Cookie review-BART & JUDY'S "The Best Chocolate Chip Cookie In the World" ???

are these "THE BEST chocolate chip cookies...

 IN THE WORLD"?

well, i think Bart and Judy have opened a ferocious can of worms with a statement like that.

first let me tell you,  I LOVE THE PACKAGING !  that's what made me buy them, not that it claimed to be the best.  although i must say, curiosity riled the baker in me and i just had to try Bart & Judy's "THE BEST CHOCOLATE CHIP COOKIE IN THE WORLD"

how very very clever those two are.

reeling the buyer in with packaging like that.  i wonder if Bart & Judy are friends with "Dr.Bronner", the soap guy with small print all over his products.  the box has all kinds of quotes, philosophies, information, instructions and warnings....AND it's made of 100% recycled paper with a mention on the side..."MADE IN THE USA: THE BEST COUNTRY IN THE WORLD".  the whole experience in kind of fun, very unlike any mass produced store bought cookie...for that reason i thought it was worth the purchase....

the cookies are secondary.

i felt like the kid that gets an expensive gift for x-mas, tosses the gift aside and plays with the box for hours.

as you can see from the photo above...these are tiny teenie cookies.  some smaller than a quarter.

some don't even contain ONE CHIP !

ARE YOU KIDDING ME?

AND i bought the ones with walnuts and pecans.  i'll bet ya anyone with a nut allergy would have no big anaphylactic shock after eating the whole box...there might be one walnut and one pecan somewhere in the box, but i haven't found it yet.

on the back he makes a pretty obvious reference to "Famous Amos"...

i was around for the Famous Amos craze in the 70's.  were you?  Famous Amos was the first big hit phenomenon of the bakery world that i can remember.  when Famous Amos cookies arrived on the scene they were nothing like the prepackaged lame cookie that those little Kellogg's Keebler elves are hocking now a days...these were a pretty darn good cookie.  especially if you could get some hot out of the oven at the flagship store in Los Angeles.  it was a good cookie...small, BUT NOT THAT SMALL, crisp, homemade tasting and it had at least a few chocolate chips in each cookie.  nuts were a good size.  you could actually see them, but even he didn't claim to be the best in the world.

nutritional facts?...
it claims 6 cookies per serving equaling 30 grams for 83 calories.
now...i know many many people who would jump at the chance to have 6 chcocolate chip cookies for 83 calories.  but do you know how pathetic 30 grams is?
don't sneeze or you'll loose 1/2 your serving !

"ecstatic delirium"?...hasn't hit me yet...personal injury?...maybe a paper cut from playing with the box.

after you finally get the box open you see a gold bag reminiscent of Willy Wonka's golden ticket.  the bag comes with warning instructions to let the cookies "decant" for 10 minutes to enjoy their fullest flavor.

who do you know that will open a bag of cookies and wait for 10 minutes before trying one?  

of course i had to try one right away.  then i waited 10 minutes and tried another.  was there a huge difference?...NO.  same small, smaller than a quarter, cookie.  nice flavor, nice crunch, but yet another fun gimmick that sets these cookies apart from the norm.

oh...and i forgot about the "STOP! READ FIRST!...important instructions...it's another note about the "decanting".

 do i really need to be told twice HOW to eat a chocolate chip cookie?...maybe one so small that could get lost between a tooth?  it goes on...then there's another side that is "optional reading".

i will admit i went for the whole deal and entered my "exclusive serial number" on the web site.  i have no idea what that does except give my email address out there for more people to spam me....whatever...it's all in fun.

in conclusion...

don't get me wrong...i DO like the cookie (i like the box better).  this IS a "good" cookie, but it's just so very very small....and general consensus from friends and chefs?..."a good cookie, crunchy, homemade flavor, better than the elves",  but best in the world?...not so much.

on the back of the box, Bart states that this venture is not about the money (good thing).  he just wants to put a smile on your face and make the world a better place with his "great cookie"

well...that he did....he put a smile on my face.  definitely NOT from the best chocolate chip cookie in the world, but maybe just the shear enjoyment and conversational debates i had when sharing the box and tiny little nondescript cookies inside.