Will Bialystok go crazy about Saint Martin croissants?

“The recipe has been a family secret for decades,” explained Piotr Koperski, an old pastry chef who refuses to reveal the secret behind the local croissants. “You should be glad I even allowed you into my kitchen!” He added with a laugh.

The past two weeks have been intense, but the most important day is still ahead. The last days of October and the beginning of November is the period when the demand for Saint Martin croissants increases drastically. On Independence Day, inhabitants of Poznan eat tenths or even hundreds of tons of these local pastries.

The croissants are a regional bestseller certified by the European Union. Over 100 pastry shops and bakeries were granted the permission to bake Saint Martin croissants this year. Of course, depending on the place you purchase the croissants from, they might differ slightly. Some have a smoother filling, some have a stronger almond flavour, while in others it’s the walnuts that dominate. So what are the key features found in all Saint Martin croissants? Most of all, they’re all moist, sweet, high in calories, and absolutely delicious.

For years now, Lech Poznan has also been associated with the Saint Martin croissants. The club doesn’t bake those amazing pastries itself, but the fans were given numerous opportunities to avoid the consequences of eating them. Lech’s fitness coaches prepared training sessions with an aim to burn 500 calories. After completing the session, fans were rewarded with a delicious croissant – no regrets!

“Even though we would like to organise the training session once again, this year it will be impossible. On November 11^th, we are going to play a league match against Jagiellonia and the team will travel to Bialystok the day before. However, we managed to turn this into something positive and the whole Podlasie Voivodeship will get a chance to fall in love with the Saint Martin croissants,” said Lukasz Borowicz, Lech’s Press Officer.

Make rogal [croissant] not war. This slogan – very popular in Greater Poland during this time of the year – has resulted in the crazy idea to bring the croissants all the way to Bialystok. “We are going to feed the people from Podlasie with Saint Martin croissants. They will go crazy about them!” In addition, this initiative might attract people to visit Poznan. Sports provide an incredible platform to promote different initiatives that don’t abide to the rules of rivalry.

“We are very excited to be the first ones in Poland, together with Jagiellonia, to come up with such an initiative. So far, there hasn’t been a sports team that promoted its region on the rival’s homeland. Of course, we are opponents on the pitch, but off the field, there is no rivalry. Therefore, we want to put aside all the negative emotions and spread the love for Saint Martin croissants, other local specials, and our city across the Podlasie region. We believe that sports have the capability to impact our lives positively,” said Lech’s Press Officer.

So, what’s the plan? On Sunday, at 2 pm, on the Kosciuszki market, Lech’s and Jagiellonia’s representatives will treat 500 inhabitants of Bialystok with Saint Martin croissants baked that same morning. Later, at halftime of the Sunday league clash, fans will be invited to practice a football trick that is called ‘a croissant’ in Polish. The winner will receive a delicious croissant and a double ticket for the match between Lech and Jagiellonia which will be played in Poznan next year.

“We are glad to be the first ones to host such an initiative. Despite Lech and Jagiellonia being rivals on the pitch, I am sure that Jaga’s fans and the people living in Bialystok will be thrilled to try the delicious pastry from Poznan,” commented Agnieszka Klim, Jagiellonia’s Marketing Director. “We are a multi-cultured region and, as a result, in Bialystok you can try various incredible dishes. Usually we are the ones treating our guests, but this time is it the opposite! Therefore, we hope to have the chance to repay Lech with a similar tasting experience during the next match. I would also like to use this opportunity to encourage other clubs to come up with such initiatives,” added the marketing expert.

Lech Poznan and Jagiellonia Bialystok are responsible for organising the event. Koperski Pastry Shop, Poznan Local Tourism Organisation (Poznańska Lokalna Organizacja Turystyczna), and Hotel Mercure have supported the initiative too.