A cookie brand that got its start in Oxford, England, is expected to open its first U.S. shop this month. Coming to Grapevine Mills, Ben’s Cookies will occupy suite 258 in the shopping mall and be open seven days a week from 11 AM to 8 PM.
As the storybook descriptions reads on the brand’s website, Ben’s Cookies was founded by Helge Rubinstein, a recipe writer and chocoholic, in 1983 out of her home. The first shop opened in 1984 in Oxford’s Covered Market. That original shop is still in operation today. Today, Ben’s Cookies has 60 locations throughout the United Kingdom, the Middle East and East Asia.
The brand is named for Rubinstein’s son, Ben, who is also depicted in the illustrated logo.
Featuring a simple freshly-baked cookie outlook, Ben’s Cookies sets itself a part from the competition in that it uses chocolate chunks, not chips, in its offerings. Its cookie dough is made in the brand’s kitchens just outside of Oxford and then delivered to each store where the cookies are freshly baked throughout the day. Which is pretty impressive if you ask us because Oxford to Grapevine is no small trek. The brand also sources some of the chocolate that it uses direct from Belgium.
The main cookie flavors are double chocolate chunk, triple chocolate chunk, white chocolate chunk, milk chocolate chunk, and dark chocolate chunk. There’s also milk chocolate and orange, dark chocolate and ginger, white chocolate and cranberry, and one called the rose cookie – dubbed the “Queen Mother of cookies for her ruby white chocolate fruitiness.”
It you’re craving something that’s not so chocolatey, classic flavors such as lemon, peanut butter, and coconut are available. Vegan cookies are also offered.
The brand is being brought to the U.S. by Truett Horne, a marketing executive who has over 15 years of experience working in consumer companies. Horne came across Ben’s while studying abroad in Oxford and fell in love with their cookies. He has been working with the owner for more than 10 years to bring Ben’s to the U.S.
“We thought that having the first location in a mall made a lot of sense, especially Grapevine Mills, which is a more experiential kind of place — with stores like Legoland, they’re an activity-oriented mall and very family-friendly,” Horne told CultureMap Dallas.
A wait this long will definitely be worth it. Who can resist fresh baked chunk cookies, after all?
