Is there anything more satisfying than the perfect chocolate chip cookie? Crispy, chewy, buttery and chocolatey all at once, it is the Platonic ideal of a cookie. But where can you find the best NYC has to offer? Check out our list of old-time favorites and young up-and-comers to see whose cookie reigns supreme.
City Bakery
The cookies at City Bakery have become so famous, The New York Times investigated its kitchen to learn one of its secrets: let the dough sit overnight, so that the dry ingredients like flour fully absorb the wet ones, like eggs. The other secret? Probably a heaping pile of butter. Chewy on the inside, crispy on the outside, this is the texture that cookie connoisseurs crave. But just one can be tooth-achingly decadent, so contemplate splitting one with a friend, or nibbling it over the course of a day.
3 W 18th St, Manhattan; 212-366-1414; thecitybakery.com
Jacques Torres
Jacques’ cookies are a chocolate lover’s dream. The chocolate master uses couverture chocolate, rather than chocolate chips or chunks, because of its ability to melt quickly. This means that the chocolate oozes into every bite, forming delicious ribbons throughout the dough. But this means that it is not for the faint of heart: one taster mentioned, “I’d like my chocolate with a bigger side of cookie.”
66 Water St, Brooklyn; 718-875-9772; mrchocolate.com
Roasting Plant
The cookies at Roasting Plant won Serious Eats’ contest for the best chocolate chip cookie in New York, in a huge upset. More coffee shop than bake shop, Roasting Plant brings in their dough from local wholesaler Tom Cat Bakery, but bake the cookies on site so you get them fresh from the oven. The chocolate chip cookies here impress with their perfect balance: not too sweet, not too buttery, not too soft, not too crispy. And they’re not too large, which means you don’t have to feel guilty after downing one.
75 Greenwich Ave and 81 Orchard St, Manhattan; 212-775-7755
Baked
Even out on the docks of Red Hook, Baked is a bakery that is making a name for itself. It’s already been featured on the Food Network, Martha Stewart, and Oprah. And when pastry chef made Baked’s signature chocolate chip cookie while on Top Chef: Just Desserts, it was the winning dish in a tough competition. With huge hunks of chocolate and lots of brown sugar flavor, it’s like mom used to make, if mom happened to be a pastry chef.
359 Van Brunt St, Brooklyn; 718-222-0345; bakednyc.com
Levain
Chocolate chip cookies from Levain are controversial. They’re as big as a scone. They are so soft on the inside that one questions whether they have been baked at all. They’re some of the densest cookies out there. But put that together, and you have a huge, decadent scoop of barely-baked chocolate chip cookie dough. And isn’t that as nearly perfect as a chocolate chip cookie can get? Many New Yorkers think so, since Levain’s goods are frequently heralded as the best chocolate chip cookies in NYC.
167 W 74th St, Manhattan; 212-874-6080; levainbakery.com
Did we miss your favorite? Let us know in the comments!
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