National Ice Cream Day Pictures, Ice Cream Alley Report

Fro-yo girl here. Happy National Ice Cream Day! It was a busy day. First I went to Smorgasburg LA to check out the third Annual Ice Cream Alley. I didn’t see any froyo but there were some new vendors like Evil Cooks, with dessert tacos, and Oatly. Other ice cream vendors included Wanderlust Creamery, Buddy Pops, Madame Shugah, Mc Connell’s, Afters Ice Cream, Sweet Rose Creamery, Sweet N Hollow, Blast Ice Cream, and Smoreology. Ice Cream Alley will be back every Sunday until September 1.

Oatly’s appearance was part of their Pre-Release Tour for their new vegan, nut-free, soy-free oat frozen dessert. I believe today was the debut of their truck. The product line includes 7 flavors, though today they only offered Oat, Chocolate, Strawberry, and Coffee. The menu included scoops (2 for $4), pints oat lattes, affogat-oat, and Oatly pins. I tried the Oat and Coffee flavors. The oatmilk frozen dessert was surprisingly dense, rich, and creamy. I’m not sure how they did it. The coffee flavor wasn’t super strong. I like my coffee ice cream to have bold coffee flavor. The oat flavor was surprisingly mild and didn’t taste as much like oatmeal as I expected. The flavor was clean and pleasant. The product line will launch this fall. The other flavors are Chocolate Chip, Mint Chip, and Vanilla.

Then it was time to get some froyo at Yogurtland’s National Ice Cream Day BOGO event. It was crazy busy! They still had the cute waffle cone spoons. I wanted to stock up on their Dairy-free Key Lime Pie soft serve.

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.

Sweet Rose Creamery: Ojai Pixie Frozen Yogurt

Fro-yo girl here. The city of Ojai is currently celebrating the Fourth Annual Pixie Month. Pixies are a sweet, seedless variety of tangerines native to the Central Coast and grown in Ojai. Several eateries in Ojai are featuring Ojai Pixie creations. 

The master ice cream maker at Sweet Rose Creamery, Shiho Yoshikawa, is an Ojai native and she created the new Ojai Pixie frozen yogurt flavor for Pixie Month. The limited time flavor is currently available at all Sweet Rose Creamery shops during the month of April. It’s scoopable (not soft serve).

I haven’t had the Ojai pixie tangerine but I did try the Ojai Pixie frozen yogurt. The flavor is very much like a freshly squeezed glass of tangerine juice that’s sweeter and less acidic than an orange, mellowed out by the milkiness of the frozen yogurt. It was very fresh tasting, unlike most of the frozen yogurt that I consume. The texture was on the icy side, more reminiscent of a sorbet than a rich ice cream. While I liked it, I wish it had a stronger yogurt flavor and a creamier texture.

Visit Sweet Rose Creamery’s website and enter the raffle for a chance to win a weekend getaway to Ojai.

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.

Ice Cream Shops With Froyo Worth Trying

Vanilla pear froyo, Sweet Rose Creamery

Fro-yo girl here. You won’t find me in an ice cream shop too often but when I do visit one, I always look for frozen yogurt. The newer artisanal ice cream shops rarely make or offer frozen yogurt. The old school or mainstream ice cream shops are more likely to have frozen yogurt but they usually offer boring flavors, chocolate and vanilla, and their frozen yogurt feels more like low fat ice cream than an offering that appreciates the unique qualities of yogurt.

When an artisanal ice cream maker actually likes yogurt and makes frozen yogurt, something magical can be the result.

These are my top picks for artisanal ice cream shops that carry frozen yogurt.

* JENI’S ICE CREAMS: Jeni loves frozen yogurt and she makes unparalleled frozen yogurt that’s super tangy and explodes with flavor. I think her scoop shops always carry at least one frozen yogurt. Her favorite is Lemon Buttermilk Frozen Yogurt. The current seasonal flavor, black currant, has a sweeter profile but it's still deeeelicious. Find a Jeni’s scoop shop at https://jenis.com/scoop-shops/

* HUMPHRY SLOCOMBE (San Francisco, CA): HS rarely makes frozen yogurt but when they have it, make a beeline over there to get some because it sells out fast. They recently had blood orange frozen yogurt. There are two locations: 2709A Harrison St. and 1 Ferry Building. Get your flavor updates from @humphryslocombe

* SWEET ROSE CREAMERY (6 locations in the Los Angeles area): Sweet Rose Creamery uses organic ingredients and the fruits and nuts are usually sourced from the Santa Monica Farmers Market. They usually have one froyo flavor inspired by in season fruit, like vanilla pear.

All three of my picks also offer nationwide shipping!

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.