Froyo History at the Valley Relics Museum

 

Fro-yo girl here. We recently visited the Valley Relics Museum, a museum dedicated to the history of the San Fernando Valley, so that Mr. Froyo could relive some childhood memories. He grew up in North Hollywood. I grew up in the Bay Area, so I don’t have SFV childhood memories, but I certainly recognized some of the movies, TV shows, and businesses of the Valley (e.g., Fast Times at Ridgemont High, Brady Bunch).

Some of the neon signs looked familiar because those businesses still exist (e.g., Dinah’s Fried Chicken, Pioneer Chicken, Johnny Rockets, Bob’s Big Boy). I spotted the Studio Frozen Yogurt sign. Studio Yogurt: Studio Yogurt opened in Studio City in 1997 and closed in 2014. The location was taken over by Yogurtland. It was an old school yogurt shop known for generous portions. I visited it one time.

I believe they have the old Humphrey Yogart sign, though I didn’t see it displayed. And yes, I was looking for it. The Valley is also home to the very first Menchie's Frozen Yogurt in Valley Village, and it's still open. Humphrey Yogart moved and continues to serve froyo inside Gelson's in Sherman Oaks.

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

* VALLEY RELICS MUSEUM: C3 & C4 Entrance on, 7900 Balboa Blvd, Stagg St, Van Nuys, CA 91406

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.

Menchie’s Launches a New Loyalty App

 

Fro-yo girl here. Menchie’s just launched a new app on September 17. If you already registered for the My Smileage loyalty program, you’ll need to update the Menchie’s app. To keep your previous points, enter the phone number you used to register your Menchie’s loyalty account. You can also claim your points with the email address associated with the existing Menchie’s loyalty account.

The new app is powered by Thanx. It features a store locator (the old app had this feature), your rewards (including points total), a way to send feedback to Menchie’s, and notifications (messages from Menchie’s?).

Unfortunately, they removed the flavors that the stores are carrying and the hours of operation for each location.

Once you register for the new app, you’ll receive a $5 reward.

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.

Share Your Thoughts About Frozen Yogurt for a Chance to Win Froyo Gift Cards

 

Fro-yo girl here. The National (US) Frozen Yogurt Consumer Survey is back. Sponsored by the International Frozen Yogurt Association, the survey is open to anyone who eats froyo in the United States.

Share your thoughts about frozen yogurt to help the frozen yogurt shops better understand what customers want. This year’s survey covers everything from consumption habits to froyo preferences —and we’ll compare the results to last year’s to track what’s trending.

Why Participate?

• Your insights help shape the future of froyo
• You could win one of five $25 gift cards to any U.S. froyo shop that sells online gift cards
• It only takes 6 minutes

Survey Details:

• Open: September 24 – October 8, 2025
• Ages 13+ in the U.S. are welcome
• Email addresses are only used to notify gift card winners
• One response per person

👉 Take the survey now at https://tinyurl.com/2025froyosurvey

Winners will be contacted via email and announced by October 22, 2025.

Let’s swirl up some data and make froyo even better for everyone!

For the complete contest rules, visit https://internationalfrozenyogurt.com/2025-national-frozen-yogurt-consumer-survey-sweepstakes-official-rules/

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.

Stradiva Eskimo Vanilla Review

 

Fro-yo girl here. Super King carries a variety of ice cream bars/popsicles imported from Russia, Ukraine, and Armenia. Fortunately, you can try some without buying a whole box. Eskimo Pie must have been popular in that region. ICYMI, Eskimo Pie was renamed Edy’s Pie because using the term eskimo was deemed culturally insensitive, but I don’t think Ukraine, Armenia, and Russia care.

Stradiva Eskimo Vanilla bars: The bar is a thin, long cylinder, unlike the Eskimo Pie from my childhood, which has a traditional flat shape with rounded corners. The chocolate coating was crispy and creamy in a good way. The vanilla ice cream was very sweet and not as creamy as I expected. It didn’t taste like high quality ice cream, but it did remind me of the kind of ice cream from childhood. For under $2, it’s a nice small treat.

