head to Don’s Drive-In located in Traverse City. Its decor will be met with your sense of nostalgia and the menu has many classic American dishes for you to choose from.

Where can I find the best food in Michigan?

Michigan is filled with some iconic restaurants serving some of the most incredible food in the state. For a list of the best places to add to your bucket list, visit our article, 14 Of The Best Restaurants You Have To Visit In Michigan Before You Die,

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These Restaurants Serve The Best Pasties In Michigan (2024)

FAQs

These Restaurants Serve The Best Pasties In Michigan? ›

Other nominees for Best Pasty in Michigan included Darrow's Family Restaurant in Mackinaw City, Dobber's Pasties in Escanaba, Gram's Pasties in Escanaba, Hiawatha Pasties in Naubinway, Hunt's Mackinaw Pastie & Cookie Company in Mackinaw City, Irontown Pasties in Negaunee, The Pasty Oven in Quinnesec, The Pasty Shop in ...

What is the oldest pasty restaurant in Michigan? ›

Lehto's Pasties was started in 1947 by Mr. Lehto after he served in WWII and was honorably discharged from the army in 1946. It is one of the Original Famous Pasty Shops located in Michigan's Upper Peninsula. Lehto's is still family owned and operated to this very day by their niece Laurie and her husband Bill Walker.

What is an Upper Michigan pasty? ›

Pasties are handheld turnovers filled with meat and vegetables. These savory stuffed pies were originally made for miners in Cornwall, England, to take down into the pits during “crib” time (meal time) because they were an easy, portable and sustaining food.

Where are pasties most popular? ›

The pasty has become a cultural symbol of the Upper Peninsula of Michigan. Pasty shops are a significant tourist attraction in the region.

Why are pasties popular in Michigan? ›

Pasties: The Meaty Center Of 'Yooper' Food. Michigan's Upper Peninsula is a landmass jutting out of the northern tip of Wisconsin. The pasty's prevalence is linked to an early 1800s rush to mine copper deposits in the region. The resulting onslaught of laborers from Cornwall, England, brought over the pasty.

What is the oldest family owned restaurant in Michigan? ›

Established in 1882, Sleder's Family Tavern is a Traverse City classic and Michigan's oldest, continuously operated restaurant.

What's the difference between a pie and a Cornish pasty? ›

The difference between the two is all in the structure, he said. Pasties tend to be defined as a singular, folded pastry case with a crimped lid and a savoury filling, typically of seasoned meat and vegetables. Pies, on the other hand, traditionally have a base and sides and a separate lid.

What is the difference between a Cornish pasty and a normal pasty? ›

There will always be great debate about the origin of the pasty, but one easy way to detect the Devon pasty from the Cornish is that the Devon pasty has a top-crimp and is oval in shape, whereas the Cornish pasty is semi-circular and side-crimped along the curve.

What is a pink pastie? ›

Traditionally, chip shops coloured the pastie's filling with a cochineal dye, giving it a bright pink colour, supposedly to make the snack more appetising. Many shops have stopped using this method due to cochineal allergies.

How do you say pasties in Michigan? ›

How to say pasty. It's necessary to tell you this now because people will be able to tell you're a visitor depending on how you say this word. This savory treat is a Pass-tee. Not a paste-ee, not a pah-stee.

What state is known for pasties? ›

In Michigan, where 19th-century Cornish immigrants brought the pasty into the iron mines of the Upper Peninsula, the pasty has been celebrated with local festivals and statewide proclamations. The Cornish pasty descends from a broader family of medieval English meat pies.

Are pasties good for you? ›

Pasties get a bit of a bad rep for being unhealthy, but in reality, they're a fairly good complete meal. Now, we're not recommending you eat one EVERY day, but you certainly shouldn't feel bad when you do reach for one. Or two! In fact, calories aren't a particularly good gauge of how healthy foods are for us.

What is the difference between a pasty and a pastry? ›

A pasty is a meat hand pie generally made with beef and potatoes. Pastry is is a dough made with flour, a liquid, and a solid fat such as butter, shortening, or lard. Pastry can be either sweet or savoury.

What foods is Michigan famous for? ›

It is known for famous Mackinac Island fudge, Coney Island Hot Dogs, and Cornish Pasties, which were introduced by miners who came to the state from Cornwall, England.

What do you serve with pasties? ›

Seasonal Sides to pair with your Pasty or Pie
  • September Seasonal Produce. Traditionally harvest season, September is one of the most bountiful times of the year. ...
  • Fennel. This fragrant veg will add the flavour of aniseed to your dish. ...
  • Courgette. Courgettes are grown in abundance as we approach autumn. ...
  • Cauliflower.

Do you eat pasties cold? ›

We eat them hot or cold, they are filling, they can be made with sweet or savoury ingredients, and they are robust enough to take on picnics, car trips, to work or school. We always take pasties when we are travelling as they are so easy to eat.

What is the oldest pasty shop in the world? ›

Warrens Bakery is a company based in Cornwall in the United Kingdom, which claims to be Britain's oldest Cornish pasty maker, having been established in St Just in 1860.

Where was the first pasty? ›

The pasty became commonplace in the 16th and 17th centuries and by the 18th century it was firmly established in Cornwall as a food eaten by poorer working families. Filling a pastry case with vegetables such as potato. onion and swede was a cheap way to feed a family.

Who were the Cornish miners in Michigan? ›

Cornish “Cousin Jacks” provided Michigan's developing copper district with much of its early mining expertise. Highly skilled from established tin and copper mining operations in Southwestern England, the Cornish were synonymous around the world with mining.

Where is the oldest bakery in the United States? ›

The oldest continually operating bakery in America, Winkler Bakery is located inside Old Salem Museums & Gardens, the historic district of Salem dating back to 1766.

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