Last Day for Harmony Frozen Yogurt

Fro-yo girl here. Today is the final day of business for Harmony Frozen Yogurt. All items will be 50% off on the last day, while supplies last and the doors will close at 9 PM. 

I was happy that they still had natural tart. They didn't have as many toppings as usual. 

Fro-yo flavors of the day:
* Natural
* Raspberry
* Banana
* Mango

Here are some pictures from the last day, including my last cup of Harmony Frozen Yogurt, which I shared with Teddy and his dad.

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

* HARMONY FROZEN YOGURT: 852 Laurel St., San Carlos, CA 94070

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.

Harmony Frozen Yogurt, Thanks for the Memories and Froyo

Fro-yo girl here. I have some sad news, frozen yogurt fans. Harmony Frozen Yogurt is closing for good on Wednesday, 8/28. All items will be 50% off on the last day, while supplies last and the doors will close at 9 PM. 

Harmony was one of the earliest tart frozen yogurt shops in the Bay Area and the first to offer organic frozen yogurt. The first location opened in downtown San Carlos in mid 2007. I have many fond memories of that original location. I loved dropping by on the way home from work for a medium cup of their natural flavor with fresh fruit. Their frozen yogurt was (and still is for a few days) organic. The natural flavor, made with Straus organic yogurt, had an exceptionally clean, natural taste. Their toppings were healthier than most places and they were an eco-friendly green business.

They moved to a larger spot in downtown San Carlos, taking over the old Red Mango location, and they offered more flavors of frozen yogurt, plus they added Straus organic ice cream, soft serve ice cream, smoothies and yogurt parfaits.

Harmony, you will be missed.

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

* HARMONY FROZEN YOGURT: 852 Laurel St., San Carlos, CA 94070

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.

Fro-yo Mystery at Pome

Fro-yo girl here. This week I went to Pome, the 2 month old smoothie shop in the Marina on Chestnut St., for a cup of organic fro-yo. I looked down at the receipt and it said Tuttimelon, 3901 24th St., San Francisco, CA. That's the shuttered Noe Valley Tuttimelon. I'm puzzled why a two month old shop on the other side of town would be issuing Tuttimelon receipts. Pome has been open for two months and they've obviously programmed their prices and menu items into the register...why wouldn't they change the store name and address too?

Pome probably isn't related to Tuttimelon because it serves fro-yo but it's not Tuttimelon fro-yo (it's organic and tastes like Straus). And there's a Tuttimelon on the same street as Pome. I guess it's the ghost of Noe Tuttimelon.

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

* POME: 2066 Chestnut St., San Francisco, CA

The Votes Are In: Attitudes Toward Organic Frozen Yogurt

Fro-yo girl here. I recently asked readers "How do you feel about organic frozen yogurt?" The results are in. Voters either love organic frozen yogurt (40%) or are indifferent (24%). Only 6% said they actually disliked it, 8% slightly prefer it and 1 out of 5 hadn't tried it yet. The good news for organic frozen yogurt is that most people who try it love it.

Does organic frozen yogurt taste better? Is it better for you? There was an article in Time that talked about an experiment at a mall where people tasted cookies, plain yogurt and potato chips. Some believed these products were organic and others were told they were conventional. The products were the same...but those who thought they were tasting the organic versions rated them as healthier (lower in fat, lower in calories) and better tasting. This is known as the halo effect.

As you can see from my poll, not everyone feels that way when it comes to organic fro-yo. I've heard that some people who are looking for a frozen yogurt that tastes like ice cream, don't like organic frozen yogurt. They associate it with tart frozen yogurt.

If you're looking for organic frozen yogurt mix, Straus Family Creamery of Petaluma, CA seemed to be supplying most of the organic fro-yo market. Their fro-yo is served at Whole Foods and Berkeley Bowl. Potter Family Farms based in Visalia, CA has been making inroads as an organic fro-yo mix supplier. They offer 25 all-natural organic flavors, including sweet and tart ones. Speaking of organic fro-yo, I have an organic fro-yo announcement that I'll make soon.

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

Whole Foods Fro-yo Report

Fro-yo girl here. When I read that the new Whole Foods in San Jose would feature Straus organic soft serve fro-yo, I knew I had to see it for myself. The fro-yo is a bit hard to spot (look for it at the Coffee Bar). They had one flavor and one size (plain tart) with 7 types of toppings (no mochi). Seasonal fruit was listed as a topping and when I asked about it, they only had blueberries. The market is filled with fresh fruit and they can only offer blueberries? Shocking.

Fro-yo prices: $2.99 without toppings, $3.99 with toppings


They didn't have a proper fro-yo cup. The fro-yo was served in a gelato cup with a gelato spoon. Very disappointing. It wasn't that good either - the texture wasn't smooth enough and it was overly icy. Also the person doing the swirling did not have good swirling skills.

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

* WHOLE FOODS: 1146 Blossom Hill Road, San Jose, CA

Culture Organic Frozen Yogurt Update: New Flavors, New Toppings

Fro-yo girl here. I’m so disappointed that I didn’t get a chance to try the mango + orange + pineapple kefir at Culture…but they said it would be back. Also, apparently the kefir has been causing problems for their machines. They had a new flavor of fro-yo, raspberry+peach+banana. I'd like it if it didn't have banana.

