Pain au chocolat vs. chocolatine

Same pastry, different name. A regional battle—like Minnesota’s ‘duck, duck, grey duck’ to the rest of the nation’s ‘goose’—but with less running.

Noses in air, French northerners order a « pain au chocolat » on their way to very important meetings with very important people. The name itself lacks imagination; “bread of chocolate” belongs in a science journal, one scattered with convoluted annotations and footnotes that dissect the thing to death. It’s a label, not a name, and robs the pastry of its magic.

« Chocolatine » is for the people. It rolls off the tongue. There’s a playful delight to its brevity—a copywriter’s dream. Such a name reminds us to show, not tell—to evoke a feeling rather than force-feed our audiences. The laid-back, life-is-good southerners of France know how to brand. But, rather than argue their case, they’re by the sea, baking in the sun, enjoying a comparably golden chocolatine.

I aspire to be like a life-is-good French southerner. Or, at least write like one.

This website is dedicated to all the chocolatines that are tragically misbranded as pains au chocolat.

LET’S GRAB A CHOCOLATINE?

HAVE YOUR PEOPLE CONTACT MY PEOPLE.

Email
isabellapittinger@gmail.com

Le CV
Find my credentials here.