Active Culture Opens in Long Beach

Fro-yo girl here. I knew about Active Culture many years ago when they opened in Laguna Beach, but this was my first time visiting one of their locations. The Long Beach location had a grand opening celebration in early March. It’s in the 2nd & PCH open-air shopping mall on Pacific Coast Highway.

They’re a natural healthy foods café that also happens to serve froyo. They serve acai bowls, smoothies, shakes, grain bowls, housemade lentil burgers, burritos, salads, breakfast, adult beverages, and froyo. There are vegan, raw, gluten-free, and soy-free options.

When I walked inside, I didn’t see any froyo machines. They do have froyo but the machines are in the back, out of sight.

Frozen yogurt is counter serve: Jumbo ($6.99), Regular ($5.99), Cone ($3.99), Mini ($3.49).

Froyo flavors: Organic vanilla, Organic chocolate, Pom-raspberry sorbet, Salted caramel

Organic vanilla froyo: The mini size wasn’t tiny. It was enough froyo to satisfy my froyo craving. The froyo was rich, creamy, smooth and had a nice vanilla flavor.

Order at the counter and get a number. They’ll bring your food to you. The café is new and looks beautiful – white walls, succulents, marina views, lots of outdoor seating.

Service was attentive. They checked in with me several times. I wasn’t expecting the food (the nachos with salsa, beans, guac, sour cream, cheddar, curry sauce, etc.) to be so good!

I had a hard time finding Active Culture even though I was looking for it. If you stroll down the main path of the mall, you won’t see it. You have to walk towards the marina (where the boats are) from Whole Foods.

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

* ACTIVE CULTURE: 6420 Pacific Coast Hwy, Suite 170, Long Beach, CA 90803

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.

Waffie & Yogie, New in Long Beach

 

Fro-yo girl here. Waffie & Yogie opened in February 2022, taking over the Golden Cups (formerly Golden Spoon) spot. They switched to self-serve froyo in 2017. Waffie & Yogie kept the Golden Spoon soft serve machines and they still have self-serve froyo and toppings.

Waffie & Yogie serves boba milk tea drinks, coffee, slushes, smoothies, waffles, and froyo. I could see that they kept the Golden Spoon soft serve machines.

The froyo and toppings are 55 cents an ounce. They had four froyo flavors during my visit. One of the froyo machines was out of order. The toppings bar is smaller than average but they had fresh fruit, mochi, jellies, coconut, sprinkles, nuts, syrups, cookies, candy, cereal, etc. Toppings were neatly labeled. They’ll give you a free plain waffle with any purchase. The waffle is a thin and freshly made. The waffle went well with the froyo!

The froyo options and toppings were limited but the shop was cute and cheerful. Service was friendly. They also have a rewards program. Parking was easy to find. It’s in an older strip mall. They had some interesting drinks, like egg coffee.

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

WAFFIE & YOGIE: 5523 E Stearns St, Long Beach, CA 90815

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.

Spotted the New Pinkberry Vending Machine at Westfield Santa Anita

Fro-yo girl here. Last summer, iCream, a soft serve vending machine, made its debut at Westfield Century City and rolled out at other malls in Southern California. I spotted the iCream vending machine at Westfield Santa Anita in Arcadia, CA a few months ago. Since it served ice cream, I didn’t buy anything.

However, iCream just announced a partnership with Pinkberry and the vending machine at Westfield Santa Anita now dispenses Pinkberry frozen yogurt!

The first ever Pinkberry vending machines opened in late March at the Premium Outlets in Cabazon. The Westfield Santa Anita machine is located by the food court (by Chick-fil-a). It serves one flavor (Original Tart). There are 3 dry toppings and 3 sauces to choose from. A plain froyo is $5 and it’s $0.25 per topping and per sauce.

The amount of yogurt dispensed is small (3 ounces?) and the texture was a little icy and not as smooth as I expected from Pinkberry, but it did taste like Pinkberry original yogurt. Also, the machine dispenses the yogurt in a cute plastic Pinkberry cup with a foldable spoon underneath.

The machine accepts cash and credit cards but does not provide any change.

Can you believe that I wished to get froyo from a froyo vending machine back in 2013? It took 9 years for that wish to come true.

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.

