Froyo in Monterey Park, California

 

Fro-yo girl here. Monterey Park is a relatively small city in the San Gabriel Valley of Los Angeles County. The population is slightly over 58,000. The population is predominantly Chinese. In the 1980s, Monterey Park was referred to as Little Taipei.

Cefiore was the first froyo shop in Monterey Park, opening in 2008, relatively late for the area. Several froyo shops opened in 2010, the peak froyo time in Monterey Park. Yogutland on Atlantic Blvd. is the last froyo shop left in Monterey Park. They opened in 2012, so they turn ten this year.

Froyo Shops of Monterey Park

• Cefiore Frozen Yogurt, 141 N Atlantic Blvd, Suite 112, was a counter-serve froyo shop that opened in 2008 and closed in 2010. They served frozen yogurt, tea, smoothies, and waffles.
• Lolliberry, 2337 S Garfield Ave, was primarily a boba tea shop but they also had frozen yogurt. The shop opened in 2010 and closed in 2013. It used be called Lollicup.
• O’ My Yogurt & O’ My Buns, 2215 S Atlantic Blvd, offered self-serve froyo and freshly baked roti buns. The shop opened in 2010 and closed in 2011. I believe O’ My Yogurt was the same as Tutti Frutti Frozen Yogurt only with a different name. A strange incident happened at the shop. The owner attacked an employee and trapped her in a sound-proof box. He was charged with kidnapping, attempted rape, and attempted first degree murder. The employee escaped.
• Yogen Fruz, 500 N Atlantic Blvd, Ste 121, was a counter-serve froyo shop in Atlantic Times Square. The shop opened in 2010 and closed in 2012.
• Yogurt in Love, 500 N Atlantic Blvd, Ste 121, replaced Yogen Fruz in 2014. They offered self-serve froyo. The shop closed in 2016.
• Yogurtland, 2102 S Atlantic Blvd, is an outpost of the self-serve chain that opened in 2012.

I found six froyo shops that once called Monterey Park home – about average for the area. They were all part of a chain. Half were self-serve and half were counter-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.

West Covina, California Froyo Guide

Fro-yo girl here. West Covina, California caught my eye because it has two Yogurtland locations. The city is in the eastern end of San Gabriel Valley and has a population of 106,589. If you’re looking for froyo in West Covina, your options are:

• Yogurtland, 1002 W Covina Pkwy, opened in 2009: The first Yogurtland in West Covina is across the street from Plaza West Covina. I’ve been there a few times and haven’t had any issues. They actually moved from 1000 W Covina Pkwy.
• Yogurtland, 2500 S Azusa Ave, opened in 2015 at Island Plaza. I visited once and it was messier than the other Yogurtland West Covina location.
• Menchie’s, 245 N Barranca Ave, Ste 14, opened in 2011. I went once and the froyo was too icy. They have 14 self-serve froyo flavors a day.
• Yummy Yogurt, 112 Plaza Dr Spc 4592 – opened during the pandemic inside Plaza West Covina. It’s a kiosk on the first floor with 10 self-serve froyo flavors a day.

Froyo shops that closed:

• Joghurt, 3660 Nogales St, Ste B, from 2009-2019, was a self-serve froyo shop that also sold boba drinks.
• TCBY, 603 Plaza Dr., unknown dates – I’ve seen the listing for a TCBY inside West Covina Fashion Plaza, the indoor mall. I looked for TCBY at the mall and did not find it. TCBY is not listed in the mall directory. Foursquare says it’s closed. Yelp has one review from 2015.
• Tutti Frutti, 112 Plaza Dr., from 2010 – unknown closing date. Tutti Frutti was a kiosk on the 2nd floor of Plaza West Covina. It closed but I’m not sure when.
• Yogen Fruz, Westfield West Covina Mall 1474 Plaza Dr., from 2009-2012. Reviews were mostly favorable. People liked Yogen Fruz’s thicker mix-in style yogurt but some found it pricey.

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.