Super King in Altadena, CA, sells Stradiva Eskimo Vanilla bars, a product of Ukraine, for $1.79. Each bar is 2.75 fl oz (80 ml). It is described as “vanilla flavored ice cream in sweet cocoa coated glaze.” The main ingredients are whole cow’s milk, butter, sugar, powdered whole milk, water, and skim milk powder. It’s not a lowfat bar.

3.5 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.

Yumi Yogurt Redwood City Is Almost Ready to Open

Fro-yo girl here. Froyo miracles do happen! The news of Yumi Yogurt’s return to Redwood City took me by surprise. The shop closed on 9/15/2019, after 35 years. The original building was demolished. Six years later, it’s just about ready to open and it’s back at the same shopping center (but different location), Sequoia Station. The old address was 947 El Camino Real and the new, 1019 El Camino Real Unit B9, right next to Little Madfish.

The glass storefront was papered over, so I couldn’t see inside. But they did post a picture of the interior on Instagram on September 3. The post says “our shop is fully ready, the only step left is the final approval from” San Mateo County Environmental Health.

Yumi Yogurt RWC was the first Yumi that I visited and the one that I went to the most often.

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.

Chara Froyo Review

 

Fro-yo girl here. Chara Froyo is a new Greek frozen yogurt brand that's currently available in Los Angeles. Launched in June 2025, Chara Froyo has been available at a few pop-ups and a bus that they park in Abbot Kinney Blvd. in Venice. You can also get Chara Froyo at Farmshop LA in Santa Monica. 

Chara Froyo is high protein, sweetened with agave and maple syrup, probiotic, lactose free, and made with California milk.

When I visited Farmshop, I found two flavors: Chocolate and Berries & Cream. One pint was $12. Unfortunately, due to the usual crazy Westside traffic, my pint melted on the way home. I overestimated the ability of my cooler and ice packs.

Berries & Cream froyo: The texture wasn’t dense and hard but light and creamy. The flavor was similar to a good lowfat strawberry ice cream. However, it was too sweet with almost no yogurt tang. If you told me that it was a light ice cream, I would not question it. Why can’t it taste like yogurt? One serving (2/3 cup) is 120 calories, 4g total fat, 19g total carbs, 17g total sugars, and 9g protein.

Available flavors:

• Plain tarte
• Berries & cream
• Chocolate
• Mint chip

I hope to try Plain Tarte one day.

FARMSHOP: 225 26th St #25, Santa Monica, CA 90402

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.

Go Greek Opens in Newport Beach

 

Fro-yo girl here. Go Greek recently opened in Newport Beach, CA (Orange County). I missed the grand opening on September 4 but visited about a week later. Go Greek is an authentic Greek yogurteria, serving authentic Greek yogurt in a Greek-inspired setting.

This is a franchise location offering six flavors of self-serve Greek froyo and toppings for $1.35/oz and fresh Greek yogurt with toppings. For the fresh yogurt, you can design your own bowl or go with one of their signature sweet or savory bowls. It is not self-serve.

Their Greek froyo is richer and creamier than the froyo shops and the yogurt is sourced from Greece. The froyo is always on the softer side for some reason, and it does melt quickly. However, I do enjoy the strong yogurt tang of Go Greek Yogurt. The toppings looked fresh, with more fresh fruit options than usual. The toppings do not appear to be organic. Gone are the days when they offer Greek cookies as a topping.

They have an app where you can earn points and free froyo.

It’s a nice looking shop with a brick façade and outdoor courtyard seating. Parking was easy to find. I do dislike the policy of not offering samples. People should be able to try the flavors before choosing.

* GO GREEK YOGURT: 191 Riverside Ave Unit C, Newport Beach, CA 92663

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.

Froyo Scene in North Hollywood, CA

 

Fro-yo girl here. North Hollywood, a neighborhood in the San Fernando Valley of Los Angeles, is known for the NoHo Arts District and the abundance of playhouses and sound studios. Roughly 65,000 call North Hollywood home. Neighboring cities like Burbank and Hollywood have had more and better froyo shops.

