Why can't I get a decent, buttery, yummy croissant in Switzerland? I have searched high and low, they don't exist (or do they?).

And what is it with calling the croissant shaped bread thing a "gipfelli" in Switzerland? I thought "gipfelli" was German for croissant until I went to Munich and tried to order one - they didn't have a clue what I was talking about until I said "croissant" and then they provided a very nice one albeit with a funny look at the idiot who didn't know what a croissant was called.

So, in Germany it's a croissant, in France obviously, in Italy I ordered a croissant with no problem, in the UK it is a croissant. Why the feck do the Swiss have to use a different name? It's not as though they don't use French words in everyday speech (merci viel mal for example).

Anyway, back to the complaint. Swiss croissants are crap. Prove me wrong if you can (please, please, pretty please).

My GF gets frozen Croissants from the Co-op that she heats up in the oven. They're pretty good and buttery, but I guess this won't help you this Sunday morning Bob!

i also like the one from coop, the silserli one. gnammi
BTW: crossaint in italian is cornetto, un cornetto alla crema o alla marmellata per favore

i dont complain about croissants in switzerland, they are generally good, except the one from migros and i had very big one good and tasty in colmar and a very very good one, one done by myself at home

I know what you're saying but pop into France, go to any bakery, get a croissant and then compare it to Co-ops frozen version.

Maybe I'm a perfectionist.......

have you ever seen these being made in a real bakery, marvellous amounts of cholesterol enhancing butter being bashed into the pastry ... I think the best I ever had were in Douarnanez in Brittany ... around four in the morning ....

I'm not sure if this is a Schaffhausen-only company, but this pastry/bakery called Müller-Beck makes the most wonderful 'croissants' (yes, we call them gipfli (spelling??).
I usually eat the voll-korn (wholewheat?) ones, healthier, and they're also great

Gnädinger were voted the best Gipfeli bakers in Zürich. http://www.gnaedinger-zh.ch/

(You can still call them a Croissant. Gipfeli means 'little peak/horn', as it's supposed to look like the top of a mountain. Or something, I dunno, guess they were drinking Absinthe at the time...)

Now that's what I'm talking about .

have just treated my Slovak in-laws to a heart stopping "cholie bomb" British fry up, including fried bread .... the local black pudding is excellent .... everyone is now heading for the sofas ...

Got any leftovers?

afraid not, but will be importing some real bacon and the black pudding like stuff when I head back to Bern this week .... Toi Toi Toi !!!!

Gipfeli are called Kipferl in Austria and Germany. However in Germany only the sweet ones are called Kipferl, the normal ones are croissants...

No such problems in the French speaking part, rest assured of that

I can attest to the flaky, buttery heaven that are Gnaedinger croissants. I pass through Schaffhauserplatz - where their bakery is - on my way to work and get them often. My co-workers actually give me "gipfeli money" to bring them in regularly.

Gnaedinger is the closest I've tasted to the gipfeli in French-speaking Switzerland, which I found were usually miles better than the ones here.

Heading there tomorrow morning. Anticipating their excellence......

I personally object to the gipfelis which spend half the morning moving around from table to table in their basket, past countless cigarette ashtrays in smoke filled cafes. You are never sure who has breathed on them first, before you dunk one in your coffee. I must admit, the paper wrapper or serviette covering a small part of the gipfelli shows some attempt at basic food hygine.
I am a committed smoker, but even I would not put one of these past my lips.

I would agree there. The OP keeps referring to Switzerland universally, but that is a bit of an over-generalization here - in Romandie the bakeries are certainly very 'French'. Unfortunately, although we can get a good range of croissants, and they actually call them croissants, we cannot get good hearty German-style bread very easily. So, there are trade-offs everywhere. Anyway, good luck in your hunt for croissants, and I'll keep searching from some bread that I like.

good - let me know if they meet your strict standards .
added bonus for those of us who log early shifts: Gnaedinger opens at 6:30 a.m.

Don't expect the apex of croissan experience though, good bakeries are not that many, even in France there is been much gnashing of teeth about the death of the proper croissant. Try a "Delice" too, if you want something very buttery and savoury to start your day.

It seems in Zurich that there's only one manufacturer of gipfeli. I'm a great fan of schoggi gipfel, and it seems that regardless of which retailer I go into (eg Kleiner Feiner, Jung, ...) they all sell exactly the same type.

I asked my local shop about them, as they also sell the same type, and the guy said: yes they are all from the same place, but the manufacturer does make them very well.

Is this an example of how small the local economy is, ie that Zurich can only support one frozen baked goods manufacturer, or an indication of cartels in action, or a sign that no small bakers make their own products these days?