How Dubai chocolate has upended the cookie market
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The Dubai chocolate cookie from Tiff's Treats. Photo: Courtesy of Tiff's Treats
The Dubai chocolate craze has now infiltrated the cookie market.
Why it matters: After Austin-based cookie purveyor Tiff's Treats unveiled its Dubai chocolate flavor in early September, supplies that were supposed to last one to two months ran out in some locations in only a few days.
- Tiff's Treats co-founder Tiffany Chen tells Axios the company aims to re-release the cookie next week, but it currently has a waitlist roughly 10,000 entries long.
The big picture: The way that Tiff's — which has 75 retail spots across 13 states, plus 85 delivery-only locations — has had to scramble to satisfy consumers offers a view into the global food supply chain.
Zoom in: The chocolate cookie is filled with pistachio cream and shredded phyllo dough known as kataifi and topped with chopped pistachios.
- "It was the most popular flavor we ever launched, right out of the gate," Chen tells Axios.
State of play: Tiff's is awaiting another shipment of pistachio cream from Italy before resuming cookie production.
What they're saying: "This is a decadent dessert that's delicious," Chen says, pegging its success to the combination of textures — the crunch of the pistachio, the silkiness of the cream, the crispy kataifi — and the flavor combination of pistachio and chocolate.
Catch up quick: In December 2023, a foodie posted a video trying the original "Dubai chocolate" from Fix Dessert Chocolatier.
- The video has since amassed more than 135 million views, inspiring an entire cottage industry of spinoffs, such as ice cream, coffee and "dirty" soda.
The intrigue: The global phenomenon has been a hit in middle America.
- In August, Kansas City chocolate maker Russell Stover rolled out its take on the viral Dubai chocolate bar. In Indianapolis, it's made its way into ice cream, cheesecake and croissants. In Utah, it's cropped up in Mexican bakeries, and in Ohio at Middle Eastern confectioneries.
By the numbers: Tiff's Dubai chocolate cookies go for $30 for a dozen — when in stock.
- Its chocolate chip cookies run $24 for a dozen.