Heard a customer at my shop call a croissant a 'fancy crescent roll'

I was cleaning the display case yesterday when this lady pointed at my pain au chocolat and asked her friend if it was a 'chocolate crescent roll'. I almost dropped my scraper, lol. It made me realize how much of our baking language is just totally foreign to regular folks. Now I'm thinking about adding little signs with the proper names and a quick description. Has anyone else had to explain basic pastry terms to customers?

3 comments

3 Comments

lucask111d ago

Read an article once about how using the right names makes food seem more special and worth the price. Your sign idea totally lines up with that. It’s not just about fixing wrong names, it’s about giving people a tiny story. Calling it a ‘pain au chocolat’ instead of a roll makes the whole experience feel a bit more real, like they’re getting something crafted. That little bit of context can turn a confused customer into someone who feels in the know.

val7417h ago

I get what you're saying @lucask11, but sometimes a chocolate roll is just a chocolate roll. Feels like putting a fancy name on it is just a trick to charge more.

robert_green1d ago

Yeah, the little signs are a great idea (we did that last year). It cuts down on the confusion and actually gets people to try new things when they know what they're ordering. Just keep the descriptions short and sweet so they actually read them.