I
actually can't believe that it has taken the best part of two years
to review - albeit shamelessly plug - my favourite snack-stop in Bath
and yet, no trip to my former student-based stomping ground is
complete without dipping into Ben's Cookies for as many confections
as one's financial situation/expandable waistline can accommodate...
Date
and time: Sunday 21st October 2012, 11.30
Name
of Establishment: Ben's Cookies*
Location:
21 Union Passage, Bath
Reason
for Visit: Looky looky...a superior cookie!
Nestled
amongst the various outlets that flank the criss-crossed corridors
behind Bath's main shopping street, Ben's Cookies instantly appeals
to the sweet-toothed passer-by with a vibrant red colour scheme and,
upon closer inspection, its nostalgic branding courtesy of well-known
illustrator, Quentin Blake. This is a quaint and cosy space - not
particularly somewhere to stay awhile given that its interior will
comfortably accommodate no more than one group of people opting to 'eat-in' - but
it's friendly and inviting nevertheless. What's more, utilising what
is essentially a rather modest external area - where it is
commonplace to see a queue snaking beyond its neighbouring
establishments - a sprinkling of seating has been provided beneath
all-purpose parasols. That said, with ten
outlets in the UK (though mostly in the big smoke) and curiously, a
fair few overseas (with branches in Saudi Arabia, UAE and South Korea), the
best way to get one’s fix is the mail order service - yes people,
I'm referring to the stuff that dreams are made of...cookies
delivered directly to one’s home/workplace/loved-one’s
gaff...delete as applicable! Here, a tin of eight will set you back
£12.50 (exclusive of P&P*), and boxes of fifteen or thirty;
£15.95 and £30.00 respectively. These deals are also available
in-store which incidentally, lessens the damage to one’s pocket in
that buying ‘on mass’ avoids the pricey concept of purchasing
cookies by weight; which admittedly makes this a rather expensive
habit to become accustomed to.
Though
once bitten twice hooked, this is a sugar hit that is most definitely worth
the pennies. Made from what the website claims are the finest
ingredients – namely the best quality plain, milk and white
chocolate, unsalted butter, sugar, free-range eggs and wheat (all
from local producers near to Ben’s kitchen in Oxfordshire; where
the dough is prepared) cookies are baked throughout the day and sold
fresh from the oven. Furthermore, shunning the biscuity-bore so
often found elsewhere, Ben's cookies are almost cake-like in terms of
their disposition; offering real sustenance with a subtle crispiness
that encases the soft, chewy deliciousness within – all without being stodgy, over-sweet or greasy which is, quite frankly, a
triumph!
And
without further ado, my top picks are as follows, (though I'd hasten
to add that I’d happily indulge in any of the fourteen available
flavours): Peanut butter; complete with whole nuts and that
distinctive earthy sweetness, oatmeal raisin; not too dissimilar to a
rock cake with a gooey cinnamon-spiced centre and chocolate orange;
which, flecked with zesty orange peel, contains sizeable chunks of
real milk chocolate that just melt-in-the-mouth; especially when accentuated with that undeniable just-baked warmth. Incidentally, I usually buy ‘to-go’
which, despite initial rather virtuous intentions, usually last
little under an hour after exiting the shop. That said, if you are
all about the here and now (and able to bag one of the coveted
cushioned cuboids), you can choose from a range of hot and cold
drinks to wash down your edibles. Here, all the usual suspects
alongside some pretty decadent sounding milkshakes and yet, if you
have room for the latter, you're not, in my view, making the most of
your cookie experience!
In
conclusion, you'd be mad to omit Ben's Cookies from your visit to
Bath – seriously, forget about Millie's Cookies, it's almost
certainly about what Ben brings to the table!
And
now for the second opinion…
Upon
asking a born 'n bred Bathonian where best to take friends who had never
visited the City, he put Ben’s Cookies at the top of his list –
that says it all really, don’t you think?!
References:
*Which,
to be fair, is a whopping £8.50
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