New Yogurtland Flavor, Strawberry Banana Frozen Yogurt

Fro-yo girl here. Yogurtland has a new spring flavor, Strawberry Banana frozen yogurt. Yogurtland describes it as: “Created with real strawberries and real bananas, this creamy frozen yogurt is one you will not want to miss!” Strawberry Banana frozen yogurt is nonfat, gluten-free and vitamin C fortified.

Well, I hate bananas but I decided to try the new flavor.

Strawberry Banana frozen yogurt: It wasn’t as awful as I expected because it was pretty balanced. I could taste strawberry and the banana flavor didn’t seem overwhelmingly strong. The texture was smooth and creamy. It seemed relatively inoffensive for a banana flavored froyo.

Who remembers Yogurtland’s Strawberry Banana Taffy NSA flavor? It was an older flavor…I think it came out in 2013. I haven’t seen it for a few years and it’s no longer listed on the Flavor Finder section of the Yogurtland website. I might not have tried it because I hate bananas.

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.

New Menchie’s Flavor, Vegan Sweet Juicy Peach Sorbet

Fro-yo girl here. April’s featured flavors Menchie’s are Just the Cookie, a returning flavor, and new Vegan Sweet Juicy Peach Sorbet. I had a hard time finding Vegan Sweet Juicy Peach Sorbet but luckily, Menchie’s Sherman Oaks had some.

Menchie’s calls Vegan Sweet Juicy Peach Sorbet “the perfect sweet treat for Spring.” It’s made with no artificial colors or flavors and is gluten-free, nonfat, and contains no high fructose corn syrup. It’s made with real peaches.

Vegan Sweet Juicy Peach Sorbet: It’s one of their better sorbets but it’s sweeter than real peaches; real peaches taste better than the sorbet. The texture was smooth and seemed less icy than some of their other sorbets. It even had some tang which made it more interesting and appealing. Recommended toppings: Golden Oreos, waffle chips, and whipped cream.

Just the Cookie frozen yogurt has come back a few times. It’s made with Oreos.

Featured flavors are available for a limited time, while supplies last.

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.

2022 Easter Froyo Shop Spirit Award

Source: IG @tuttifruttija

Fro-yo girl here. Happy Froyo Easter! Things are better in Los Angeles; the mask mandate ended on March 4 and it’s springtime. I’ve seen a few froyo shops with Easter decorations. Some of them had Easter events. Yogurtland and sweetFrog have Easter gift card designs this year.

Last year, Marcel’s Frozen Yogurt of South Africa won the Easter Froyo Shop Spirit Award. They introduced a new flavor, Hot Cross Bun, for Easter 2021.

Other previous winners of the Easter Froyo Shop Spirit Award

2019: The Yog Bar, UK

2020: Yo Mama Froyo, Hong Kong

And the winner of the 2022 Easter Froyo Shop Spirit Award is…Tutti Frutti Frozen Yogurt of Jamaica (IG @tuttifruttija). They just introduced a new froyo flavor called Easter Bun. We think the Easter Bunny would approve.

For more Easter froyo pics, check out the Pinterest board, Easter Froyo Pics. There are over 600 Easter froyo images.

Happy Froyo Easter!

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.

Sprinkles Greek Frozen Yogurt Cups Review

Fro-yo girl here. I was looking at the ice cream cakes at Vallarta Supermarket in Pasadena, California and to my surprise, I spotted Sprinkles Frozen Greek Yogurt on the top shelf. This was my first time encountering Sprinkles desserts. They’re made in Hackensack, New Jersey and are kosher. Sprinkles also has four shops on the East Coast.

Vallarta carried three flavors of Sprinkles Frozen Greek Yogurt: Vanilla, Strawberry, and French Cappuccino. I’m not sure if there are other flavors. One 5.3 oz cup was $2.99 and has live and active cultures.

Vanilla Greek Frozen Yogurt: Interestingly, the container looked like a cup of non-frozen refrigerated yogurt. When I peeled the lid back, I was surprised by the large amount of big ice crystals on top of the yogurt. The yogurt also melted quickly, turning into an icy slush. I could taste the vanilla. The grainy icy texture wasn’t appealing and it was too sweet. One serving is 139 calories, 5.1 total fat, 22g total carbs, 10.15g protein, and 19g total sugars.

2.5 out of 5 stars.

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.

