Rarest Froyo Spoons From My Collection

Fro-yo girl here. I recently organized my frozen yogurt spoon collection and in the process, saw some rare froyo spoons that I hadn’t seen for years. I know there are other froyo spoon admirers and collectors out there. This post is dedicated to them.

My rarest froyo spoons:

(1) Fru:yo elephant spoon

Fru:yo Factory had several locations in Hong Kong. At the shop entrance, a giant elephant holding a cup of froyo with his trunk greeted guests. The same elephant is shown on their froyo spoons. I believe all the locations have closed and that the elephant found a new home.

(2) Berry Chill color changing spoon

Long before Pinkberry and Yogurtland opened in the Windy City, Berry Chill was the place to get tart froyo. They even had a cute white bear mascot. They had color changing cups and spoons. Berry Chill gave me my first color changing spoon. The spoon features the Berry Chill logo. Berry Chill opened several locations in Chicago, filed for bankruptcy in 2010, and closed their shops.

(3) Snog spoon 

This rare spoon is my only metal froyo spoon. The limited edition Snog spoons were designed by Tomas Alonso of the Royal College of Art. Snog spoons came in one color, hot pink, and they were made out of shiny anodized aluminum. My friend from the UK gave me the spoon.

(4) Menchie’s test spoon

This orange Menchie’s spoon that features Chip was a test spoon for a run of spoons. The test spoons aren’t available in stores. It looks like a test spoon for the brown Chip spoons.

(5) 7 Eleven froyo spoon

In Norway, 7-Eleven locations have self-serve froyo and there’s even a 7-Eleven froyo truck. The 7-Eleven froyo spoons have extra long handles and they’re imprinted with the words, 7-Eleven’s Frozen Yogurt.

(6) Sno:la spoons

These are compostable wooden spoons. The larger one is from their Beverly Hills shop that closed. The smaller one is from their Tokyo shop. Everything is smaller in Japan, or bigger in America.

(7) Tutti Frutti light up spoon 

These unusual spoons have a built in light. To activate the light, you have to twist the top of the spoon sideways. These are the only light up spoons in my collection. 

(8) Yogurtland original logo spoons 

The first Yogurtland logo spoons were clear pink and green. They still had the old logo. Later, they decided to switch to compostable spoons. 

(9) Yogurtland 5th anniversary spoon

When Yogurtland turned five in 2011, they handed out the limited edition purple spoon – for one day only!

If you missed my earlier post, I am selling some of my froyo spoons. See

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.

Magic Color Changing Frozen Yogurt Spoons!

Fro-yo girl here. Everyone knows that I love frozen yogurt spoons. Years ago, I went to Berry Chill in Chicago and was amazed by their green color changing frozen yogurt spoons. I couldn’t throw the spoon away and it made a wonderful, practical, cute, and memorable souvenir. Berry Chill is no longer around but the color changing spoons live on thanks to Frozen Solutions.

FrozenSolutions.com has color changing spoons, cups, straws, bracelets, pens and pencils. The spoons change colors in response to cold. Some of their other items change colors based on body temperature, heat, sunlight.

The color changing spoons come in six colors. I think people of all ages like the color changing spoons. It’s an unexpected, fun and whimsical twist to the typical frozen yogurt spoon.

• Orange turns Red
• Green turns Blue
• Pink turns Purple
• Yellow turns Green
• White turns Blue
• Blue turns Purple

You can watch the color changing magic take place in my Vine video.

The color changing spoons are BPA free, FDA certified and food safe. Customization options are available, including imprinting names and logos to custom molds for cups, spoons and straws. For additional information, visit the Frozensolutions.com website.

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.

Chicago Fro-yo Report: Fro-yo Scene Heats Up

Fro-yo girl here. What a difference a few months make...the Chicago fro-yo scene is red hot and it's not just because of the popularity of self-serve fro-yo.

1. Fro-yo (and kefir) on the go: Starfruit Cafe's Kefir Truck starts cruising the streets in June. Culture fro-yo truck, from the founder of Berry Chill, joins in late August. Follow the trucks on Twitter, @StarfruitCafe and @Culture

2. Pinkberry finally opens in July, taking over the old Berry Chill space. A second store in Old Town is slated to open on Sept. 9th with a free fro-yo event on Sept. 8 between 5 - 8 PM.

3. The growth of self-serve fro-yo, with Forever Yogurt leading the charge. Forever Yogurt has three locations with 12 more on the way. Yogurt Avenue, Yogurt Pier, Berry Moon and Royal Berry also offer self-serve fro-yo.

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

Fro-yo Chicago Report: Downtown

Fro-yo girl here. I found the best fro-yo in downtown Chicago...but it's not at a fro-yo shop. It's at Graham Elliott's fancy/fun sandwich shop, Grahamwich. They only have one kind of fro-yo, Greek yogurt and it comes with paired toppings: pomegranate seeds, shaved chocolate and chestnuts ($4). Pomegranate season is almost over, so I wonder what new fro-yo/toppings combination they'll come up with next. I hope they keep the Greek fro-yo. I loved how it was sour and not too sweet and actually tasted like yogurt, not ice cream. The texture was smooth and icy (but not watery).

Kingoberry opened up in the Printer's Row area about three months ago, inside Pockets. They serve Love's Yogurt. They will deliver fro-yo to you. The price is very reasonable but they only have two fro-yo flavors.


It was sad to see the shuttered Berry Chill. The sign said it was closed temporarily closed for emergency repairs. I spotted two "coming soon" freshii signs downtown, so I'm guessing that means more fro-yo is on the way.

