Croissants Aren’t French! The Beloved Pastry Actually Began In Austria

The croissant is widely recognised as a symbol of French cuisine, found in bakeries and cafés around the world, but its origins are connected to a much older Austrian pastry tradition. Although France transformed the croissant into the flaky, buttery delicacy known today, food historians generally trace its earliest ancestor to Austria rather than France.

The story begins with the Austrian kipferl, a crescent-shaped pastry believed to date back several centuries. Unlike the modern croissant, the kipferl was heavier, denser and available in both sweet and savoury forms. It was a popular baked item in Austria and is considered by many historians to be the foundation on which the modern croissant was later developed.

The pastry’s journey from Austria to France is often linked to August Zang, an Austrian baker and entrepreneur who opened a Viennese-style bakery in Paris during the 1830s. The bakery introduced French customers to Austrian baking traditions, including crescent-shaped pastries. Over time, French bakers modified the recipe and introduced new techniques that changed the character of the pastry.

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The biggest transformation came with the use of laminated dough, a technique that involves placing layers of butter between sheets of dough and repeatedly folding and rolling it. This process creates the hundreds of thin layers that give modern croissants their signature crisp exterior, airy texture and rich buttery flavour.

France played a crucial role in turning the croissant into a global culinary icon. French bakeries refined the recipe, popularised the pastry as a breakfast favourite and made it an essential part of café culture. Today, croissants are enjoyed worldwide in many forms, including chocolate-filled pain au chocolat, almond croissants, savoury varieties and croissant-based sandwiches.

The question of whether France or Austria invented the croissant depends on how invention is defined. Austria is credited with creating the kipferl, the crescent-shaped pastry that inspired the idea, while France is credited with developing the modern laminated croissant. The pastry’s history shows how food traditions often evolve across borders, combining influences from different cultures to create something universally loved.

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