When I first heard of Insomnia Cookies, I was enticed by the simplicity, yet brilliance, of the idea. A place that delivered warm cookies to your front door until 3am, it seemed pure genius to me.
According to their website, the idea came together in a dorm room at the University of Pennsylvania. They have over 50 stores, mainly on the east coast, but are now expanding with their recent openings in Westport and in St. Louis.
Despite my immediate interest with this cookie place, it soon went out of my mind, and I hadn’t got around to trying it out. It wasn’t until I mentioned it in conversation when my friend told me how amazing it was. She had tried them in Philadelphia and had been craving them ever since. I decided to check it out.
However when I went on the website, I found that they don’t deliver to me because I don’t live within a three mile radius of Westport. I was so disappointed – if only I lived a little closer. Their main selling point was gone, but I still wanted to try them.
With my excited friend in the car with me, we drove to Westport to try these “legendary” cookies. When we walked inside I noticed that this clearly wasn’t an eat-in place; the interior was cramped and full of boxes for deliveries. However, a few stools lined a bar that looked out the window, so we ordered our cookies and took our seats.
The menu offered a handful of different cookie flavors that could be served on their own, with ice cream or even as an ice cream sandwich. I ordered an M&M cookie and a double chocolate cookie and just as I was paying I noticed a refrigerator full of milk . So I quickly created the perfect combo by adding a small bottle of 2% milk to my order.
When we got our order there was a cookie missing but by the time we had realized, the lady serving us had gone to the back. We had to wait at least five minutes for her to come back. At last we got our correct order and with days of hype about these cookies ringing in my ears, I took a bite of the cookie. I have to say, I was somewhat disappointed. They weren’t warm anymore.
The wait for the right cookies meant that by the time we got to eat them they we no longer warm. They were also a little bit sweet for my taste and honestly, they lacked anything special that would keep me coming back. I think Insomnia Cookies’ selling point is the convenience of delivery and the comfort of a warm cookie. Unfortunately, I missed out on both of those benefits.
My total order came to be around $6 with an individual cookie costing $1.45 and the milk costing $3.00. I didn’t think it was outrageously expensive, but for the price I expected better quality.
Maybe if it were 2 a.m. and I was hanging out with some friends, a box of warm cookies delivered to my door would be pure perfection. But sitting on bar stools in a cramped cafe with cheesy 80’s music playing was far from heavenly.
If I found myself in Westport and was tired after a long day of shopping, I’d be tempted to go in and grab a quick treat. However, I don’t think Insomnia Cookies alone is worth the trek to Westport.