SWRLIES, A New Froyo Pop-up in Los Angeles

Fro-yo girl here. SWRLIES just started their froyo pop-up this month in Los Angeles. They’ve popped up in Eagle Rock and Highland Park so far. They set up a trailer with a freezer filled with frozen fruit and frozen yogurt bars, a hand-churned machine that blends them together, and some toppings and sauces.

They call their frozen yogurt Jalisco style. It’s all-natural frozen yogurt (they made their own yogurt base and formed it into blocks; I was told the yogurt was not sweetened) blended to order with your choice of fruit. Choose your size (Small, $4.25 or Large, $5.00), your fruit (you can pick more than one kind), and your toppings and sauces. They use organic frozen fruit. If you’d like a sweeter treat, they can add sugar or Splenda before blending or you can choose a sweet sauce. The price includes toppings and sauces.

* Frozen yogurt blended with strawberry, raspberry, and blueberry topped with mixed nuts and granola ($4.25): The frozen fruit made the yogurt icy but it also gave it a thicker texture (seeds, skins) and flavor. Since it was freshly churned, the texture was softer. It’s a simple treat that tastes natural and healthy. However, I’ve made better froyo at home. If they used a higher fat yogurt, maybe the texture would be creamier? It’s less creamy than Yogen Fruz, Loving Cup and the other mix-in froyo places that I’ve tried.

I was curious about Jalisco style frozen yogurt. I looked at places serving frozen yogurt in Guadalajara, the largest city in Jalisco, Mexico. There were shops that serve soft serve frozen yogurt dispensed from soft serve machines (some were self-serve, some weren’t) and the mix-in style frozen yogurt. Interestingly, there were multiple Yogen Fruz locations in the area.

You can find Swrlies by following them on Instagram, @swrlies.

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

* SWRLIES FROYO: 4956 York Blvd, Los Angeles (Highland Park), CA 90042

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.

Westfield Century City Froyo & Frozen Desserts Report 2018

Fro-yo girl here. Westfield unveiled the “new” Westfield Century City shopping center last September. The two-year $1 billion makeover “reconfigured the mall and expanded it by about a third to 1.3 million square feet. About 90% of the stores, including Nordstrom, are new.” 

I used to shop at the Century City mall regularly and when I stepped off the escalator, I could not recognize the old mall. The layout is so different now and most of the stores are different. Bloomindale’s is still there in the same place but everything else seemed different. I remember parking for free for 3 hours. Now you only get one hour of free parking but some stores validate.

I recently visited Westfield Century City. I was curious about the Yogurtland location there, which closed in January for remodeling and reopened in April of this year with a new look. I haven’t seen that look at any other Yogurtland location.

I noticed quite a few unoccupied or maybe I should say not yet open shops on the second floor. The ground floor is almost fully occupied and open for business. The new Westfield Century City has many places to get frozen treats. Here’s a breakdown of the current frozen treat vendors.

Froyo 

Forty Carrots (inside Bloomingdale’s): Their famous frozen yogurt! It’s $6 for a regular, $8 for a large or $4 for a small if purchased with a meal from their café. They have 6 flavors a day. I recommend the plain or peanut butter. You can also get frozen yogurt smoothies. Take your receipt to the first floor to get your parking validated. You get an hour of free parking with validation (on top of the first hour free which everyone gets).

Yogurtland: It’s an attractive looking spot with geometric white and green tiles, grey wall where the froyo machines are, and white toppings bars. The price doubled – it’s now 85 cents an ounce which seems crazy when there are other Yogurtland locations nearby that still charge over 30 cents less per ounce. This is a smaller location, with just 10 self-serve flavors a day. Look for offers on Instagram, @yogurtlandcc. Currently if you check in on Yelp, you get 5 oz free. 

SunLife Organics (?): I didn’t see this shop while I was there, but if it’s like their other locations, they’ll have organic chocolate and vanilla frozen yogurt. From the pictures I saw of this location, it doesn’t seem like they have frozen yogurt. 

Yogen Fruz (?): The Yogen Fruz website lists a location inside the AMC theater at Century City. I forgot to verify whether this location was still open. 

Ice Cream

Halo Top Scoop Shop: This is Halo Top’s second scoop shop. They have soft serve but it’s ice cream. I haven’t tried it yet but I am curious about their bubble waffles, more so than their Stevia sweetened low calorie ice cream. 

