Chip City, NYC

Update Review, October 2025

After discovering Chip City last summer when staying in NY for a month, I was eager to return this year.  I was not let down.

Display.

I always like the cookie display at Chip City, as the cookies are shown cooling on their baking trays, with spatulas to serve (although they usually pluck you a hot fresh one / top your cold one to order anyway).  Somehow this feels very fresh and homemade, compared to say Crumbl where they have a single premade cookie of each kind in a display case.

On this visit, I had done my research and knew what the weekly flavors were, but I was thrown for a loop when this location was also featuring one from two weeks ago (weekend special that I had missed out on), the raspberry cheesecake.  I know many people who say the blueberry cheesecake is hands down the best at Chip City, and I was super curious if the raspberry cheesecake would be equally awesome (but, it had only been on the menu that once, weekend only, so reviews are sparse).  I momentarily hesitated, almost deviating from my plan to get the current weekend special, but stayed the course.

Mixed Berry Tart. $7.
(Weekend Special).

"Sugar cookie topped with bavarian creme, blackberries, raspberries, and blueberries, and dusted with powdered sugar."

I instead went for the weekend special, a brand new one to the menu, dubbed the Mixed Berry Tart.  Mine was created to order, with the bavarian cream topping, fresh berries, and sprinkle of powdered sugar added after I ordered.  It looked as pretty as their stock photos, with the berries deliberately placed in an attractive pattern.

I tried the bavarian cream first.  It was fairly average, smooth, creamy, but not particularly flavorful.  I would have loved for a stronger vanilla or something flavor.  Basically reminded me of donut shop bavarian cream filling, which is fine, but particularly when it's the topping and so dominant, I wanted more from it (I also realized that I really associate bavarian cream with chocolate, and missed that here).  The berries were fresh, ripe, good enough.  So, fine topping, but not particularly special. 3/5. 

The cookie though is where this redeemed itself.  Basically just a thick, soft, fairly perfect sugar cookie.  High sweetness level, but a good sweet, pure sugar sweet, with lots of buttery notes.  It was as good as a sugar cookie really can get.  I loved how soft and nearly underbaked it was in the center. 4.5/5 cookie.

So as a composed creation, I wasn't really bought into the sugar cookie + cream and minimal fruit concept.  It was sorta like a mixed berry tart, the namesake inspiration, but not really.  But I loved that sugar cookie base.  3.5/5 overall, but that cookie, swoon.

This is actually a premium cookie, $7 like the crookies, instead of the regular $5.50.

Cookie Carnage!

I stumbled upon this box in my office micro kitchen one afternoon.  I got to try the remnants of 3 cookies: 2 classic, 1 seasonal.

Cookies & Cream

"Sugar cookie mixed with chocolate sandwich cookies and white chocolate chips."

Cookies & cream is never my flavor of choice, as I dislike Oreos, but there was a small hunk left, and of course I wanted to try it.  

It was good - the base cookie was very sweet, very sugary, very buttery, very rich, and super thick like all their cookies.  I loved the white chocolate, even though that made it even sweeter.  The chocolate sandwich cookie bits were fine, I didn't actually get as much cookies & cream from this as I did just pleasant sugar cookie with cream / white chocolate, but perhaps that was just my small hunk.  If you are curious, they go with Hydrox.

I wouldn't get this flavor again as there are too many others I like more, but I did enjoyed it.  Low 4/5.

Confetti

"Vanilla Sugar cookie mixed with rainbow sprinkles."

Pretty classic.  Soft cookie, sweet and buttery.  Exactly what you'd expect from a good, large size, thick, soft, confetti cookie.  Nothing I'd change about it, but not really the most exciting flavor.  I wonder if they ever do a version with buttercream filling or topping?  Now THAT would be exciting ... Another low 4/5.

Lemon Berry

"Lemon shortbread cookie filled with red berry jam and topped with powdered sugar."

