Yogurtland, Bring Back the Best Peanut Butter Froyo

 

Fro-yo girl here. Did you know that March is National Peanut Month? I would have loved to celebrate by eating a lot of peanut butter froyo, but alas, it hasn’t been that easy. Menchie’s has a new froyo flavor, Peanut Butter Banana, but I loathe bananas. Yogurtland brought back Peanut Butter Chocolate (formerly known as Peanut Butter Cup) but it’s just okay.

I’ve many peanut butter froyo flavors from Yogurtland, Menchie’s, Pinkberry, Tutti Frutti, Red Mango, Golden Spoon, Orange Leaf, etc.

The best peanut butter froyo found at a chain is…Yogurtland’s Peanut Butter froyo. I didn’t get to have it last year and it was hard to find in 2020….not happy about that at all. Why Yogurtland, why…

I know I’m not the only one who feels this way. Peanut butter froyo lovers are loyal. Several of my friends think that Peanut Butter is Yogurtland’s best flavor. Yogurtland describes Peanut Butter froyo as: "Our special dark-roasted peanuts blend deliciously for a sweet treat that will make you swear you're eating it right from the jar."

When Peanut Butter isn’t available, we have to choose Madagascar Vanilla and drown it in peanut butter sauce. It’s not as good but it’s still yummy. I also love adding peanut butter chips, Nutter Butter, and Butterfinger.

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.

Best New Froyo Flavors of 2020

 

Fro-yo girl here. There were fewer new froyo flavors this year because of COVID-19’s impact on froyo shops. Most of the ones I’ve been to stopped offering samples and are full service (even though most are self-serve froyo shops). But there were new froyo flavors introduced this year, so it’s time for me to pick my favorite new flavors for 2020.

Best Tart: Acai Berry by Pinkberry

There were very few new tart froyo flavors this year. Pinkberry was an exception – they’re still good about introducing tart flavors. Acai Berry tasted like blueberry tart (I love blueberry tart) with a hint of acai.

Best Sweet: Carrot Cake OREO from Menchie’s

What is it about carrot cake and froyo? Carrot cake froyo is usually tasty and I don’t even like carrot cake. The dairy mutes the sweetness of the cake flavor. I like the warm spices Menchie’s used.

Best Vegan: Key Lime by Yoga-urt

Yoga-urt continues to be the best vegan froyo you can find and they also continue to introduce fabulous new flavors. Key Lime vegan froyo married an intriguing nuttiness from the house almond/cashew milk base with the tang of key lime. It's also organic, kosher, soy free, and gluten free.

For the list of new froyo flavor introductions, see

https://internationalfrozenyogurt.com/news/new-froyo-flavors-flavor-trends-in-2020

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

* YOGA-URT, 1407 ½ W Kenneth Rd., Glendale, CA 91201 and 2211 Sunset Blvd, Los Angeles, CA 90026

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.

2020 Froyo Guide to San Francisco

Easy Breezy Frozen Yogurt

Fro-yo girl here. My froyo guide to San Francisco was published in 2015, so it’s time for an update. Of the four shops that I recommended in 2015, two have closed since then: Fraiche Yogurt and Pinkberry. The Pinkberry Union Square location was the only Pinkberry in San Francisco. Yes, there’s a Pinkberry at SFO Airport but that’s outside of San Francisco. Fraiche closed in Palo Alto last December, so their SFO kiosk is the last remaining location.

Hayes Valley/Marina/NOPA

Souvla (517 Hayes St., 2272 Chestnut St., 531 Divisadero St.,) has opened additional locations and even launched a froyo truck since my last 2015 SF froyo guide. I’ve had their Greek froyo at all of their locations and the froyo is consistently wonderful. Their salads are tasty and popular and they have Greek wine. But the star is the creamy Greek froyo made in house. The Greek frozen yogurt comes in one size and one flavor (plain) with your choice of toppings: baklava crumbles with syrup, sour cherry, olive oil and sea salt or honey. I like to get sour cherry syrup and baklava crumbles. The froyo comes in a cute NY coffee cup that’s perfect for strolling.

The Mission

Foodhall, 3100 16th St.) opened in April 2016 as a stylish gourmet grocery store with coffee, pastries, cheese, produce and a large wine and spirits collection. Foodhall serves Italian style frozen yogurt made with Straus organic milk. There’s just one flavor, plain and they have some fancier toppings. The froyo is thick, smooth, and dense.