Rori’s Artisanal Creamery: Scoopable ice cream, no frozen yogurt

Smitten Ice Cream: Fresh ice cream is made in front of your eyes with liquid nitrogen. I’ve had it in San Francisco where Smitten is from. It’s good stuff and their housemade toppings are excellent as well.

Gelato 

Bacio di Latte: The reviews are very favorable and they have yogurt gelato occasionally. This chain was founded by two brothers in Milan.

Grom: This Italian gelato shop got its start in Italy. They emphasize fresh, high quality ingredients. They do have a yogurt gelato that’s rich and flavorful. I don’t think that flavor is always offered but it’s worth trying if you see it.

Il Gelato (inside Eataly): I didn’t see any yogurt flavor but maybe they have one from time to time?

Dairy-Free Soft Serve 

Pressed Juicery: Yes, this location does have Pressed Freeze, the vegan, plant-based frozen treat from Pressed. Freeze is made with just a few ingredients and no added sugar. It’s 100% fruit, vegetables, and nuts.

This list doesn’t even include the other eateries that serve dessert and the frozen desserts you can buy at Gelson's. Oh, if you want frozen yogurt in Century City, the only place to get some is at Westfield Century City. If you have a car, drive over to Beverly Hills or Westwood Village for more options.

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

* WESTFIELD CENTURY CITY: 10250 Santa Monica Blvd., Los Angeles (Century City), CA 90067

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.

Last Free Standing Yogen Fruz Locations in California Close

Fro-yo girl here. At one time Yogen Fruz had multiple free standing locations in California, including shops in San Francisco, Novato, San Jose, Tarzana, La Jolla, Torrance, Monterey Park, Beverly Hills, etc. Yogen Fruz, founded in Toronto, Canada in 1986, grew rapidly in the 80’s and 90’s. 

Seeing the growth of frozen yogurt in California in mid-2000’s, Yogen Fruz decided to expand their US presence. In 2008, they opened multiple locations in California. Those locations feature their Mix It style froyo (the customer chooses the base and the add ins, and everything is blended together) and Top It style. Top It was similar to the other soft serve style frozen yogurt products found at most froyo shops. In 2010, Yogen Fruz opened its first self-serve location; their self-serve offering is called U Serve. The Tarzana location switched to a self-serve format.

Earlier this year the last free standing Yogen Fruz locations closed. Yogen Fruz still has a presence in California, inside a few AMC movie theaters.

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.

Looking for New 16 Handles Spoons and Other Froyo Spoons

Fro-yo girl here. 16 Handles recently introduced two new froyo spoon designs, a heart topped spoon and a froyo cup topped spoon in two colors, pink and green. I’m looking to trade some of my current froyo spoons or purchase the four 16 Handles summer spoons. 

I am also looking for the following froyo spoons:

• Joji space girl spoon from Florida
• Land of Plenty spoons from Germany
• Moyo spoons from Mexico (the top of the spoon looks like a snow monster/yeti) 
• Qoola bear spoons
• Sour Sally green hand spoon
• Yogen Fruz spoons with cut out smile/U shape
• Yoppi Hello Kitty spoons from Taiwan

If you think you have some nice froyo spoons that I haven’t mentioned but might be interested in, let me know. I have almost every Yogurtland and Menchie’s collectible spoon.

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.

Yogurtland’s New Offering: Zoom, the All-New Way to Froyo

Fro-yo girl here. I recently noticed that Yogurtland Chino Hills, CA and West Covina, CA now offer Yogurtland Zoom. Zoom is a blended froyo product. You select the frozen yogurt flavor and the toppings and Yogurtland blends it together for you (similar to Dairy Queen’s Blizzard or McDonald’s McFlurry) using a machine.

I visited Yogurtland West Covina (1000 W Covina Pkwy). Zoom is priced by weight at the same price: 45 cents an ounce. There are taller Zoom cups, longer spoons, and signs with instructions and recipes.

