The wait is almost over for the rabid fans of Crumbl, the shop famed for its "Cookie of the Week" that became all the rage on TikTok in the last couple of years, despite the cookies being, according to some critics, not all that.

Lines around the block are not uncommon at Crumbl cookie stores in New York City and elsewhere around the country — as I myself witnessed for the first time last month, wondering what the hype was all about. And that is because of the "Cookie of the Week" phenomenon that grew on social media during the pandemic and shows no signs of abating.

Bay Area fans have had to head to Berkeley, San Ramon, or Mountain View to get their fix, but that changes next week when San Francisco is getting its first Crumbl. It's opening way out in the Avenues, at Lakeshore Plaza, 1567 Sloat Boulevard, on Friday, February 7. Opening day comes with a giveaway of free chocolate chip cookies — and it's not clear if they'll run out at some point, but you're encouraged to "reserve a spot" for opening day via Eventbrite.

Crumbl's offerings, which change weekly, often have other brand or pop culture tie-ins, like last year they featured an Olivia Rodrigo Guts cookie, named for her most recent album. And they will feature non-cookie items regularly, like a cup of banana pudding, or mini layered cake confections.

Crumbl's Cookie of the Week for this week, through Saturday, is more of a small cake than a cookie. It's called Cookies & Cream Cake ft. OREO®, and here's the description: "A two-tiered dark chocolate cake made with OREO®, layered with OREO® cream cheese frosting, topped with rich chocolate glaze, and finished with a MINI OREO® cookie."

Crumbl remains wildly popular, with fans posting videos on TikTok on the regular showing them with boxes of multi-colored cookies, often featuring swirls of icing on top — and critics say, as cookies go, these are mediocre and often over-sweet. (Bon Appetit even lamented on the chain's popularity and status as the country's fastest-growing bakery, writing in April 2023 that "The cookies are, by many accounts, spectacularly bad."

But such is internet fame, and it's not like every horrible review in the world from critics has done much to dim the popularity of Marvel movies. At this point, critics are just waiting for the franchise to peter out on its own and the audience to finally get bored and fed up.

On Reddit, there has been a thread up for over a year wondering when Crumbl would appear in SF. The Berkeley store opened in the fall of 2023, and it enjoys a three-and-a-half-star rating on Yelp, with a mix of raves and sorely disappointed one-star reviews.

*This post has been updated with the opening date.