Thursday, November 12, 2015

Innovative Froyo Shop: Victory Garden in New York City





Fro-yo girl here. Goat milk – yay or nay? If you love goat milk, you’ll likely love Victory Garden, a unique goat milk soft serve ice cream and frozen yogurt shop in the West Village of NYC. The petite shop is an ode to the goat and to healthy, local eating. A large picture of goats dominates one brick wall. The logo is a stylized image of a goat’s head.

The goat milk is sourced from a local farm. Soups, baked goods and some of the toppings are housemade, others are locally sourced. Flavors and toppings are seasonal. Gluten free baked goods and toppings are offered. The flavors are more sophisticated and the toppings healthier.

Flavors of the day:

* Tangy goat milk: The goat milk yogurt flavor is distinctive and delicious without being too strong (or too weak). The texture is smooth, dense and creamy and the aftertaste is sweet and clean. It tasted “cleaner” and less processed than the typical frozen yogurt. The flavor was tangy but moderately so and the slight refreshing edge was also pleasant.

* Date yogurt

* Salted caramel: Sweeter than the tangy goat milk flavor, salt flavor is subtle

* Chocolate rosemary

Toppings included fresh fruit (just strawberries during my visit), cocoa nibs, sauces (rose quince, honey, agave), sprinkles, nuts, cookies, coconut, granola and dried mulberries. Toppings labeled premium (vs. regular) are available for an additional charge ($2.19 for one premium topping, $1.09 for one regular topping). I enjoyed the sour cherry topping, with lots of chewy whole sour cherries in a sweet syrup. Look out for unusual toppings and sauces like mole sauce, raspberry rose sauce, edible flowers, blackcurrant bay leaf sauce, fennel pollen, bitter orange drizzle, and candied pine nuts.

Prices: Kid ($4.75)/ Doe ($5.50)/ Buck ($6.75)/ Hero ($12.99)

In addition to soft serve in a cup or gluten free cone, Victory Garden has juices, chia parfaits, baked goods (e.g., brownies, carrot cake with goat cheese frosting), goat milk smoothies, sandwiches, mastic coffee, tea and goat milk Greek yogurt (not frozen). Baked goods are made with housemade goat milk butter. They also sell Victory Garden t-shirts and goaty products like soap and so forth. Pick up your loyalty card. Seating is limited.

4.5 out of 5 stars

You know you love me. X0 X0, fro-yo girl.

* VICTORY GARDEN: 31 Carmine St., New York (West Village), NY 10014

Looking for more frozen yogurt news, discussion boards, and resources? Check out the International Frozen Yogurt Association website at http://internationalfrozenyogurt.com/. The IFYA is the independent voice of the frozen yogurt industry.

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