I decided to mix Lucky Mint Crème froyo, Double Cookies & Cream froyo, chocolate chips, white chocolate chips and Oreo cookies. I put everything in the cup (you don’t have to fill the cup) and handed it to the Yogurtland associate. The cup is placed into a blending machine and everything is mixed together. It doesn’t take long.

I liked what I blended together – the flavors were complementary. However, I noticed the add ins weren’t blended in well. The chocolate chips still seemed to be intact and there were big cookie chunks too. Other places do a better job blending the yogurt and toppings. The frozen yogurt comes out softer too. I like unblended frozen yogurt and toppings better.

Yogen Fruz is the leader in the mixed/blended froyo category. In Southern California, you can get custom blended frozen yogurt at Yogen Fruz in Tarzana, Humphrey Yogart in Sherman Oaks, 21 Choices in Pasadena and Claremont, and CDM Yogurt in Newport Beach (Orange County). You can also find custom blended frozen yogurt at Blush in Burlingame, CA, Tucker’s in Alameda, CA, Sweet Retreat in San Jose, CA, Oregon Frozen Yogurt in Oregon, WI, Angora Café in Boston and Loving Cup in San Francisco. Frozen Peaks, with locations in New Jersey and New York, offers FP Swirl, their custom blended frozen yogurt.

While a custom blended frozen yogurt can be tasty as it more evenly distributes the toppings so that there are toppings in every bite, it does change the flavor of the frozen yogurt (which can be good or bad). Some toppings don’t taste as good when they’re blended – for example, graham cracker crumbs become gritty when blended into the frozen yogurt, and mochi isn’t transformed, it just becomes smaller. The seeds get separated from the berry flesh. Cookies, candy and sauces make the best add ins. I’ve also noticed that on more than one occasion when a machine is used to blend the yogurt and toppings, sometimes the previous mix contaminates the next mix. The water flushing doesn’t remove all of the previous mix. The texture is also less smooth after toppings are blended in. Getting the right mix of frozen yogurt and toppings including the correct proportions can be tricky. 

Here are some of my recipes:

• Fresh strawberry froyo + frosted animal cookies + sprinkles + white chocolate chips
• Sumatra coffee froyo + crushed Butterfingers + Oreos
• Peanut butter froyo + Nutter Butter bites + peanuts + chocolate chips
• Matcha green tea froyo + Plain tart froyo + Fruity Pebbles 
• Coconut froyo + mango froyo + pineapple sorbet + coconut + fresh pineapple

Do you like custom blended frozen yogurt? Have you tried it? Would you be willing to try it?

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.

Westchester County, NY/CT Froyo Report

Fro-yo girl here. Westchester County is a huge county in the suburbs of New York City, covering 450 square miles. I visited various small towns but didn’t see most of the county. During my visit, I noticed that most small towns had at least one froyo shop but a fair number have closed. Peachwave was the chain that I saw the most often though some of their locations like the one in Mount Kisco, NY had recently closed (permanently).

Rural Connecticut was similar with nicer towns like Greenwich sporting a Pinkberry. The Pinkberry at Woodbury Commons Outlet Mall had just opened.

Here’s a list of froyo shops in other cities that I visited:

• Ridgefield, CT: Peachwave, Swizzles (closed)
• Danbury, CT: Peachwave, Yogen Fruz, 21 Taste (closed)
• Bethel, CT: Peachwave
• Greenwich, CT: Pinkberry, Rosie’s, Yogurt City
• New Canaan, CT: Swirl, Peachwave (closed August 2015), Red Mango (closed August 2014)
• Port Chester, NY: Bubbles & Berry

A 2011 article about frozen yogurt in Westchester Magazine has a list of frozen yogurt shops by the year that the shop opened. I’ve looked into which shops are still open.