There is one froyo shop left, Yogurtland, a snack shop that offers vanilla frozen yogurt, Slusheeland, and a Greek eatery that offers froyo. I found three closed froyo shops, including a Tutti Frutti that preceded Yogurtland on Magnolia. I visited all of them, except for Cefiore.

Open

• Slusheeland, 6005 Vineland Ave UNIT 105, is a snack shop that always offers Dole soft serve and vanilla froyo. The menu also includes raspados, shakes, slushies, nachos, and other Mexican snacks. It opened in 2012.
• Yogurtland, 10936 Magnolia Blvd, took over the Tutti Frutti space in 2016
• Nick the Greek, 4764 Lankershim Blvd, is a fast casual Greek eatery that offers Greek froyo for dessert. It opened in August 2025.

Closed

• Cefiore, 5166 Lankershim Blvd, opened in 2007 and closed in 2010. It was a counter-serve froyo chain similar to Pinkberry.
• Ice Krave, 5235 Lankershim Blvd, was a self-serve froyo shop that opened in 2015 and closed in 2016. It also offered smoothies and cold-pressed juices.
• Tutti Frutti, 10936 Magnolia Blvd, opened in 2010 and closed in 2016. It was a branch of the multi-national self-serve froyo chain.

Did I miss any froyo shops? Let me know if I did.

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.

Menchie’s September Featured Flavors & a New App

 

Fro-yo girl here. Menchie’s featured flavors for September are two returning favorites, Harvest Pumpkin and Cookie Butter froyo.

Harvest Pumpkin froyo: Menchie’s Harvest Pumpkin froyo is made with real pumpkin, cinnamon, and ginger. I could taste the spices. It normally comes back in October, but they brought it back early this year. Recommended toppings: Butterfinger, chocolate shell, Special Dark chocolate chips

Cookie Butter froyo: This is another spiced froyo, and it has cinnamon as well. It will make you think of speculoos cookies. Cookie butter froyo is made with no artificial flavors, no artificial colors, and no high fructose corn syrup. Recommended toppings: white chocolate chips, graham cracker crumbs, cheesecake bites

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

I also saw a sign that said there’s a new app launching on 9/17. You’ll need to download it to earn & redeem rewards. Menchie’s recently unveiled a new website as well.

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.

Save the Date, National Spoon Day at Yogurtland on October 7

 

Fro-yo girl here. In honor of National Spoon Day, Yogurtland is giving out new GIANT SPOONS on October 7. The new spoon will be Midnight Plum, an appropriate color for October.

Spoon drop details:

• Free gift with every $12 minimum in-store purchase (food and beverage purchases only)
• Maximum of 4 spoons per transaction
• Offer good while supplies last
• Not valid with catering, online, and third party delivery orders.
• Not valid with any other offers or promotions.

In case you’re wondering, the previous National Spoon Day giant Yogurtland spoons were: pink and green (2020), raspberry (2021), turquoise (2022), dark blue (2023), and apricot (2024).

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.

All the Current Froyo Offerings at Vons Pasadena

 

Fro-yo girl here. I visited the Vons in the Orangewood Center in Pasadena, CA, to check their froyo selection. These are the froyo products that I spotted:

• Signature Select Frozen Yogurt: Signature Select is Vons private label. There were a few flavors to choose from, including Vanilla, Black Cherry Fudge, Chocolate Chip Black Cherry, etc. Sold in 1.5 quarts, these are family-sized containers that are meant to be a healthier alternative to ice cream
• Sweetkiwi Greek Frozen Yogurt tubs: for yogurt lovers, this is one of the few products that doesn’t mask the flavor of the yogurt. Sweetkiwi whipped Greek froyo is rich in probiotics, fiber, and immune-boosting superfoods and it's low in calories.
• Yasso: Vons carried Yasso Greek yogurt bars, including the chocolate dipped varieties. They also carried Yasso Poppables, the bite size, chocolate-covered Greek froyo treats.