Last up, lemon berry, a seasonal special.  Again not one I'd necessarily choose, as I tend to not be as into lemon desserts, but hey, I'm always happy to try things, particularly when they are conveniently already broken into hunks!  The base cookie was definitely lemon flavored, and indeed, more of a shortbread than any of the other cookies I've had from Chip City, as those have all been sugar cookie bases.  But not a traditional shortbread, or at least, not what I think of, as it was still soft and thick.  I actually did like it, and the lemon notes just accented the flavor in a nice way.  (Are lemon desserts growing on me?!).

The red berry jam, the best I can tell, is raspberry and strawberry.  It was sweet and fruity, and there was plenty of it.  It oozed everywhere.  Fairly standard jam but it went nicely with the base cookie.  I think of this sorta like an elevated thumbprint cookie, just with the jam as filling.

Another 4/5 despite me not caring for this type of item in general, because it really was still quite good.  My favorite of the ones I tried.

Original Review, October 2024

Cookies.  Not an item I ever really seek out.  I'm a dessert girl to the core, but to me, cookies aren't what I consider a "real" dessert.  Sometimes I'll enjoy a warm gooey cookie a la mode with a drizzle of a syrup and fresh fruit perhaps, but just a cookie?  Meh.  Not a real dessert (there are of course exceptions, like the Salted Caramel Manifesto cookie from Sweet Street, that is basically my favorite cookie on the planet, but even that I like to at least dip in whipped cream).  But cookies are definitely having their trendy spotlight (I'm looking at you Crumbl, which certainly takes the definition of "cookie" a bit liberally).  

Which brings me to Chip City, a New York City based franchise akin to Crumbl (they have expanded to a few other cities in other states as well now).  Cookies are the focus.  

The flavors change weekly, on Fridays.  The lineup always includes 5 from their classic cookie lineup, plus two more from the seasonals, along with one vegan offering, with special holiday ones making an appearance from time to time.  On top of that, sometimes one that is offered for just one day, replacing one of the classics.  You can always find the week's choices on their Instagram page.

The classics include your basic expected flavors, but also tempting options like cookie butter with Biscoff, Nutella sea salt, Peanut Butter & Jelly, Rev Velvet Cookies N' Cream, Blueberry Cheesecake, and more.  Seasonally, you get caramel corn, caramel apple cider doughnut, pecan pie, sweet potato s'mores, red velvet hot chocolate, peppermint crinkle, white chocolate gingerbread, and of course pumpkin spice latte (along with others) in the fall and winter.  Spring and summer bring banana nut oat, cannoli (what's spring/summer about that?), lemon berry, key lime pie, hot honey cornbread, peach cobbler, and more.  Oooh, and fluffernutter hits in the winter too.  Many are stuffed/filled, and some are topped, the fluffernutter for example has marshmallow filling, the cannoli has cannoli cream and mini chips on top.  Then there are the "Chip City Holiday" cookies, ones that come out for very exclusive appearnances.  Here you'll find crazy things like a baklava cookie (filled with spiced honey walnuts and wrapped in crispy phyllo dough!) and a blueberry Eggo waffle cookie (topped with a maple icing and Eggo® Graham Crackers).  These are all big, thick, gooey cookies.  Considered 4 servings each.  

In addition to the standard large cookies, they also offer thins (much crispier, single serving size), and, at some locations, the ever trendy crookies and, again, some locations only, ice cream.

The week I visited (in August), the lineup was:

• Chocolate Chip
• S’mores
• Confetti
• Cookies N Cream
• Triple Chocolate
• Banana Cream Pie
• Lemon Berry
• Dairy-Free Cookie Butter
• One day only: Choco Coco Caramel - 8/30 (replaces Confetti) and Peach Cobbler - 8/31 (replaces Confetti)

The first 5 are the classics, the next two were the summer seasonal picks of the week.  I recommend signing up for their rewards program, as you get a free one on your birthday, among other rewards.

Storefront.

The stores are mostly just cookie counters, with no / minimal seating.  They are no frills, except for the aroma of freshly baked cookies.  The aroma pouring out the door is a bit irresistible, even for someone who isn't as in to cookies normally.  