Opened 2011

• Frannie’s Goodie Shop, Mount Kisco: I visited the shop and it’s nice, they have many toppings and lots more besides frozen yogurt, including cupcakes, cookies, muffins, donuts, etc.
• Nuts About Yogurt, Eastchester: Closed permanently
• Pearl Yogurt, White Plains: Closed permanently
• Yogo Berry, Tarrytown: Closed permanently

Opened 2010

• Go Greenberry, Dobbs Ferry: Name changed to Go Greenly
• Go Greenberry, Scarsdale: Name changed to Go Greenly
• Red Mango, Larchmont
• Treat Frozen Yogurt, Cross River: Closed permanently
• Yogo Berry, Larchmont 
• Yogo Berry, Mount Kisco: Closed permanently
• Yogo Joy, Scarsdale: Closed permanently

Opened 2009

• Yogo Berry, Scarsdale: Closed permanently
• Yogo Joy, Rye: Closed permanently

The majority of the shops in the article have closed for good, though new ones have opened since the article was published. I noticed most of the small towns now have juice shops.

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.

Toronto Area Froyo Report

Fro-yo girl here. I was recently in the Toronto area looking for froyo. Unfortunately, I just missed the Pinkberry Toronto opening; the first Pinkberry Toronto location opened at Sherway Gardens on September 22, 2015. Driving around I noticed quite a few Menchie’s locations, including one across the street from my hotel. These Menchie’s locations offered more than self-serve froyo; one sold hot dogs, another smoothies, and several had froyo cakes.

I was expecting to see more Yogurty’s, Yogen Fruz and Tutti Frutti locations – but they’re in the Downtown Core area that I didn’t visit.

I wanted to try deKEFIR, Ci Gusta! and the Red Bench. Unfortunately, deKEFIR, a kefir shop, isn’t open on weekends or evenings.

Ci Gusta! ,a chain from Italy, opened its first location in Canada in March 2013 (it recently closed). Their location in Toronto is closed. Ci Gusta does not have any locations in the US and I looked forward to having Italian style frozen yogurt. The Italian style café offers gelato (scoopable and soft serve), frozen yogurt, crepes, flat bread (piadina), Italian desserts, and coffee. I visited the Markham location (60 N Main St., Markham) which had self-serve froyo a year ago but stopped carrying it a year ago. The soft serve machines are now filled with soft serve gelato. Very disappointing! 

Fortunately, the Red Bench (611 Yonge St., Toronto) was open late on a weekend. The shop is eco-friendly, cozy and inviting ; it smells like cookies because they also make customizable cookies. Customers can pick their dough and mix-ins and the cookies are baked on the spot. Their homemade organic frozen yogurt is sold by weight, 63 cents an ounce. There are six rotating flavors. During my visit none were tart flavors. The taro flavor was weak (not strong enough) and the vanilla had an unpleasant slightly bitter aftertaste. The texture was too loose and icy. 

Even the Mapleton’s Organic frozen yogurt that I purchased from the Whole Foods in Markham was disappointing. Oh Toronto…why did you disappoint me so?

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.

First Yogen Fruz U Serve Visit

Fro-yo girl here. I’ve been to a couple of Yogen Fruz locations since they first opened in the Bay Area in 2008. I remember being at the grand opening of the San Francisco Embarcadero location, a location which just closed this year. They were different from other froyo shops because they had the Mix It custom blended frozen yogurt creations. This blended creation was developed by Yogen Fruz and featured its probiotic proprietary frozen yogurt.

Mix It allowed the customer to choose the base frozen yogurt (lowfat vanilla, lowfat chocolate, nonfat vanilla or nonfat tart frozen yogurt base) and fruit. The fruit and bar of frozen yogurt would then be blended together in the Yogen Fruz machine. The end result was thick and creamy with fruit chunks and seeds (for fruit with seeds). The mixing process wasn’t thorough, normally you’d see some unmixed froyo in your cup. The Mix It style was popular in Canada, where Yogen Fruz got its start in 1986.

Yogen Fruz also offered Top It, which wasn’t a custom blended frozen yogurt product but was similar to the other soft serve style frozen yogurt products found at most froyo shops.

