Old Miners Pasty Shop

Went there and NO PASTY SHOP.
don’t know if they moved or what
Very disappointed

I had been meaning to visit this Pasty Shop for about a year, ever since reading an article in the St. Pete Times about the restaurant. Finally made it in and the visit was worth it. I have only had a handful of pasties in my life so I am no expert, but this type of food is definitely a rare find in this area.
The shop is located in a small strip mall on the North side of SR54, north of Wesley Chapel and west of Zephyrhills. If you live out in the country, this is a good place to stop on your way to/​from Tampa/​Wesley Chapel shopping. Just remember that they close around 6:30pm. They open at 11am and are closed sundays.
This is the kind of place you will like to visit every so often because there are not too many choices. You can pick «Da Yooper» or «Da Troll» most days. On Fridays (listen up Vegetarians) you can also get «Da Veggie».
Here is a breakdown of what is inside the perfectly delicious crust. Da Yooper has meat, potato, onion and rutabaga. For those scared of rutabaga, its hardly noticeable. This pasty tastes sort of like corned beef hash and comes with a gravy type sauce. Da Troll has chicken, potato, onion, rutabaga, mushroom and asparagus and for those scared of asparagus, its also hardly noticeable. The Da Troll pasty comes with a lighter gravy and tastes sort of like a chicken pot pie. Da Veggie has potato, onion, rutabaga, carrots, corn, black beans and mushrooms. Since it wasn’t Friday when I visited, I still have yet to try Da Veggie.
Both pasties were very good but I liked Da Troll the best — just had a little more flavor. It seemed to be the favorite of other locals who I overheard asking for the «Da Troll» pasty more often.
The spartan use of old kitchen implements and photos of michigan iron mines made for a unique dining experience. There is a lot of interesting history on the web about pasties, but in summary, they were the staple lunch for miners who remained deep in the mines during the work day because 1) the pasty would stay warm for hours and 2) the miners could hold the pasty by the crust and then discard the crust because it had been touched by their dusty mining hands. Some miners even had their initials stamped into the pasty which helped them find it at lunch.
The owner was very amicable, always smiling and asking diners how they liked the fresh-​made pasties. You can also purchase frozen or cold pasties to-​go when available.