Fresh Baked.

The smell comes of course from the fresh baked cookies.  Cookies are baked in small batches at a time at each shop (literally just a tray of 6), so they are fresh as can be.

Enticing Cookies.

Chip City highlights the fresh baked nature by not even putting them into display cases, but rather, just displaying the cookie trays.

More Cookies.

 They are served using standard cookie spatula.  They look they just came out of the oven, because, well, they did.

Branded Box.

Once you order, cookies are not handed over in a generic cookie/pastry sleeve.  They always come in branded boxes.  This one was for a half dozen, but even a single cookie comes in a mini cookie box.

Cookie Carnage.

My first encounter with Chip City is when I stumbled upon this box of carnage in the office.  I tried a few nibbles, and quickly went back for more.

Chocolate Chip (Classic)

"Brown sugar cookie mixed with dark chocolate chips."

I started with the most basic.  Chocolate chip. This was very good.  The brown sugar made for more complex base than a standard chocolate chip cookie.   Plenty of high quality dark chocolate throughout.  Buttery, decadent, and sweet.  One of the better choc chip cookies I've ever had.  ****.

Orange N' Cream Cookie (Weekly Special).

"Orange cream sugar cookie stuffed with an orange cream cheese filling and drizzled with an orange cream flavored glaze."

Not a cookie I would have ever ordered given my dislike of citrus desserts, but, this turned out to be very good.  A thick sugar cookie base, which was kinda a first for me - I'm used to sugar cookies being thinner.  This was the form of thick, rich, gooey cookie, but, all the flavor of a sugar cookie.  So buttery and sweet and decadent.  And then, the hints of citrus and cream.  I'm glad I got to try this (and actually had taken a hunk not pictured here to start before I knew what it was, so I had a bigger hunk that it appears).  ****.

Dairy-Free Trail Mix (Discontinued).

"Oatmeal cookie made with roasted peanuts, raisins, and mini chocolate chips."

I lost my notes on this one, but I remember loving all the textures and components, particularly the peanuts.

Banana Cream Pie (Summer Special).

"Banana Cream Pie Cookie Sugar cookie with fresh banana and vanilla wafers, filled with banana pudding."

My next encounter was when I visited for my birthday in August.

I almost made the trip just for the one day only peach cobbler special, but decided that the banana cream pie was really calling my name.  I had been craving more banana cream pudding since having it at Magnolia the week before (everything else, cupcakes included, is not worth the hype at Magnolia, but that banana pudding ... swoon!).  The cookie was topped with a spray of whipped cream to order.

The cookie base was good - a very sweet cookie, lofty, quite soft, almost cake-like.  It had some complexity to it, which I guess was the vanilla wafer and banana bits, although I didn't really distinctly taste either.  But sweet and soft, and decent enough, it was.  ***+ base.

The whipped cream on top was interesting - it tasted far more like frosting/icing than whipped cream.  Definitely very sweetened.  Good, but it made me think of a cupcake more than a banana cream pie.  ***+.

Banana Cream Pie: Inside.

And then of course, perhaps the part I was most intrigued by, the banana pudding filling.  Given that the cookie was fresh and warm, and I think of banana pudding as a chilled item, I wasn't sure how this would work.  

The amount of filling was reasonable as it was a cookie after all, but there really wasn't that much.  I don't really think a pudding stuffed cookie makes all that much sense.  At least for me, I want more quantity when I have pudding, so stuffing donuts, croissants, bigger items works much better.  Cookie butter, chocolate, icing, etc stuffings work well in cookie, but pudding?  It was too easily lost.  It was fine, kinda basic banana pudding, but, really hard to really taste.  ***.

I did enjoy this cookie.  It was well baked, and flavorful, it just didn't really remind me of banana cream pie.  ***+.

One of their lightest offerings, 150 calories per serving, which of course is an amusing 1/4 of the cookie.

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