Marion’s is a bustling Cape Cod pie shop that caters primarily to take-and-bake locals but also offers much for those just passing through on the road. While there’s no full breakfast and coffee is made with a pod machine, its baked goods can be a great morning snack.
Our favorite treat is the buttery, cinnamon-dusted Chatham breakfast muffin, which has a snickerdoodle flavor. We also like the raspberry turnover — a tart made with short crust and a thick layer of raspberry jam. The cinnamon nut roll is a tidy pastry with just a few chunks of walnut and restrained spice rub and glaze.
The spinach and cheese croissant may lack the crisp shell and buttery layers of great French pastry, but the filling is delicious. Its stuffing has the cheesy power and garlic bite of barroom spinach dip.
Of the dozens of pies available, we chose we chose blueberry peach. (It was summer when we visited. Other options included blueberry, bumbleberry, baileyberry, and several other berries, both natural and imagined.
The old-fashioned pies with their clean, flaky crust taste as much of baking spices as fruit. Made using 1940s recipes from the original owner, Marion herself, the pies have become a local legend because of their artistic combination of fruits, which are a smooth balance of sugar and acidity. In a blueberry peach pie, the peaches and blueberries virtually become one.
If you have access to an oven, the pie shop also sells a selection of such savory pies as chicken, clam, and hamburger (sort of take on tourtière), as well as lasagna and chicken Parmesan.
For those just passing through, there are lobster rolls ready to eat.
As a memento of New England, we took a few Parker house rolls on the road. They are tall, bakery-scented yeast rolls with a marshmallow texture. Our favorite take-away were cookies. Both oatmeal and chocolate chip are moist, homey and perfectly baked.
During peak summer season, it is best to arrive early. We came only an hour after opening and Marion’s already had run out of some pie flavors!
Other Nearby Restaurants
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Oxford Creamery
Mattapoisett, MassachusettsNew England summer seafood at its best. Oxford Creamery lobster rolls are legendary; fried clams are superb, too. A Mattapoisett, Massachusetts restaurant gem!
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The Knack
Orleans, MassachusettsThe Knack is a fresh take on the Cape Cod roadside stand, offering appealing updates to traditional clam shack and drive-in fare.
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The Lobster Trap
Bourne, MassachusettsCape Cod’s Lobster Trap serves well-executed New England seafood in a bustling restaurant or on a tranquil patio.
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Arnold’s Lobster and Clam Bar
Eastham, MassachusettsA Cape Cod legend, Arnold’s is a theme diner that’s become a family fun center with some of the best battered seafood anywhere.
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Captain Parker’s Pub
Yarmouth, MassachusettsCaptain Parker’s is a nautically themed bar and fish house that has won chowder competitions so often that it has been forced to retire from entry.
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Four Seas Ice Cream
Barnstable, MassachusettsOpen in Hyannis, Massachusetts since 1934, Four Seas Ice Cream makes many flavors and great sundaes; claret sauce on chocolate ice cream is a Cape Cod best bet.