Pasties may be the most popular food in Michigan’s Upper Peninsula, but a few minutes south of the Mackinac Bridge, that’s forgotten with pasty shops few and far between. Over the past decade, that has changed with a number of new shops popping up across the state with Detroit being one of the hot spots. While people are still getting acquainted to eating pasties in the L.P., there are at least options.

The Detroit Pasty Trail (google maps) may not be as exciting as the original trail in the U.P. — and it’s less than three hours long so you can technically get through it in a day — but for people in the area, there are places to go for lunch… or dinner.

For the pasty lovers, you already know what a good pasty tastes like. For the newbies, some of these shops probably shouldn’t be the first pasty you try. If you’re unsure of the pasty quality, peruse the rest of The Pasty Guy website and you’ll find answers soon enough.

As of note, a lot of bakeries have pasties in the area, but that would make things too confusing to include them all. The only place I know of that has pasties in Detroit’s city limits is Batch Brewing, in case you’re downtown with a hankering.

1. U.P. Pasties, Plymouth – Review
2. Superior Pasties, Livonia – Review

U.P. and Superior Pasties aren’t my favorite places, but they are two of the only pasty places on the west side of Detroit. The area also included Weldon’s Pasties, but they unfortunately disbanded in 2019. Of course, Motor City Pasty Company is often in the area and is worth looking up whenever they are around. It’s a food truck so it’s a little hard to pin down as they move all over the metro area.

Beef Pasty at Barb’s in Clawson

3. M-Brew, Ferndale – Review
4. Barb’s Pasties & Pizza, Clawson – Review
5. Peppy’s Pizza, Troy – Review

If you can only go to one spot for pasties, Barb’s is the choice. While they’re known more for pizza, Barb’s has one of the best pasties in the entire state of Michigan and is on another level than most places in the area. Peppy’s is slightly closer to I-75 and may have the cheapest pasties. M-Brew isn’t great for pasties with the best thing about it being the beer. In case you haven’t noticed, most pasty places don’t sell alcohol, especially not craft beer (as M-Brew does).

6. Uncle Peter’s Pasties, Shelby Charter Township – Review

Another one of the better pasty shops in Metro Detroit is Uncle Peter’s, which has two more locations in Clarkston and Oxford. Clarkston is the

Pasty from Uncle Peter’s

original spot, but for the sake of this Pasty Trail, the one in Shelby is included. The reason to try Uncle Pete’s is that he has a ridiculous amount of options from Buffalo to Spinach & Feta and even Gluten Free ones, which not many can say. Still, his beef can’t be beat by many.

7. Marquee Marque Pasties, Clinton Township – Review
8. Calumet Pasty Company, Roseville – Review
9. The Pasty Shop, Southgate – Review

This Trail ends with a string of shops located just off I-94 and along the eastern side of the state. The Pasty Shop is the best option of the three, but it’s also alone to the south of Detroit and probably the last place people on the north side would want to go. Marquee and Calumet provide something a little different in terms of quality and both are found near St. Clair.

While the Metro Detroit Pasty Trail isn’t a true trail in the sense, it at least has multiple choices to pick in the area, especially for those looking for a hearty lunch.