Target and Freshii Expand Test Market to California

Fro-yo girl here. Frozen yogurt is everywhere, from large cities to small towns it’s a global phenomenon. Frozen kefir, like yogurt, is a cultured milk product, but it's relatively hard to find (though that could soon be changing - read on). Both contain live and active cultures. Kefir has a higher probiotic count and more types of probiotic bacteria though and the consistency tends to be thinner (it’s often sold as a drink). Kefir contains beneficial yeasts that yogurt does not.

Lifeway describes the difference between yogurt and kefir as: “Lifeway Kefir contains 12 live and active probiotic cultures and is fermented for 14-18 hours after pasteurization. This results in more CFU per serving (7-10 billion) compared to most other commercially available cultured dairy products, including yogurt. The probiotic activity is what produces kefir’s signature fizz, which is why we delightfully refer to it as the Champagne of Dairy!”

The few times that I’ve had frozen kefir, it had an icier texture. It was tangy and tasted like frozen yogurt but the texture wasn’t as pleasing. Granted, so few places offer frozen kefir that the machine settings might have been responsible for the iciness but from what I’ve experienced, frozen yogurt is better than frozen kefir – though the taste is similar the texture of frozen yogurt is superior. I’d say that frozen kefir doesn’t taste as good as the best frozen yogurt but it doesn’t taste different enough from yogurt to make a difference to the consumer. However, if the consumer understands and cares that kefir is healthier than yogurt, it might make a difference for a segment of frozen yogurt consumers. Right now it’s difficult to find frozen kefir other than at the supermarket but that could change.

Target and Freshii announced a partnership late last year. Target is rebranding some of its cafes (it's unclear how many will be remodeled and rebranded) with Freshii opening locations in nine test markets in Chicago and Minneapolis. California will be the next test market for Freshii. With 1,700 Target stores with cafes, you could be seeing frozen kefir 
much closer to you. Update: The Freshii inside the Target on Colorado Blvd. in Pasadena, CA is open but it doesn't have frozen kefir. Froyo is on the menu (though the machine wasn't ready to serve any during my visit).

I spotted a Freshii inside the Old Town Pasadena location and it looks like it's about to open. The soft serve machine was there and frozen kefir was on the menu.

Lifeway’s Starfruit Café serves frozen kefir in the Chicago area. Freshii switched from frozen yogurt to frozen kefir at some locations last summer, including in the Chicago area. Some Argo Tea locations in Chicago offer Lifeway frozen kefir.

Other frozen kefir purveyors outside of Chicago include:

• deKefir: 333 Bay St., Toronto, Canada
• Swirls Frozen Kefir, Unit 195A SM Mall of Asia JW Diokno Blvd., Pasay, Pasay City, Philippines
• Vanilla Jill’s, 298 Blair Blvd., Eugene, OR

Treat Petite was a frozen kefir shop in New York City that closed in 2012.

Lifeway’s frozen kefir products are distributed in the US, Canada, and the UK and can be found using the store locator: http://lifewaykefir.com/where-to-buy/

Babushka produces frozen kefir and is available at markets in Australia: http://babushkaskefir.com.au/find-us/

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.

Chicago Fro-yo Report, Part 2

Fro-yo girl here. I'm back from Chicago with an update on the Chicago fro-yo scene.

1) Starfruit opened another location, their fourth, this one is inside the Merchandise Mart. It took me awhile to find it; it's not in the food court area by Dunkin Donuts. The Merchandise Mart is huge. I walked by the Block 37 location and noticed that the Beard Papa across from Starfruit serves Haagen Dazs coffee/smoothie drinks.

2) Forever Yogurt just opened in Wicker Park, bringing self-serve fro-yo close to downtown. It didn't seem much different than your average self-serve fro-yo shop in California, only more expensive (almost 50 cents an ounce). There's plenty of variety in fro-yo (14 flavors) and toppings. The fro-yo was runny. They plan on adding bagels soon. Bagels and fro-yo, I haven't seen that combination before.

3) No visible signs of the future Red Mango at O'Hare (space B5)

4) There's tart fro-yo in Chinatown at Joy Yee Plus and it's good. I think it's the only place to get fro-yo in Chinatown but tapioca drinks are everywhere.

I forgot to visit the new Freshberry location (211 E. Ontario St.) and the new Berry Moon.

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

* STARFRUIT CAFE: 222 Merchandise Mart Plaza, Chicago, IL
* FOREVER YOGURT: 1924 W North Ave, Chicago, IL
* JOY YEE PLUS: 2159 S China Place, Chicago, IL

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

Fro-yo Shop Innovators

Fro-yo girl here. My last post about the new fro-yo hot spots (cities) in 2009 made me want to recognize a few special fro-yo shops that have been innovators in the field of tart fro-yo. These innovators offered something unique long before others in the area caught on. While they didn't invent fro-yo, they created something memorable and special in the field of fro-yo. In no particular order, the shops are:

* BERRYLINE (BOSTON, MA): Now with three locations in the Boston area, BerryLine creates unique flavors like Nutella, Banana, Oreo and Apple Cinnamon. They originally opened in September 2007 and brought tart fro-yo to Boston. You can even send your friend a cup of BerryLine via your cell phone at http://www.kangogift.com/SendGift.aspx?id=133
* STARFRUIT (CHICAGO, IL): They introduced frozen kefir to the US market. Currently Starfruit has three locations in the Chicago area. Frozen kefir looks just like soft serve fro-yo and Starfruit offers similar toppings. The concept was created by Lifeway, the country's leading manufacturer of kefir.
* SNO:LA (BEVERLY HILLS, CA): Sno:la's fro-yo tastes like no one else's - it's intense, sour and barely sweetened. It's made without any refined sugars, with organic dairy and seasonal fruits. The mochi can't be missed. Sno:la is eco-friendly and 1% of their gross proceeds go to the Slow Food movement.
* CULTURE ORGANIC FROZEN YOGURT (PALO ALTO, CA): Culture stays busy inventing new fro-yo flavors, fro-yo creations (Yo'wiches) and fro-yo toppings. They even had frozen kefir for awhile. Mary, the brilliant toppings-in-chief bakes up a storm including crumbles, mini meringue cookies, brownies, etc. She made marshmallow creme and flaxseed cones. Everything is organic and eco-friendly. No one else offers all organic toppings.
* FRAICHE FROZEN YOGURT (PALO ALTO, CA): They make their own yogurt with organic milk. And they make their own fro-yo. Though it took them awhile to offer mochi, their mochi was worth the wait. The new SF location is gorgeous and both locations also offer delicious baked goods. They're also famous for offering fresh chocolate shavings (shaved to order).
* MOCHII YOGURT (SACRAMENTO, CA): Mochii Yogurt brought delicious, handcrafted mochi and tart fro-yo to Sacramento back in 2007. The array of mochi flavors is awe-inspiring. Past mochi flavors included blackberry, mandarin orange, cherry, kiwi, peach, ume, and the list goes on.
* YOGIZMO (SANTA CRUZ, CA): YoGizmo brought mix-in style fro-yo and tart soft-serve fro-yo to Scotts Valley in 2007 and added a Santa Cruz location in 2009. The owner was inspired by the tart mix-in fro-yo she enjoyed in Canada. You can get also get soy ice cream, ice cream, and acai sorbet as the base for the mix-in. Choose up to three fruits and enjoy a custom blended creation.

Thank you, fro-yo shop innovators. You have my love and deep appreciation.

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