Hobnobs Oats

Brand: McVities

Found at: Coop

I come from the heart of coffee-land. Growing up in Washington, coffee has been a central part of my culture since childhood. The coffee shop was the public space in a rainy world where the newspaper weather forecast did not need to be updated for months on end. It was where you went after school, where you met friends, where you did your homework, where you went to interviews, and where you stop in half-way through a long walk. It was and is a community center and social hub and restaurant all rolled up into one building with a sprinkling of muzak.

Which makes me all the more traitor for drinking tea with Hobnobs. With every bite, I can feel my Colonial ancestors rolling over in their graves – dunking one of these oat cookies in a cup of tea is like buying Union Jack underwear. It’s not right, and it’s not American.

But it is so tasty. These soft, chewy oat cookies dissolve so perfectly in a cup of hot tea and are so hearty and satisfying on a cold autumn morning that I am willing to risk it. I’m willing to wear a broad hat and sunglasses into the supermarket, pay with cash, and hide them under my coat on the way home so that I can taste the crunchy, chewy, melty goodness of a Hobnob. Just don’t tell my embassy.