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

* GRAHAMWICH: 615 N. State St., Chicago, IL
* FRESHII (coming soon): 161 North Clark, 200 W Randolph, Chicago, IL
* KINGOBERRY: 555 S. Dearborn, Chicago, IL
* BERRY CHILL: 635 N. State St., Chicago, IL

Fro-yo Girl's 2011 Wish List

Fro-yo girl here. Happy Fro-yo New Year! Hope your resolution includes eating more fro-yo in 2011. I'm thinking ahead to what I'd like to see happen in 2011 to come up with my 2011 fro-yo wish list. Since my 2010 wish list items didn't come true, those items are back on the list.

I know fro-yo is coming to SFO International Airport, so I don't have to wish for that. I still haven't tried Yolato's fro-yo popsicles. I want to try Jamba Juice's Whirlin's fro-yo (it's the mix-in kind). My friend wants to see a fro-yo freezer (a freezer built specifically for fro-yo storage).

* Signature fro-yo spoons: I need more of these. I like to use them for home fro-yo consumption.
* Signature recyclable fro-yo cups: Berry Chill lets you collect theirs and bring them back for free fro-yo. I love that idea.
* Mobile fro-yo truck makes it to the Bay Area: This has to be the year. We can't let ourselves be that behind the times. Maybe Twirl & Dip can add fro-yo. They're already serving Straus soft-serve ice cream from their truck.
* Give someone the gift of fro-yo instantly: I've purchased fro-yo gift cards but it's a hassle to have to send it to someone. Fraiche and others have the right idea by allowing you to send your gift certificate by e-mail to someone instantly.
* More Greek fro-yo: Since Greek yogurt is so popular, it seems like more fro-yo places would come up with fro-yo using Greek yogurt as a base. Grahamwich in Chicago has a Greek fro-yo soft serve that I must try.
* Macarons with fro-yo: I know of fro-yo places that sell macarons and macaron places that sell soft-serve ice cream...I'm hoping to encounter a fro-yo sundae with macarons on top OR a giant macaron with fro-yo in the middle!

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

Chicago Fro-yo Report: Berry Chill vs. Starfruit

Fro-yo girl here White Sox vs. Cubs, Thick Crust vs. Thin Crust, Chocolate vs. Vanilla...in Chicago, the two homegrown chains that come to mind when someone thinks of fro-yo (or frozen kefir) are Berry Chill and Starfruit Café. Berry Chill was the first tart fro-yo shop to open in Chicago, swirling since late 2007. Starfruit soon followed in April 2008. I was eager to try both places to see how they’d compare (and I brought Tuttimelon Bear along for a second opinion).

* PRICE: They're the same but Berry Chill charges a dollar more for their flavored tart fro-yo, but I think Berry Chill has larger portions. Advantage: Tie

* TOPPINGS: Both serve Milk & Honey granola and have better than average toppings. Starfruit toppings seem healthier since they have goji berries and flaxseeds, whereas Berry Chill has Thin Mints, peanut butter pretzels. Fruit toppings looked equally fresh. Advantage: Tie



* VARIETY: During my visits, they were offering very fro-yo/frozen kefir flavors. Both offer smoothies. Starfruit has some organic frozen kefir flavors. Advantage: Tie again

* MARKETING: Berry Chill has the cutest signature cups and spoons, delivery, self-serve order kiosks and Yogi the bear mascot. YogiJones is constantly tweeting. Starfruit has a very bright and fruity image. I like how you can create your own frozen kefir creation on their website. Advantage: Berry Chill



* TASTE: I like kefir and everyone knows that I'm obsessed with fro-yo. For me, taste is the most important and Starfruit wins here. Berry Chill is too icy and the original tart tastes too lemony. Starfruit tastes more natural and doesn't taste lemony. Advantage: Starfruit

Since taste is the most important, I’m picking Starfruit Café (so sorry Yogi). It isn't enough to be cute (but thanks for the cup and spoon, Berry Chill).

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

Chicago Fro-yo Report: Part 1

Fro-yo girl here. After several days of wandering around Lincoln Park, the Magnificent Mile and the Loop, I’m ready to report the Chicago fro-yo scene.

1) There isn’t enough fro-yo. There are several large shopping centers on Michigan Avenue (900 North, Water Tower Place, The Shops at North Bridge) and none of them have fro-yo! The horror. Granted, mall fro-yo can often be inferior but there’s something so nice about stopping for fro-yo while shopping. I wandered around for a long time without running into that many fro-yo signs.



2) No self-serve fro-yo in downtown Chicago. Self-serve fro-yo does exist but you have to go to the suburbs for it. I prefer full serve anyway, so this doesn’t bother me. I’d be surprised if someone doesn’t open up a self-serve place downtown this year.



3) The best neighborhood for fro-yo seems to be the Loop. The Loop has Starfruit, Berry Chill, Yogen Fruz, Fruigurt, Simply Fresh, Under 55 Café, Green Apple, etc. Fruigurt, located inside Macy’s food court (lower level) on State St., is really cheap. For $1.95 + tax, you can get a big cup of fro-yo. Watch out for the fruit toppings (they looked old). Under 55 has a $6.99 lunch special that includes fro-yo and a fountain beverage. I walked by Green Apple on a Sunday. It’s in a food court which was closed and locked up.

4) I don’t mind flying into O’Hare because there are several places to get fro-yo. I went to TCBY this time.

In my next report I’ll weigh in on Berry Chill vs. Starfruit.

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

* FRUIGURT: 111 N State St, Chicago, IL 60602
* GREEN APPLE YOGURT: 201 N Clark St, Chicago, IL 60601
* UNDER 55 CAFÉ: 55 E Monroe St, Chicago, IL 60603
* TCBY: Chicago O’Hare, Terminal 3, Concourse K4, Chicago, IL 60666