Gelato Festival: Apricot Frozen Yogurt Review

Fro-yo girl here. I heard about the Gelato Festival before the pandemic, when it was an in-person festival where gelato artisans duked it out for the title of best gelato in the world. The Gelato Festival started in Florence, Italy in 2010 and the festival moved to various locations, including the US in 2017. They had a stop in LA, so I think that’s how I heard about it initially.

Gelato Festival currently has two brick & mortar locations in Los Angeles, an online gelato store, and distribution in local stores. And yes, sometimes they make froyo. They ship nationwide. The flavors are the best ones from their festival competitions.

I spotted the pints at Cookbook Market in Highland Park (Los Angeles). They only had one flavor and luckily, it was Apricot Yogurt. The pints are $13 each.

Apricot Yogurt: The apricot puree is not blended into the froyo but is swirled in. The froyo part (not the puree) tasted like plain froyo and it was very flavorful and very tart. It was more flavorful than most plain tart froyos. The yogurt texture was thick, dense, and creamy, like high quality ice cream. The apricot puree was thick and sweet like jam or a gelee. The apricot flavor wasn’t evenly distributed because they just added the puree to the plain froyo. Loving the plain tart froyo – it didn’t need the apricot puree.

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.

Noosa Frozen Yoghurt Gelato Review

Fro-yo girl here. I remember when I read that Noosa was considering launching froyo. That was five years ago and they’ve finally launched their first froyo! It should be available nationwide by summer 2022. The initial reviews have been positive.

Noosa yoghurt gelato is made with whole milk, real fruit, probiotics, and no artificial flavors.

It’s sold in 14 oz tubs (at first I thought they were pints but they’re smaller than pints). My local Vons had all four flavors for $5.99 each. The product is meant to be over-the-top decadent but with live active cultures.

Honey Vanilla Bean: Thick, rich, and creamy, Honey Bean Vanilla is studded with lots of vanilla bean specks. The honey is not evenly distributed but it’s not sticky or super sweet either. Noosa’s Honey Vanilla Bean eats like a honey vanilla ice cream. You can taste the vanilla and a hint of honey. It’s pretty sweet and isn’t tangy like Noosa Yoghurt. One 2/3 cup serving is 220 calories, 10g total fat, 28g total carbs, 28g total sugars, and 4g protein.

Strawberries & Cream: Strawberries and cream has bits of strawberries and is also thick, rich, creamy, and dense. I liked how the strawberries gave it a little tang. It’s also as sweet as ice cream. Surprisingly, it does not have honey (Noosa Yoghurt has honey). One 2/3 cup serving is 230 calories, 10g total fat, 31g total carbs, 30g total sugars, and 4g protein.

Available flavors: Chocolate Fudge, Honey Vanilla Bean, Sea Salt Caramel, Strawberries & Cream

There’s a bit of a disconnect between Noosa’s yoghurt gelato and their regular yoghurt. The honey is missing (except for Honey Vanilla Bean) and so is the yogurt tang. Instead, these yoghurt gelatos are like ice cream. The first ingredient is cream. That’s not to say that they aren’t good but they don’t have a strong yogurt taste.

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.

Abyss Yogurt Inside Abyss Market Opens: Self-Serve Kosher Froyo & Toppings in Valley Village

Fro-yo girl here. Abyss Market was known as Fast Stop Mini Market. Late last year, they changed the name to Abyss Market and they’ve been transforming into a food destination. I’m not sure if ownership also changed. Abyss Market added the Black Rabbit Café late last year. The café serves hot panini sandwiches, salads, wraps, and more from the back of the store. Then, “the dopest liquor store in North Hollywood,” added self-serve froyo in February 2022. The froyo and toppings are certified kosher, with two Cholov Yisroel flavors from Klein’s and the other 8 kosher flavors from Dannon YoCream.

The toppings bar was small and did not include any fresh fruit. For toppings they had candy, nuts, cereal, cookies, sprinkles, and chocolate chips. But for a liquor store froyo set up, it was very clean. The toppings were covered and labeled. They even provided gloves. It’s 70 cents an ounce, more expensive than average but everything is kosher. Menchie’s in Valley Village is 62 cents an ounce and their froyo is kosher, but not all their toppings are kosher.

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

* ABYSS YOGURT: 5406 Whitsett Ave., Valley Village, CA 91607

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.