With three brands of froyo, Vons has fewer froyo brands as Bristol Farms and the same number as Whole Foods.

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

* VONS, 155 W California Blvd, Pasadena, CA 91105

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.

Cinnabon Swirl Opens in Pasadena

Fro-yo girl here. Cinnabon Swirl, a brand new concept from Cinnabon and Carvel, is now open in Pasadena. The Pasadena location is the fourth and the first in California.

Founded in 1934, Carvel is known for its soft serve ice cream. In fact, Tom Carvel invented soft serve ice cream after his ice cream truck broke down and he served his melting ice cream to customers. Cinnabon Swirl doesn’t have the full Carvel menu. The menu includes soft serve ice cream (cup or cone, sundae), ice cream sandwiches, shakes, and cinnamon rolls (including minibons and the center of the roll), ice cream cakes, ice cream pints, and cinnampacks. Some items are exclusive to Cinnabon Swirl locations.

The soft serve is based on the original formula created by Tom Carvel in 1934, which he developed after his ice cream truck broke down and the melting ice cream was a hit with customers.

There were four soft serve ice cream flavors during my visit: pumpkin, cheesecake, vanilla, and chocolate.

You can also add toppings to the soft serve (sauces, whipped cream, sprinkles, crunchies, nuts, brownies, cookie dough, etc.)

Small pumpkin and vanilla soft serve cup with chocolate crunchies ($5.99 + $0.79): There was a generous amount of rich ice cream. The texture was airy, soft, and creamy. It melted quickly. Both flavors were mild (aka bland). I didn't like the soft serve.

The grand opening is this Friday, September 5 from 3 PM – 5 PM. Enjoy a free Cinnabon crunch ice cream sandwich, giveaways, face painting, and more.

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

* CINNABON SWIRL, 1661 E Colorado Blvd, Pasadena, CA 91106

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.

Mavens Creamery Tart Yogurt Review

 

Fro-yo girl here. Mavens Creamery has been busy this year taking their new Asian ice cream flavors to different Costco locations. You can also buy the ice cream from the online Asian grocer, Weee! for $9.29 each. A container is 14 fl oz.

Tart yogurt: This yogurt ice cream is inspired by Vietnamese da ua (yogurt). Vietnamese yogurt is typically a blend of yogurt and condensed milk that’s cooked in a pot. I love the tang and richness of da ua, though it is quite sweet. Mavens version has live and active cultures. It does taste like yogurt, and it reminds me of da ua. It is tangy and creamy with a sweet aftertaste. It isn’t sour. The texture isn’t as hard and dense as some prepacked ice cream. It was a bit too sweet for me, but I did enjoy it. I’m going to add some tart fruit to it. One serving (2/3 cup) is 250 calories, 14g total fat, 23g total sugars, 25g total carbs, and 7g protein.

Mavens Creamery ice cream is all-natural and made with no high fructose corn syrup.

Available flavors: durian, avocado, matcha, Thai tea, Earl grey, tart yogurt, pandan coconut, black sesame, passion fruit mango

The flavor selection varies by location. If you’ve been looking, you know that it’s hard to find tart froyo for sale in a supermarket.

Use Mavens Creamery store finder to find stockists near you.

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.

Yogurtland + JVKE Exclusive Flavor, Stickers, Spoons & Cups

Fro-yo girl here. Okay, I don’t know who JVKE is, but his face does look familiar. I could easily be confusing him with someone else. JVKE is an American singer, songwriter, and producer who gained fame through TikTok videos. And now Yogurtland has a collab with JVKE. They’ve renamed the red velvet cupcake batter froyo flavor “this is what red velvet tastes like” and this flavor is available at participating locations on September 1.

JVKE’s albums are called “This is what____ feels like,” so that explains the froyo flavor name. The red velvet has a special flavor sign. Yogurtland also has Yogurtland x JVKE cups (red with cherry blossoms), collectible spoons (black with a treble clef), and sticker sheets. Each sticker sheet has nine stickers, including a Yogurtland x JVKE spoon, JVKE, piano, Yogurtland cup of froyo, etc.

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.