Froyo in Santa Monica, CA, Past Froyo History and Current Froyo Scene

Fro-yo girl here. For a city of slightly over 90,000 residents, Santa Monica has a lot of froyo. It was true during the height of the froyo craze and it’s still true today. The residents of Santa Monica must love froyo. There’s even a Green Business Certified TCBY/Starbucks at Santa Monica College (1900 Pico Blvd). The campus is currently closed due to COVID-19, so TCBY/Starbucks is temporarily closed. 

There were a few old school froyo shops in Santa Monica that were present before the second wave of froyo popularity. Sparky’s Yogurt (3110 Main St.) was open for 30 – 40 years. The owner retired in 2016. TCBY (715 Montana Ave.) was around for decades (not sure when it opened) before closing in 2011.

These froyo shops have also closed in Santa Monica:

• Cherry on Top (2009-2012) was inside a Shell gas station convenience store (1866 Lincoln) near Santa Monica High School. I went once in 2010. I didn’t like it. It was self-serve.
• Frogo (2008-2010) was described as a Pinkberry clone with counter service (1300 Wilshire).
• Fruitti Yogo (2007-2012) was a Pinkberry clone that opened in Santa Monica (2829 Ocean Park Blvd) before Pinkberry. They also served gelato and boba drinks.
• Pinkberry (2008-2019): The perfect location for strolling, shopping and stopping for froyo, Pinkberry (1456 Third Street Promenade) was once right outside Santa Monica Place, the main shopping mall in Santa Monica. I managed to go there a few times.
• The Spot Frozen Yogurt (2010) opened up across from Santa Monica College (1701 Pico Blvd). It was self-serve and just 33 cents an ounce when it first opened. It lasted less than a year.
• Tutti Frutti (2010-2016) was upstairs at Santa Monica Place (395 Santa Monica Place). I remember when it first opened, I was a little surprised that they bothered to open when better froyo places were so close.
• Yogurtland Lincoln & Pico (2016-2020) was the second Yogurtland to open in Santa Monica. This location (1902 Lincoln Blvd) was part of a newish looking strip mall. I went once and wasn’t impressed (the yogurt was too soft and it wasn’t as clean as other YL locations).

Froyo businesses still operating are:

• Go Greek Yogurteria (2017-present), the premium Greek froyo and Greek fresh yogurt self-serve shop, opened beachside in Santa Monica (1431 Ocean Ave) in February 2017. I liked that they offered some Greek toppings as well. The froyo is richer and more indulgent.
• Menchie’s (2010-present) on Montana has been the scene of countless celebrity froyo sightings (732 Montana Ave.) since opening across the street from TCBY. This was the first Menchie’s in Santa Monica.
• Menchie’s (2011-present) is close to the Santa Monica Airport (2901 Ocean Park) in another busy part of town. Montana is the posh part of town.
• Pinkberry (2007-present) is tiny but well-situated for the Montana Ave. shoppers (1612 Montana Ave). It’s appropriately chic and design oriented. It was also the closest Pinkberry to the former Pinkberry headquarters (3130 Wilshire Blvd).
• Sunny Blue (2010-present) is one of my favorites. The tiny, adorable eatery combines fresh omusubi/onigiri (Japanese rice balls) with froyo (2728 Main St.). Stroll down to the beach with your omusubi and froyo. This is their first location. They opened another one in Culver City. Sunny Blue claims to be the first omusubi store in California (sounds right to me).
• Treats (2012-present) was opened by a local Santa Monica family with a commitment to quality (1700 Ocean Park Blvd). I haven’t been in years but I was impressed with how cute the shop was and how the employee carefully assembled my pretty cup of froyo.
• Yogurtland (2013-present) Santa Monica Promenade is just off Third Street Promenade (304 Santa Monica Blvd, Suite B). It’s a smaller location but still self-serve.

Temporarily closed:

• Forty Carrots (2010-present) is located inside Bloomingdale’s (315 Colorado Ave.). While Google lists the location as permanently closed, Bloomingdale’s says its temporarily closed due to COVID-19.
• Planet Smoothie/Tasti D-lite (2015-present) which opened in 2015 (526 Wilshire Blvd) is listed as temporarily closed due to COVID-19 with an expected reopening date of January 2021. While they mostly offer soft serve ice cream, they did have froyo at times. I noticed their assets are listed for sale, so I doubt they’ll reopen unless a new owner takes over.
• TCBY/Starbucks at Santa Monica College

Froyo?

Poki Yo (2200 Colorado Blvd., Ste B) used to provide a free small froyo with purchase of a poke bowl in 2017 but the soft serve machine broke and they never fixed it.

That’s a lot of froyo activity for a city with 90,000 residents.

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

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.