Frozen Yogurt, Past & Present in Dublin, CA

Fro-yo girl here. I can’t think about Dublin, California, without fondly remembering Blush Organic Frozen Yogurt, and the sweet owner, Jonathan Rim. Blush opened in June 2008 and made the best froyo in that area. That location is now Teaspoon, a boba shop. Other froyo shops followed, notably two self-serve froyo shops in 2010: Yogurtland and Tutti Frutti. Blush remained the premium froyo choice in the Tri-Valley.

Today, you can get froyo at Yogurtland, Cuppa Yo, and Nick the Greek. Yogurtland was the last froyo shop standing. Cuppa Yo just opened in March 2024. 

Dublin currently has a population of 71,750 and is one of the fastest-growing cities in Alameda County. The median age is 36.5 and the median household income is $171,168.

Current Froyo Shops

• Cuppa Yo, 3970 Summit Rd, opened on March 23, 2024, the first California location for the Oregon-based self-serve froyo chain.
• Nick the Greek, 5246 Dublin Blvd, opened in 2021 at the old Yalla location. Nick the Greek is a fast-casual café that also serves Greek frozen yogurt. So, it's not a froyo shop, but I'll include it on this list.
• Yogurtland, 6851 Amador Plaza Rd, Ste 102, opened in 2010, a few months after Yogurtland San Ramon, the first Yogurtland to open in the Tri-Valley. 

Past Froyo Shops

• Blush Organic Frozen Yogurt, 4640 Tassajara Rd, Ste A, was a counter-serve froyo shop, that opened in 2008. Blush later expanded and opened shops in Burlingame, Milpitas, Pleasanton, San Francisco, and Walnut Creek. The froyo recipes were proprietary and amazing. The last Blush locations to close were Pleasanton and Dublin, in 2020.
• Menchie’s, 3742 Fallon Rd, Ste 650, opened in 2014 in the Fallon Gateway shopping center and closed in 2019
• Tutti Frutti Frozen Yogurt, 4930 Dublin Blvd, Ste 720, was located at Hacienda Crossings from 2010 to 2020. The pandemic probably was the reason it closed for good.
• Yalla Mediterranean, 5246 Dublin Blvd, opened in November 2015 and closed in 2020. It wasn’t a froyo shop, but the fast-casual Mediterranean eatery did serve Greek frozen yogurt with Greek toppings. The location was taken over by Nick the Greek.
• Yogurt Delight, 7840 Amador Valley Blvd, was a self-serve froyo shop inside Valero gas station’s convenience store. It opened in 2016 and may have closed in 2019.

Did I miss any froyo shops in Dublin? 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.

Painful Froyo Shop Closures of 2020

Fro-yo girl here. I’m usually sad when I hear about a froyo shop closing, but some closures hurt much more than others. I’ve already written about the closure of three of the shops on this list. These are the most painful froyo shop closures of 2020 (in alphabetical order). I've visited all the places on this list.

Blush Organic Frozen Yogurt, 4640 Tassajara Rd, Dublin, CA 94568

I have so many fond memories of going to Blush after work, chatting with the owner, Jonathan, and driving home with a cooler full of froyo. His swirling skills were legendary and he was so passionate about developing the best froyo flavors. He was so dedicated and the froyo was something special. My favorite flavors were Green Tea Tart, Original, Blush, and Pumpkin Tart. I also loved Pineapple Tart, Acai Blueberry Tart, Gingerbread, Mango Tart…the list goes on. Blush Dublin first opened in 2008. It closed in May 2020.

Zoeyogurt, 6900 East Green Lake Way N E, Seattle, WA 98115

The original Zoeyogurt, in Green Lake, closed after nine years in Green Lake (Seattle, WA). I visited once and really liked the cozy atmosphere, cleanliness and froyo texture. The owner, Donna, was an earlier supporter of the International Frozen Yogurt Association and all three Zoeyogurt shops were IFYA Swirl of Honor shops.

Woody’s Yogurt Place, 802 Strawberry Village, Mill Valley, CA 94941

A local institution, Woody’s Yogurt Place was owned by the same family, the Woodsons, since 1998. Another Swirl of Honor shop, Woody’s won numerous “best of” froyo and ice cream awards over the years. Woody’s donated gift certificates to every nearby school for their auctions and fundraisers, hosted free ice cream socials for local schools, and more. Woody’s Yogurt Place closed in January due to the rising cost of rent at Strawberry Village.

