Well, Jennifer and I finally managed to sync our schedules enough for a quick lunch again! So we decided to check out The Pasty Shack, which seemed a bit odd but promising. First, we should point out that the word is pronounced "pass-tea," rather than rhyming with hasty. Apparently this business has been in Sacramento in various locations for 60 years! At 47th and J for only 16 years. That's a pretty impressive run. The history of these meat turnovers is that they originated in Cornwall, England, as a hand-held lunch meal for tin miners. Apparently they sometimes even have had a savory filling in one end and a sweet one in the other. So here's our She Said/She Said:

Ann's Take
I generally like anything wrapped in pastry, and I've had the Fox & Goose's version of the Cornish pasty, which is delicious. We lucked out by arriving on Mexican Pasty Day (Thursdays only), so had to try that one, along with a Cornish (meat and potatoes) and Vegetarian (mushrooms, potatoes, green beans, creamy sauce). They range in price from $4.95 to $5.70, although you save 25 cents each if you take and bake at home. Other choices include Bavarian (beef, cabbage, peppers), Chicken (like Veg but with meat), Tamale (Tue. only), and Chile Verde (Fri. only).

The place is pretty small, with only 4 or so tables, and maybe another one outside. The pasties are pulled from a hotbox if you want to eat them right away. They're each set in a paperboard "boat" and you get a plastic fork alongside. The pastry is a short dough (probably shortening) and was pretty tender and nicely browned. It got a bit soggy on the bottom of each turnover, but we weren't trying to pick them up. The plastic forks were not quite strong enough, but we managed. I liked the Mexican version the best, with juicy ground meat, spices, and cheese, but that's really not the standard. The Cornish, which is the standard, was a bit disappointing because the filling was sort of dry. There were nice chunks of beef though. The Vegetarian had a nicely creamy sauce, although I would have liked some more color in the veggies--maybe some red bell peppers or carrots?? Probably would've zinged up the flavor too. One of these is plenty for one person, so we had some left since 2 1/2-year-old Parker didn't seem too interested in these.

Jennifer's Take