When you think of a pasty, the pasty from Lawry’s Pasty Shop is exactly what comes to mind. According to their website, “after 70-plus years, we have it down.” Yes, by golly, they’ve done it. Lawry’s has been in business since 1946 out of Ishpeming, a small town along US-41, only a few minutes west of Marquette. Of course, if you’re in Marquette, they also have a newer location just west of downtown.
However, if you want the true Lawry’s experience, you have to go to the original source. That’s where the smell of pasty seeps through the walls, floor, air… everything. The shop is still around because these pasties are good. More often than not, customers will be there, ordering or scarfing pasties.
These pasties get everything just about right and that’s because they’ve used experience to their advantage. The crust may not have a true handle, but the crisp, the flake, the golden color… it’s there. If you’re eating the crust by itself, it could probably use another touch of salt, but I’m not complaining.
Lawry’s passed the ratio test, there’s no question about it. The meat was plentiful on every bite with the perfect amount of potatoes and onions. However, it didn’t get a perfect score. I think a few more pieces of rutabaga and a touch of pepper would add a little pizzazz to the insides. It tasted like a great pasty, but the even flavor throughout maybe needed a bite to kick your taste buds when consuming 17 ounces of it.
Yes, 17 ounces. They have three options for the beef pasty: 17 ounces, 12 ounces and mini pasties. If you’re not really hungry, I’d probably go for the 12 ouncer and I’m not sure when to consume mini pasties. Maybe as a snacker, lying around the house? Their only other flavor is Garden Medley, which has broccoli, carrots and cheese in a vegetable crust. I assume they make sure to note that on the site because the regular crust uses lard.
If you like pasties and haven’t been to Lawry’s, they need to be on your list. Maybe they didn’t get a perfect score from me just yet, but they’re close.
Taste: 4.5 (out of 5)
Crust: 4.5 (out of 5)
Pasty Presentation: 4 (out of 5)
The Shop: 3 (out of 3)
Would I come back for Pasties?: 2 (out of 2)
Total Pasty Rating: 18 (of 20 points)
Reviewed Fall 2019
Everything a pasty should be!! I wish the young lady behind the counter had been able to direct us to the little picnic area right down the road!
I told you Lawry’s were good! They’re still ranked as my favorite. In fact, we are heading to Marquette for the weekend and plan to bring home a cooler full to enjoy until our next trip north!
Thank you for your site and ratings. We visited a few shops during our pandemic trip in summer 2020. I also used your site to find a recommendation to have some pasty shipped to my mom and her boyfriend as a late holiday gift.
Awesome, glad to hear the Pasty Trail worked out for you. Hopefully the pasties made it in time! Thanks for reading.
*chuckle* Enjoying reading through your blog. I still haven’t found the “one,” either. The one that our seniors had every week at their “Young At Heart” card club. Maybe that’s what’s missing? Our older generation, playing cards and drinking endless cups of coffee, relating their aches & pains, laughing and retelling all the stories we all know so well, but forgive the endless retellings because they come from the dearest people we know? Never have stopped in at Lawry’s, ‘though I’ve gone past it thousands of times as I travel back and forth from Ma & Pa’s in Munising to my adopted Houghton home. Guess where I’ll be stopping when I go visit Ma & Pa in two weeks’ time because we’ve all got our vaccinations now? Thanks, PastyGuy!
Hope you enjoy! I think I have some Lawry’s in my freezer from the last venture. I still have plenty more places to visit and then when I visit all of them, the ones I visited previously will have new recipes by then. Never-ending cycle…
What about Ackroyd’s Bakery? I’ve been researching pasties and I’ve read about them but never tried them but it seems like people are obsessed. I live in California but I’d love to read a review before I order haha! https://ackroydsbakery.com/
I wouldn’t say people are obsessed, but I’ve been there. https://thepastyguy.com/portfolio/ackroyds-scottish-bakery/
There are places in Sacramento, as well (not sure where you are). Maybe you can check them out and report back?