Yogurtland Fullerton, 501 N. State College Blvd., Fullerton, CA 92831

Yogurtland #1, the original location, closed in October, a victim of the economic effects of COVID-19. The shop was located near Cal State Fullerton and with students staying at home, business must have been slow. The shop first opened in February 2006 and shared a space with Phillip Chang’s other business, Boba Loca, a bubble tea shop. They offered 16 self-serve, non-fat fro-yo flavors a day and toppings for 30 cents. This was the format that early Yogurtland locations continued to offer during the early years.

 

Yogurtland, 152 Sunset Dr., San Ramon, CA 94583

Sure there are plenty of Yogurtland locations, especially in California, but only a few were my regular spots. Yogurtland San Ramon opened in 2009, back when I used to work in San Ramon. I remember when it first opened. I went there many times, often for lunch with my good friend, S (our regular spots were Yogurtland and Top Dog). I collected many froyo spoons from that location, including the Tokidoki Yogurtland spoons. The pandemic led to the closure. 

Yogurtland, 4960 Telephone Rd, Ste 104, Ventura, CA 93003

This was my regular spot whenever I was in Ventura visiting family. Open from 2013-2020, it was the best option in town. The shop was in the shopping plaza with Barnes & Noble, Kohl’s, and Starbucks.

Farewell, old friends. You are missed.

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.

Farewell, Blush Organic Frozen Yogurt

Blush Dublin

Pumpkin froyo from Blush

Fro-yo girl here. Blush Organic Frozen Yogurt is gone, a part of froyo history now. The first location which opened in Dublin, CA in June 2008, was also the last to close. The closing announcement was posted on May 13, 2020. I’m still in shock even though in truth, Blush wasn’t as good as it used to be (probably because the original owner, Jonathan, sold the business). I’ll never have Blush green tea, pumpkin, original tart, and Blush froyo again.

I’ve written many posts about Blush over the years and used to talk to Jonathan all the time (Jonathan, I hope you’re doing well). I was at the grand opening of Blush in Milpitas, Walnut Creek, Burlingame (Frank even let me see the shop before it opened), and San Francisco (also owned by Frank). Jonathan’s customers became his franchisees because they loved the froyo that much. Here’s a story of how they got started that I wrote in 2009.

Jonathan created his own flavors and was an innovator. His passion is what was so infectious during the early years of Blush. 

Other Blush locations (year opened - year closed):

• Milpitas, 2009 – 2013, first franchise location
• San Francisco, 2009 - 2013
• Burlingame, 2010-2019
• Walnut Creek, 2010 - 2017
• Pleasanton, 2015 – 2020, first self-serve Blush

Nothing can ever replace the old Blush…but I still have lots of memories.

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.

Blush Dublin for Sale

Fro-yo girl here. Back during the early days of this blog, I used to go to and write about Blush Dublin all the time. It was the very first Blush location and it opened in 2008. I was there for the opening of Blush in Walnut Creek, San Francisco, Milpitas, and Burlingame. Jonathan Rim, who founded Blush, was super passionate about frozen yogurt and he created amazing froyo flavors. My favorites were pumpkin, green tea tart, blush, original tart and pomegranate. I hadn’t been back to the Dublin location in a few years because I moved to Southern California and Dublin was quite far from my father’s house.

I went back to Blush Dublin last December and asked about Jonathan. The employee didn’t know who he was. That’s when I found out that he sold the business. And now it’s for sale again. I came across the listing on BizBuySell. The lease expires next year. Sad. I still miss Blush’s froyo.

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 Pricing at Blush Dublin

Fro-yo girl here. I just returned from the Blush Dublin new pricing launch party. Prices have been simplified. Gone is the higher pricing for flavored fro-yo (yay!) All fro-yo flavors are now the same price. The current flavor lineup is Original Tart, Strawberry Kiwi, Blush and Cookies N' Cream. Delicious and organic too!

The new pricing scheme: Small ($3)/ Medium ($4)/ Large ($5). Add on toppings (your choice of up to 4) and the fro-yo + toppings price is Small ($4)/ Medium ($5.50)/ Large ($6.75)



To celebrate the new pricing, they had face painting (I noticed one option was the Blush cherry logo, so cute) and an amazing balloon artist, Perry the Magician. He can make balloon animals but also draws on faces and makes them into hats and bracelets. That big sculpture is a balloon version of fro-yo with a cherry on top!

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

* BLUSH DUBLIN: 4640-A Tassajara Road, Dublin, CA 94568