It wasn’t clear whether the mix in style frozen yogurt would catch on in the US. In an interesting turn of events, Yogen Fruz entered a licensing agreement with Jamba Juice which provided Jamba Juice with the right to use the Yogen Fruz operating system and registered trademarks in 2011. Jamba Juice’s Whirl’ns frozen yogurt was a mix in style frozen yogurt. It was offered for a few years but phased out in 2013. Mix In style frozen yogurt has caught on elsewhere though – “Today, Yogen Früz has grown to more than 1400 locations operating in over 46 countries around the world.“

In 2010, Yogen Fruz opened its first self-serve location; their self-serve offering is called U Serve. I don’t recall hearing about any U Serve locations in the Bay Area but it is available in Los Angeles. The first Yogen Fruz location in LA (Tarzana, opened in 2008) added U Serve about a year ago. They also kept the Mix It froyo option.

U Serve is similar to your usual self-serve froyo. Grab a cup, choose from 10 self-serve froyo flavors, and add toppings. It’s 49 cents an ounce. The toppings were typical: fruit, mochi, syrups, popping boba, candy, cookies, chips, nuts, rainbow sprinkles, graham cracker crumbs. The froyo flavors were similar to ones you’d find at most froyo shops.

Froyo flavors of the day:

• Greek style: more flavorful than the tart, smooth, has an interesting taste, maybe honey, light texture 
• Passionfruit
• Espresso
• Pistachio
• Red velvet
• Strawberry fields
• Mangolicious sorbet
• Tart: light, smooth, not that tart (on the sweet side)
• Vanilla
• Chocolate

U serve froyo tastes a lot different than the Mix It style yogurt. It’s much lighter. Granted, it is of course a different style of froyo but I was still expecting some similiarities. I’m not sure how U Serve's frozen yogurt differs from Yogurty’s which is a Canadian self-serve froyo chain owned by International Franchise Corp. (the same company owns Yogen Fruz).

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.

IFYA's 2014 Frozen Yogurt Chain Store Count

Fro-yo girl here. It's back: the annual list of the largest frozen yogurt chains from the International Frozen Yogurt Association. The store counts are based on the locations listed on the company websites of each chain in early August 2014.

IFYA's List of Largest Frozen Yogurt Chains:

1. YOGEN FRUZ: 1300 locations

Yogen Fruz remains the largest frozen yogurt chain this year. According to theYogen Fruz website, Canadian company Yogen Fruz has over 1300 locations in 42 countries. Last August they had over 1400 stores in 46 countries.

2. TUTTI FRUTTI FROZEN YOGURT: 680 locations

The Tutti Frutti Canadian website states that they have over 680 locations in over 30 countries. The Tutti Frutti Facebook page doesn’t mention how many stores they currently have but says they have “over 580 upcoming stores.” Tutti Frutti calls itself the “world’s largest self-serve frozen yogurt brand.”

3. TCBY: 446 locations

At its height, TCBY, the world’s largest frozen yogurt chain, had 1500 locations. Today TCBY (The Country’s Best Yogurt) has over 350 locations in the US and 96 locations abroad (mainly in Canada). The website said they had over 350 locations in the US last August as well. They’re seeking to grow with their dual branded TCBY and Mrs. Fields locations.

For the complete list, visit the IFYA website: http://internationalfrozenyogurt.com/news/ifyas-store-location-count-2014-largest-frozen-yogurt-chains/

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.

Father’s Day Froyo Specials

Fro-yo girl here. While there are more froyo specials for Mother’s Day than for Father’s Day, there are still plenty of places you can take your froyo loving dad for a Father’s Day froyo deal. Here’s a list of froyo shops offering deals on Father’s Day:

• Froyo World: 50% off for dads
• Go Greek: 20% off for dads
• Monster Yogurt (Dallas & Richardson, TX): All costumed characters get 4 ounces free 
• Orange Leaf Kentucky (Lexington, Louisville, Richmond, Ashland, Somerset, Owensboro, Bowling Green, Danville & Pikeville): 8 ounces free for dad
• Orange Leaf (New Albany & Clarksville): 8 ounces free for dad
• Summersweet: 8 ounces free for dad
• Suzy’s Swirl: Dads swirl free from 11 AM - 4 PM
• TCBY: Free cup for dad 
• Toppings NY: Free froyo for dad
• Trugurt: Buy one, get dad’s free - mention Instagram offer
• Tutti Frutti Fargo, ND: Free cup for dad (up to 12 ounces)
• UU Yogurt: Free cup for dad (up to 10 ounces) 
• Yogen Fruz Canada: Buy one cup, get a cup free for dad
• Yogurty’s: Buy one cup, get one free for dad
• Wakaberry: 20% off of dad’s cup

P.S. Happy Father’s Day to my froyo loving dad!

