Kremowka of Wadowice

Kremowka is a slice of custard cream between two layers of puff pastry, dusted with icing sugar - a version of the mille-feuille found across Central Europe. Its status in Poland comes from one moment: in 1999, on a visit to Wadowice, the town where he grew up, John Paul II departed from his prepared remarks to reminisce about buying cream cakes at the shop by the school after exams, and about how many the boys could eat. The remark was broadcast live and the effect was immediate - the papal kremowka became a fixture, the Wadowice cafes around the market square sell it by the thousand, and it is now the town's second attraction after the family home, which is a museum. The cake itself is honest and unremarkable: pastry, thick custard cream, sugar. Whether the Wadowice version is better than any other is a question the town does not encourage.

What you actually see

• Custard between puff pastry - the standard form, dusted with icing sugar.
• The 1999 remark - an unscripted memory that made it a national cake.
• Cafes around the square - selling it by the thousand in Wadowice.
• The family home nearby - now a museum, the town's other draw.

When to go

All year. An hour.

Honest expectations

It is a straightforward cream cake and the fame is about the association, not the recipe. The square cafes are busy with pilgrim coach groups. Quality varies; the cream should be set, not runny.

Nearby

Kalwaria Zebrzydowska is nine kilometres away; Lanckorona is close.