Earlier this week, Sydneysiders lost their collective minds – all because of a pop-up selling day-old cookies for $17.50.

It started on September 20 when a Tiktok account began advertising a pop-up selling Crumbl Cookies, a viral US cookie brand. The pop-up took place on Sunday September 29 in Bondi and was met with two-hour wait times and disgruntled customers. A single cookie was priced at $17.50, or you could pick up five for $75. In the States, Crumbl Cookie sells singles for US$5 (approximately AU$7.25).

But when word got around that the pop-up was “not endorsed by Crumbl, just fans importing” (as was stated on the pop-up’s Tiktok account) attitudes turned quickly.

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The team behind the pop-up addressed the drama in a Google Doc, stating, “We never claimed to be an official Crumbl store … our goal was to bring the authentic Crumbl cookies to Australia by importing the cookies directly from the USA.”

How did they do this? By flying to Hawaii, dropping $6000 on the cookies and then flying them back in their original packaging – that’s how. In the document, the team addressed concerns about the legality of importing the cookies, confirmed that they declared them at customs and paid $2000 in duties, taxes and customs brokering. They also argued that they didn’t infringe on any trademarks as Crumbl is not a registered business name in Australia.

Addressing the quality of the cookies, which punters argued did not stack up to the $17.50 price tag, the importers argued, “Crumbl cookies should be kept at room temperature in an airtight container for up to [three] days or refrigerated for up to [seven] days. We kept them to these requirements … While most customers enjoyed the cookies, a couple of influencers felt they didn’t meet expectations. We apologise that they don’t live up to expectations however they are just cookies at the end of the day.”

Just cookies? These are not just any cookies. These are Crumbl Cookies and Crumbl Cookies are a symbol of a constant debate about how status and social media are changing thinking about food.

In April, the New York Times’s Priya Krishna wrote a piece called “Are Crumbl Cookies the Best or the Worst? It Doesn’t Matter”. Krishna’s argument – which is only bolstered by the cookie chaos that unfolded in Bondi this week – is that when you’ve got millions of people debating whether your cookies are good or not, the answer doesn’t really matter.

Krishna’s article attributes Crumbl’s status as the US’s fastest growing food chain to its early adoption of Tiktok and its release of weekly cookie flavours, which creates the illusion of scarcity and draws influencers to make regular taste test videos which pull in millions of views.

It doesn’t stop at cookies, Erewhon’s Hailey Bieber Strawberry Glaze Skin Smoothie costs AU$27. It’s been the subject of articles and countless Tiktoks. Did anyone think it was worth the jaw-dropping price tag? No – but they all bought it to test the theory for themselves and add their Tiktok two-cents to the echo chamber.

It's hard to believe people spent two hours queuing for slightly stale $17.50 cookies, all to stake their claim in the zeitgeist – becoming one of the thousands of people loudly proclaiming online their stance as for or against the Crumble cookie.

So, was the internet backlash and potential legal strife worth it to bring the sweet, sweet taste of Tiktok’s own Crumbl to Sydney? Not for $17.50 a pop.