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.

Happy Froyo Valentine’s Day 2014

Fro-yo girl here. Happy Valentine’s Day, froyo fans! Do you think it’s more romantic to (a) share a cup of froyo or (b) treat your sweetheart to a cup of froyo? However you plan on spending your Valentine’s Day, I hope it’s romantic and involves frozen yogurt.

16 Handles, FroyoWorld, Peachwave, Red Mango, Snog, Yogen Fruz and Yogurty’s have Valentine’s Day promotions this year. Check your local froyo shop for Valentine’s Day specials. 

For inspiration I created a new Pinterest board called Valentine’s Day Froyo Images: http://www.pinterest.com/froyogirl/valentines-day-froyo-images/

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.

Goodbye Jamba Juice Whirl’ns

Fro-yo girl here. I realized I hadn’t had a mix-in style frozen yogurt recently so I dropped by Jamba Juice to see what was new with their frozen yogurt line, Whirl’ns, powered by Yogen Fruz. Whirl’ns were made to order with fresh fruit and other ingredients including your choice of frozen yogurt base. My Jamba Juice location no longer offered Whirl’ns. I called a few other Jamba locations and learned that they’ve made the decision to quietly phase out Whirl’ns.

Whirl’ns was introduced Whirl’ns in Northern California in December 2010 and expanded to additional locations in 2011. They had a few seasonal flavors like Great Pumpkin and Wildly Watermelon.

Whirl’ns is still available at some locations but probably not for that much longer.

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.

Year End Fro-yo Wrap Up

Fro-yo girl here. Where has 2012 gone? It’s time for my year end summary of the world of fro-yo. 

Bay Area comings and goings: In Bay Area news, fro-yo shops continued to close but new ones, particularly from chains, continued to open. Red Mango returned to the Bay Area, opening a self-serve shop in Emeryville. Yogurtland finally opened a store in SF this month. SF earned the distinction of being the location for Pinkberry’s 200th store. I’m really happy that Easy Breezy opened in Noe Valley. Sadly, the Bay Area said goodbye to fro-yo shops like The Mix, YoSwirl, Yogurt Train, SoFrais, Luscious, and one of my former favorites, Culture Organic Frozen Yogurt. YoCup changed ownership.

Special fro-yo spoons: It was a very good year for fro-yo spoon fans. Yogurtland gave us four new limited time only Sanrio fro-yo spoon designs: TuxedoSam, Bad Badtz Maru, Hello Kitty and Little Twin Stars. Menchie’s introduced limited edition Chip fro-yo spoons. Tutti Frutti now carries fruit shaped logo fro-yo spoons in five colors. 

Supermarket fro-yo offerings keep expanding: Ben & Jerry’s, Ciao Bella, TCBY, Healthy Choice, Trader Joe’s, Stonyfield Oikos, and Yoplait launched new fro-yo flavors this year. The Ben & Jerry’s truck visited SF and handed out Greek fro-yo in May. Supermarket yogurt brands aren’t content to stay in the supermarket either. 

(Non-frozen) yogurt shops open: Chobani and Yogurt Culture Company (owned by Dannon) opened yogurt shops in SoHo and Midtown, respectively. Pinkberry launched Greek yogurt (not frozen) at a few locations.

More chains go self-serve: TCBY, Golden Spoon, and Yogen Fruz joined the list of self-serve fro-yo shops. With so much self-serve fro-yo, fro-yo creations now look uglier than ever. Pinkberry seems to be the only major chain that's holding out against the trend.

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

Future Fro-yo Shop Picture: SoGreen Yogurt at the New Metreon

Fro-yo girl here. The New Metreon food court had a “soft” opening today but not much was open. Contrary to what was reported in the SF Chronicle, EaterSF, Inside Scoop SF and other sources, SoGreen Yogurt isn’t open and won’t be for “a few weeks” (source: Metreon security). In fact, the SoGreen space doesn’t have a sign up yet but the guard pointed to the wall (across from Sanraku, close to where Starbucks used to be ages ago) behind which construction is occurring.

