By Shikha Kaiwar
A wise cyan-colored monster once said, “Today I will live in the moment. Unless it’s unpleasant, in which case me will eat a cookie.”
Since unpleasant days are rare in a city like San Francisco, I argue that living in the moment should involve eating cookies. Lots of them. And why not? Cookies are the quintessential comfort food. A mere whiff evokes delightful memories of childhood. Or of last week, since — let’s be honest — you’ll never outgrow cookies.
As delicious as cookies are, they also spark fierce debates. There are the grocery-store staples (Oreos, Chips Ahoy and Mrs. Fields), the home-baked recipes and the lifelong quest for the perfect chocolate chip cookie.
While everyone has their own opinion about which cookie reigns supreme, we can all agree that San Francisco has some pretty tasty contenders. In fact, it’s difficult to pick just one. So let’s take the Cookie Monster’s advice, live in the moment and try any and all of these:
Blue Bottle: Ginger Molasses Cookie
Everyone knows about Blue Bottle’s New Orleans iced coffee, but few know that the best thing to pair with it is their ginger molasses cookie. It’s ridiculously chewy and deeply flavorful, and it packs a zing that will wake you up as much as your caffeinated beverage.
Anthony’s Cookies: Cookies & Cream Cookie
It’s easily a staple of the cookie scene and an unforgettable one at that. This meta-cookie is actually MADE from cookies, so you’re basically eating twice as many with each bite — which is fine by me.
Doughbies: Snickerdoodle
The only thing better than cookies is cookies on demand. Doughbies steps up to the plate (pun unintended) with luscious, cinnamon-laced Snickerdoodles delivered to you within 20 minutes.
Photos courtesy of Doughbies.
Hot Cookie: Chocolate Chip Toffee Cookie
The name says it all, and the PG-13 cookies show it all. But my favorite is actually their chocolate chip toffee cookie. It’s large, in charge and bursting with caramel realness, and it’s perfect for munching on while walking in the Castro.
Photo courtesy of Hot Cookie.
Jane: Crazy Cookie
New York has Momofuku’s Compost Cookie; we have Jane’s Crazy Cookie. It’s basically Halloween in cookie form, stuffed with chocolate chips, toffee pieces and marshmallows. Any cookie that can simultaneously describe its flavor profile and Kanye West’s Twitter rants is a keeper.
Photos courtesy of Jane.
Small Foods: Chocolate Chip Cookie
In a small marketplace on an unassuming stretch of SOMA resides the best chocolate chip cookie in San Francisco. Sure, that’s a bold statement, but it’s true. Perfectly sized, with lightly crispy edges and a chewy interior, as well as studded with just the right amount of chocolate chips that remain bewitchingly gooey and melted, this is the cookie dreams are made of.
Photo courtesy of Shikha Kaiwar.
