Ah, Mendl's: the most delicate pastry shop in all of Nebelsbad, with the most delicious signature treat. The Courtesan au Chocolat is pretty, delicate, and its color palette fits perfectly with the pastels of the Grand Budapest. It's sinfully rich, but apart from being calorie-heavy, it's as innocent and harmless as Agatha.

Except, of course, for the fact that a Mendl's pastry can sometimes contain a hidden metal file or hammer…

Mendl's is in many ways a symbol of deception. Not only are Mendl's pastries used to smuggle tools inside a prison, but also Zero and Gustave disguise themselves as Mendl's employees when they infiltrate the Grand Budapest in the film's climactic scene. These intricate, buttercream-topped confections (and the sweet pink boxes they come in) are the perfect decoy—like a femme fatale, Mendl's outer perfection is the perfect way to conceal intricate schemes.

There's also a distinct link made between Mendl's and Agatha. Agatha is seen as pure and almost angelic, and yet she proves that she's perfectly capable of concealing weapons, hiding codes, and stealing back precious works of art while dodging bullets.

We're not done yet. We'd like to also draw a comparison between Gustave and his favorite treat. On the surface Gustave appears vapid and shallow: His personality seems as empty as the calories in a Mendl's treat. In reality there is true substance, bravery and loyalty at his core.

On the surface the frilly Courtesan au Chocolat looks almost too good to be true, and almost (almost) too good to eat. The filling, though, (be it chocolate cream or metal files) is rich and nuanced. There is more to Mendl's than meets the eye.