I also noticed that their fro-yo has been significantly sweeter during my last visits. I was afraid to ask about it but finally did. I’m told that Straus (Culture uses Straus yogurt) changed their sweetener (stopped using agave nectar I believe). So I was right – the fro-yo is sweeter now. It’s still really good but I liked it better before. Straus – why did you do this to me?!

I tried the new housemade Coffee Crunch topping. Eh. It’s super sweet and crumbly. I have to say that I didn’t like it at all but the new graham cracker topping sure looked yummy.

Expect to see their pumpkin fro-yo back on November 1st.

You know you love me. X0 X0, fro-yo girl.
* CULTURE ORGANIC FROZEN YOGURT: 340 S California Ave, Palo Alto, CA 94306

Closures and Unexpected Places for Fro-yo

Fro-yo girl here. Yogurt Bar, SF’s first tart fro-yo shop, closed its doors about a week ago. I don’t think anyone is surprised though they did step up their promotional efforts during their last few months (e.g., fro-yo happy hour, win a free month of toppings contest, blood drive, sign up for their e-newsletter to get a free fro-yo) and they switched to organic fro-yo.

Ryno’s in Berkeley appears closed but the phone still rings, so they could be remodeling. How is it that they don’t even have a website?

A fro-yo tipster tells me that Bette’s to Go is now swirling plain Straus organic fro-yo. Thanks, A.B.!

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

* YOGURT BAR UNION: 2760 Octavia St, San Francisco, CA
* RYNO’S: 2380 Telegraph Ave, Berkeley, CA
* BETTE’S TO GO: 1807 4th Street, Berkeley, CA

Mother’s Day at Yogurt Bar

Does your mother love fro-yo? Does your child, wife or sister love fro-yo? Yogurt Bar is having a special Mother’s Day all-day promotion this Sunday. Buy an 8 oz. Union Square or 13 oz. Golden Gate and receive a free 5 oz. frozen yogurt. Toppings not included. Plenty of fro-yo places offer gift cards (e.g., Blush, Red Mango, yoCup, Culture, Nubi), if you want to tuck a gift of fro-yo into a bouquet of flowers or a Mother’s Day card.

* YOGURT BAR: 2760 Octavia St, San Francisco, CA 94123

Pavel’s Yogurt Gelato Review

Fro-yo girl here. During a recent shopping trip to Whole Foods in San Ramon, I spotted Pavel’s Yogurt Gelato at the Gelateria Naia kiosk. This is Naia’s answer to tart fro-yo. While it wasn’t in soft serve form, I was still intrigued since their yogurt gelato is made with local ingredients. The other yogurt gelatos I’ve tried have been made with Straus yogurt.

I purchased a mini ($2.49). It wasn’t as good as Straus yogurt gelato because the flavor wasn’t as intense and it wasn’t tangy. I found it too mild. The texture was also quite firm and more like ice cream than gelato. It wasn’t as smooth as your typical gelato.

Pavel’s Original Russian Yogurt began manufacturing Russian style yogurt in the 1970s using Pavel’s family recipe, the same yogurt Pavel Malcoff learned to make while growing up on the family farm in Siberia. You can buy Pavel’s yogurt (the non-frozen kind) at Whole Foods and Nob Hill Foods.

3.5 stars (out of 5).

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

Strawberry and Vanilla Fro-yo at Culture Organic Frozen Yogurt

Fro-yo girl here. Organic Straus vanilla fro-yo has finally arrived at Culture!!!! I’ve been waiting for it since November and I can’t wait to try it because I know that it will be unlike any vanilla fro-yo I’ve had before.

Strawberry season is back and so too is Culture’s strawberry fro-yo, chock full of real strawberry flavor. Okay, I’m sad the tangerine fro-yo is gone but I’m happy to see strawberry fro-yo return. I also have a new favorite topping at Culture – the divinely crunchy Ginger Snap granola baked loving by Mary.

Here’s another picture of my Smurf blue fro-yo bowl filled with Culture fro-yo, fruit and Ginger Snap granola. You can also buy some of the toppings separately ($2.49 per bag). Where else can you get housemade pistachio brittle with fleur de sel and housemade mini chocolate meringues? Only at Culture. Go there if you appreciate real yogurt.

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

* CULTURE ORGANIC FROZEN YOGURT: 340 California Avenue, Palo Alto, California 94306

Yogurt Bar Switches to Straus Creamery Organic Yogurt (Free Fro-yo Coupon)

Fro-yo girl here. Several months ago I received word that Yogurt Bar uses Straus organic yogurt in their frozen yogurt mix – and I didn’t believe it. I’ve been to both Yogurt Bar locations and didn’t think I was tasting Straus. However, they seem to have switched over to Straus some time in August 2008 (my last visit was in July). Apparently their fro-yo is more sour now (which appeals to me because plain yogurt is sour). It looks like I need to revisit because I do like Straus.

The reopening of their Mission St. location was scheduled for April but it has been delayed till June.

If you go to their website and join the Yogurt Bar Club, you’ll get a coupon for a free 5 oz. fro-yo at their Union St. location! I already have my coupon. www.yogurtbarsf.com

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

* YOGURT BAR (Marina): 2760 Octavia St., San Francisco, CA
* YOGURT BAR (SOMA): 680 Mission St., San Francisco, CA