Once in awhile, driving around Michigan, you’ll come across a random place that has pasties. That’s probably the case for most people that get a pasty from the Donut Factory.
Located in Warren, a little north of I-696 on Mound Road, most people go to the Donut Factory for one thing… donuts. But looking at the Factory from the road, there’s a sticker on the window that says Beef Pasties, and of course, that can’t be passed up.
Donut Factory is a diner known for donuts so there weren’t expectations for their pasties. At the least, it’s an inviting place that’s not much different from any of the typical pasty shops found in the Upper Peninsula.
Even for a donut shop, they have gravy and ketchup options, but I stuck to my guns with a regular Beef Pasty. Upon opening, I realized how much of a no-nonsense place it was, as they simply don’t care if they use a pie crust and/or make it in a pie tin. The pasty looks like half of a pie with the ridges and everything on the edge.
Surprisingly, it was better than some full-time pasty shops in the Metro Detroit area. The pie crust tasted like a pie crust so there’s not much to complain about as it had the desired flakiness. Still, it didn’t seem to contain heat all that well, although some of that maybe had to do with visiting in the early afternoon, well after lunchtime.
The pasty had a good overall taste, but there was too much of it for what ended up being maybe the most-filling pasty that the Pasty Guy has ever eaten. The pasty is incredibly dense with a high ratio of meat to potatoes and onions and little of anything else.
While it tasted like a pasty (and that’s all that should be asked of it), the salt may have been a little too much because about one-third of the way through, it became too much. Does it need to be half the size of a pie tin? Probably not. It’s not an entirely bad thing if you want a lot, but part of mastering the pasty is getting the correct amount. Not too much and not too little.
This pasty was good, especially from a donut shop, and that’s all it needs to be.
Taste: 3.5 (out of 5)
Crust: 3.5 (out of 5)
Pasty Presentation: 2.5 (out of 5)
The Shop: 3 (out of 3)
Would I come back for Pasties?: 0 (out of 2)
Total Pasty Ranking: 12.5 (of 20 points)
(Reviewed Spring 2017)