The Great Pastry war croissant-vs-cornetto

Walk into a café in Paris, Rome, or Buenos Aires and point to that crescent-shaped pastry behind the glass.
It looks familiar — but depending on where you are, you’re about to experience something very different.

France, Italy, and Argentina all have their own take on this beloved breakfast pastry. They may share a similar shape, but the texture, flavor, and meaning behind each one reflects the culture that created it.

Welcome to the Great Pastry War.

🇫🇷 France: The Croissant

The croissant is all about technique. Made from laminated dough, it’s folded with butter again and again to create delicate layers that bake into a crisp, flaky shell with a light, airy interior.

A true French croissant is not sweet. It’s rich, buttery, and meant to be eaten just as it is — often standing at a café counter with a coffee. There’s nothing to hide behind. When done well, it’s pure perfection.

This is breakfast, the French way: simple, elegant, and precise.

🇮🇹 Italy: The Cornetto

In Italy, the crescent-shaped pastry goes by another name: Cornetto.

Cornetti are softer and slightly sweeter than French croissants. The dough is more tender, less flaky, and often enriched in different ways. Most importantly, cornetti are usually filled — with pastry cream, chocolate, jam, pistachio, or hazelnut.

This reflects Italian breakfast culture, where a coffee and cornetto is a daily ritual. It’s not rushed, and it’s definitely not plain. Flavor and pleasure take center stage.

🇦🇷 Argentina: The Medialuna

Argentina’s version, the medialunas, is the result of strong European influence — especially from France and Italy — adapted to local tastes.

Medialunas are larger, thicker, and more bread-like than their European cousins. They’re lightly sweet, often brushed with a shiny glaze, and meant to be filling. Served warm with coffee or milk, they invite you to sit, linger, and enjoy the moment.

They’re less about refinement and more about comfort.

🥐 Which Pastry Are You?

Now for the fun part.

• You’re a French croissant if you appreciate simplicity, quality ingredients, and believe that when something is done well, nothing extra is needed.
• You’re an Italian cornetto if you love a little sweetness, enjoy options, and believe mornings are better with a filling — whether that’s custard, chocolate, or pistachio.
• You’re an Argentine medialuna if comfort matters most. You like generous portions, slow mornings, and food that feels familiar and nostalgic.

So… which pastry are you?

It’s one of the small questions that food travel answers best — and one of the reasons we love discovering destinations through local flavors.