In the meantime, you can still get fro-yo at the Metreon at Yogen Fruz (movie theater snack bar area).

The top level of the Metreon is still closed. Downstairs where the food court is, they added tables and chairs...probably making it the largest indoor seating area in downtown SF. I like the shiny new globe pendant lamps.

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

Happy Fro-yo Cinco De Mayo

Fro-yo girl here. Happy Cinco De Mayo! Did you know that fro-yo is popular in Mexico? Quite a few fro-yo chains are present in Mexico, including Yogen Fruz, Yogurtland, Tutti Frutti, and Cherry on Top.

Closer to home, why not have some dulce de leche fro-yo today? If you can't find it at your local fro-yo shop, you can always pick up Dulce De Leche Haagen Dazs Frozen Yogurt.

I haven't seen margarita, Mexican vanilla, Mexican chocolate, or Mexican cinnamon fro-yo yet but those flavors sound good, especially today.

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

Valentine's Day, Fro-yo Style

Fro-yo girl here. Valentine's Day is just around the corner and fro-yo makes a very romantic gift. Fro-yo gift cards are always an easy gift.

Fro-yo shop promotions:
* 32 Degrees: free Valentine's toppings starting on 2/11
* Nubi Yogurt: buy a $20 gift card (or more) between 2/1 - 2/14/2011 and then get a free medium fro-yo for yourself by bringing in your receipt by 2/20.
* Pinkberry: pick up a fancy Swirly Gram in stores from 2/11 - 2/14, while supplies last
* Tuttimelon Fresno: buy one, get one for 50% off on Valentine's Day between 10 AM - 9 PM
* Tuttimelon Modesto: Get an extra stamp for every purchase ($4 min) on Valentine's Day
* Yogurt Mountain, buy one, get one free fro-yo on Valentine's Day

Plenty of fro-yo fans would love to be taken to a fro-yo shop. You could even order a romantic cup of fro-yo (or swirl one at a self-serve place).

* Romantic fro-yo flavors: Chocolate, pomegranate, strawberry, raspberry, dulce de leche, red velvet. Menchie's introduced rose fro-yo and Yogen Fruz's valentine's NuMix creation is strawberry cheesecake.
* Romantic fro-yo toppings: Shaved chocolate, chocolate syrup/sauce, chocolate chips, Hershey's kisses, heart shaped sprinkles, pink & red sprinkles, strawberries, pomegranate seeds, raspberry, cinnamon, red hot candies, red velvet cake, whipped cream

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

Yogen Früz launches 3 mouth-watering NÜ mixes

Available today...three brand new fro-yo flavor mixes from Yogen Früz: Piña Colada, Key Lime Pie and Chocolate Almond frozen yogurt.

P.S. They also have pumpkin pie fro-yo till Thanksgiving.

Check out the new flavors, froyoholics.

The Year of Acai

Fro-yo girl here. I darted into Whole Foods the other day and received a free serving of a new frozen confection, Jolly Llama sorbet. The sorbet comes in a single serving size ($1.79 each at Whole Foods). Squeeze and eat for a quick, fat free, and nutritious fruity treat. While the blueberry sorbet was nice, I couldn’t help but think that it would taste better if it were fro-yo. The size is just right and it’s really convenient to eat.

Jolly Llama comes in four flavors:
* Mango
* Blueberry
* Acai berry
* Strawberry

I wish there were more supermarket fro-yo options (something better than Dreyer's and Trader Joe's tart fro-yo). If it works for sorbet, why not fro-yo?

The acai berry flavor seems to be the superfruit flavor of 2009. Last year was the year for pomegranate fro-yo (everyone seems to have pomegranate fro-yo now). Next year it might be baobab? Acai blueberry fro-yo can be found at select Tuttimelon locations (you can see my acai blueberry Tuttimelon parfait), select Blush Organic Frozen Yogurt locations, and Yogen Fruz.

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

http://www.jollyllamasorbets.com