Crumbl cookie store opening in Gulf Breeze to treat local's 'sweet teeth'

Pensacola’s Crumbl cookie cult following is sprinkling into Santa Rosa County, with a second location coming to Gulf Breeze Proper this December at 844 Gulf Breeze Parkway.

“It’s my guilty pleasure,” Pensacola Crumbl customer Ashley Williams gushed Wednesday. “It just tastes like the perfect mix of a cookie and a cake.”

With his new shop joining the more than 650 Crumbl locations across the country, Gulf Breeze business owner Mark Van Wagenen is looking to share his sweet tooth, or “sweet teeth,” as he says, with his fellow dessert enthusiasts of both Escambia and Santa Rosa counties.

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Due of the name recognition of the fast-service, house-baked gourmet cookie brand, it was no surprise the Nine Mile location took off instantly when it opened in June of 2021. The Gulf Breeze shop is the second to be opened by the Van Wagenen family, with plans for more locations to come.

“We had people that were there at 6:30 a.m. the day that we opened, and we didn't open until 8 a.m. But they were just so excited,” he said of opening the Nine Mile location. “Just having a brand that people love — it’s great to be a part of.”

The brand recognition has even made its way to Italy native Greta Drandi, who is temporarily staying with a host family in the United States. Crumbl followers were quick to tell her the American cookie shop was a must-try.

“My friends, other au pairs around the states, told me about these ‘Crumbl cookies’ and I wanted to try them. I love chocolate, so I took a chocolate chip cookie,” she said. “The first time they told me about this, I was in Nashville.”

Van Wagenen got hooked on the cookies while living in Utah. He recalls his first few times visiting the stores being consistently impressed by the freshness of the treats and friendliness of the staff.

“I love the open concept … you can see them cracking the eggs and mixing the dough and dressing the cookies with the frosting and toppings,” he said. “The welcoming atmosphere was definitely awesome. It's not like a bakery that I've been to before.”

The process Van Wagenen described is implemented into each Crumbl store, regardless of its zip code.

For every one person behind the counter plucking cookies off the cooling rack and placing them into the long, rectangular powder-pink box, there are several other aproned employees behind them, piping bags in hand, pouring oats and firing up mixers. With each sprinkle, drizzle and swirl, the team works together as a well-greased baking machine.

The Gulf Breeze proper location will incorporate the same rotating menu that the franchise follows nationwide, with a posts on the company’s social media teasing each week’s options.

Some tester stores, like the Pensacola shop, allow customers to rate special test cookies in the shop by scanning a QR code. The customer scores the visual appeal, texture and taste of the pastry, and can provide comments on how the cookie could be improved.

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For the Pensacola cookie-lovers specifically, the best-sellers tend to be pie flavored, like banana cream and peanut butter pie, Van Wagenen said. This week, the Pensacola shop has a Boston cream pie flavor, a New England-inspired cookie topped with vanilla pastry cream and a rich chocolate ganache on the menu, per the company’s Facebook page.

As seasonal flavors come and go, Van Wagenen said he is always a sucker for the classic milk chocolate chip. He credits the cookie’s uniqueness to the rich milk chocolate chips it is baked with, versus the commonly used semi-sweet.

Williams echoed that sometimes simple is best, which the classic pink sugar cookie being her pick every time she goes. The flavors are far more complex that a run-of-the-mill grocery store pick, she said.

“It’s just different: the size, the taste. You can’t really find like a wedding cake-taste type cookie in a store like that,” Williams said.

Van Wagenen said he is looking forward to sharing the desserts crafted in the new shop with his Gulf Breeze community soon.

“We felt we wanted to bring it closer to home as well, so our neighbors wouldn't have to drive 40 minutes to get cookies,” he said.

More information on Crumbl cookies can be found the company website and Facebook page.

This article originally appeared on Pensacola News Journal: Crumbl cookies to open location in Gulf Breeze proper