Oh, there’s a Souvla in this neighborhood too, at 758 Valencia St., and yes, froyo is available.

Noe Valley/Inner Sunset/ West Portal

Easy Breezy Frozen Yogurt (4028 24th St., 718 Irving St., 44 West Portal Ave.) moved from the Castro to West Portal and opened a shop in Corte Madera since 2015. I’m recommending them again because they make their own froyo with their own recipes. It’s fresh and unique. They try to use organic ingredients as much as possible and have interesting toppings. The décor is adorable and they care about the environment. Plus, all their shops are Swirl of Honor shops.

Pacific Heights

Apizza (2043 Fillmore St.) is the new concept from the founder of La Boulangerie and new owner of Loving Cup. The idea is to make high quality pizza and froyo that’s fast, eco-friendly, and affordable. The froyo there is hand-blended to order and creamy but with more texture than your typical froyo. Choose your base (nonfat vanilla, nonfat chocolate, non-dairy vanilla made with coconut milk) and pick a swirl (achocolate, my favorite, thinner mint, guilty-ish pleasure, all good). You can add a chocolate chip cookie, sprinkles or additional mix ins or toppings. There are other Loving Cup locations in SF but the one inside apizza offers the best value, but with fewer options.

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.

Tenth Blogiversary of Fro-yo Girl Speaks

Fro-yo girl here. This is embarrassing, but I forgot to acknowledge my tenth blogiversary on October 20, 2018. I was so busy planning for Halloween that it just slipped my mind. This week I finally organized my froyo spoon collection and I realized I’ve been collecting froyo spoons for almost ten years. I have so many spoons that I need to sell or trade some of them (see my next post).

Ten years. I’ve seen so many froyo shops come and go. The ones that closed that I really miss are:

• Culture Organic Frozen Yogurt in Palo Alto (my 2008 cup of Culture strawberry froyo with nectarines is pictured, the first picture ever posted to this blog) 
• Jubili in San Francisco: The first place I tried tart froyo and mochi balls
• The original (1st) Tuttimelon on Irving St. in San Francisco 
• Pinkberry in Pasadena and Glendale 
• Sno:la in Beverly Hills 

The question I get asked the most is who has the best froyo. During the past few years while froyo shops have added soft serve ice cream, gelato, and frozen custard, along with indulgent flavors, I’ve been obsessed with the simplicity of the plain Greek frozen yogurt with Greek toppings at Souvla in San Francisco, the organic, sophisticated flavors at Easy Breezy in San Francisco, and the plant-based, organic, kosher, soy-free, probiotic luscious offerings at Yoga-urt in Glendale, CA. The frozen yogurt at the three places I listed tastes fresher and less processed.

If I lived in NYC, I’m sure that I would be a frequent visitor to Culture. I’m happy that I’ve been there more than once. 

My favorite froyo memories over the years are:

• Attending the 2014 Critics Choice TV Awards as Yogurtland's guest. Yogurtland served froyo at the event. The big winners that year were Orange Is the New Black, Masters of Sex, and True Detective. Thanks, Yogurtland!!!
• Attending YoCream's Froyo Conference in 2011 as YoCream's guest. I learned about froyo store operations, toured the factory, and met the founder of YoCream, John Hanna, and other important people in froyo. Thanks, YoCream!!!
• Visiting Yogurtland HQ and talking to Phillip Chang in his office.
• Visiting Menchie's HQ and talking to Amit Kleinberger. He kept smiling!
• Meeting the Pinkberry team, including Ron Graves, and sampling test flavors at Pinkberry HQ
• Attending the NRA Show in Chicago
• Meeting Roy Lam of Tuttimelon and getting the VIP treatment at Tuttimelon openings. I still have all the t-shirts, Tuttimelon merchandise, and Tuttimelon bear.
• Visiting Jonathan Rim, the owner of Blush Organic Frozen Yogurt in Dublin and getting free froyo to take home
• Spending time with the owners of the Bay Area Red Mango locations: Richard, Steven and Yul
• Every National/International Frozen Yogurt Day
• Starting the National Frozen Yogurt Association
• Conducting froyo research
• Winning the Yogurtland San Francisco marketing plan competition
• The time Yogurtland sent me a set of Tokidoki froyo spoons and a Tokidoki t-shirt

I started the blog in 2008 to track frozen yogurt news – and that’s still the main purpose. Thank you so much to my fans and readers and keep eating frozen yogurt! 

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.