FRO Truck, The First Sustainable, Self-Powered Food Truck

 

strawberry FRO

FRO truck interior

toppings

FRO truck

Fro-yo girl here. FRO is a vegan soft-serve truck that launched in 2019 in Los Angeles. The truck claims to be the first sustainable, self-powered food service vehicle; it runs on solar batteries. It houses one soft serve machine.

While the truck says “self-serve pressed freeze”, it isn’t self-serve. They had two fruit flavors during my visit, mango and strawberry. The truck also says they serve a product that is organic, vegan, gluten-free, cold-pressed juice. The soft serve made with fresh fruit, water, and coconut milk. It is not frozen yogurt.

The cup was $7, and $3 more for toppings.

Available toppings: gummy bears, coconut, Tajin gummies, coconut, Tajin

Strawberry Fro: Fro is softer and smoother than Pressed Juicery’s Freeze. Tasted like a strawberry popsicle. It was sweeter than I expected though no sugar was added. I could see strawberry seeds. It didn’t have as clean of a finish/aftertaste as Pressed Freeze. Also, the portion was too big (would prefer a smaller size). I got tired of eating it because it was so sweet. Tangy toppings would have helped but I didn’t like the toppings they had. The toppings and the soft serve reminded me of a Mexican style fruit cart vendor. I still prefer Pressed Juicery Freeze.

Find FRO by following them on Instagram, IG @getfrola. The truck is available for special events.

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.

Innovative Soft Serve Shop Spotlight: Frozen Fruit Co. in Santa Monica, CA

Fro-yo girl here. Los Angeles has more frozen yogurt shops than any other city; it is frozen yogurt central. When it comes to froyo/soft serve innovation, expect to find it on the Westside (West Hollywood, Santa Monica, Beverly Hills) where residents are particularly health conscious and affluent.

Enter Frozen Fruit Co., a soft serve fruit shop which opened its doors last month in Santa Monica. It’s not frozen yogurt. They make their soft serve with just fruit, so it’s all natural, vegan, paleo, dairy free, gluten free and refined sugar free. The founders, Michael and Victoria, came up with the recipes back in England. They’re both UK lawyers who wanted a frozen treat that was simple, healthy and tasty.

There are currently four flavors but they’re thinking of adding more:

• Coconut & cacao: very strong cacao flavor, for chocolate lovers
• Mango & strawberry: the strawberry makes it tarter and better, mango makes it taste indulgent
• Raspberry & orange: the orange is really strong and it’s quite tangy
• Pineapple & passionfruit: another tangy but more tropical flavor, a shop favorite

I thought that the soft serve fruit might be icy, gritty or bland – but it was none of those things. The difference is that Frozen Fruit Co. uses the whole fruit so there’s more texture, plus it’s made right there in the back of the shop so it’s much fresher than what you’ll find elsewhere. The texture was thick, smooth and not at all icy. The flavors really popped.

They have healthy toppings like granola, banana chips, coconut, carob chips, fresh fruit, nuts and pretzels. Edible flowers are complimentary. Instagram and tag Frozen Fruit Co. to get a free topping.

Prices: Cone $3.95, Small $4.95, Medium $6.50, Large $7.50, toppings 50 cents each.

The shop is small but adorable with a colorful paisley theme. Earn rewards with Fivestars. Open daily from noon to 10 PM.

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

Rating: 5/5

* FROZEN FRUIT CO.: 729 Montana Ave., Suite 2, Santa Monica, CA 90403, @frozenfruitco, www.frozenfruitco.com

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.

Chloe’s Soft Serve Fruit Review & West Coast Tour (Feb. 9 - 13)

Fro-yo girl here. What’s your attitude towards fresh fruit? 

1. You love it so much that you don’t mind all the peeling, cutting, seed removal, bruising, messiness and perishability
2. You enjoy the flavor but you think it’s a hassle to eat
3. You don’t mind it if the flavor is masked by something else
4. You avoid it all costs

If you answered 1 or 2, you would enjoy Chloe’s Soft Serve Fruit. Soft serve fruit is made with just three ingredients: real fruit, filtered water and a touch of organic sugar. The flavors are intense and natural. Soft serve fruit is good for you, all natural, vegan, gluten free, dairy free, kosher, pareve, nonfat and creamy in texture. It’s like sorbet or soft serve without all the additives.

Chloe’s Soft Serve Fruit Company got its start in 2010 when three friends and health-conscious entrepreneurs, Michael Sloan, Chloe Epstein, and Jason Epstein, created “soft serve fruit.” They opened their first location in NYC in 2010 and entered the wholesale market in 2012. The two wholesale products are Chloe’s Soft Serve Mix (available in 14 varieties, including apple, banana, blood orange, blueberry, cavaillon melon, cranberry, dark chocolate, mango, pear, pineapple, plum, pumpkin, raspberry, strawberry, tangerine) and Soft Serve Fruit Pops.

Chloe's Soft Serve Fruit Mix is a Popular Non-Dairy Alternative to Frozen Yogurt

Chloe's Soft Serve Fruit Mix is a tasty non-dairy alternative to soft serve frozen yogurt. It's served out of soft serve machine and has a surprisingly creamy texture.

Chloe’s Soft Serve Fruit Mix is a hit at shops like Yo-Nutz (Sunrise, Florida), FlavorBerry (Houston, Texas), Yo-Fresh (multiple PA locations), Vanilla Sky (Forest Hills, NY), and D’Lites Emporium (St. Petersburg, FL).

Max Goldsmith, Director of Business Development at Chloe's Soft Serve Fruit Co. will be in the Los Angeles/San Diego area from Feb. 9-13. To arrange for a private tasting at your frozen yogurt shop, please email Max at max@chloesfruit.co

Sampling Chloe's Soft Serve Fruit Pops

I was recently lucky enough to sample Chloe’s Soft Serve Fruit Pops. I didn’t sample all of the flavors but I did try several that I really enjoyed. The flavor you like best will depend on the fruit you like best.

The pops are different because of their higher fruit content, simplicity of ingredients (fruit, filtered water, organic cane sugar) and the use of soft serve fruit mix which creates a creamier/airier texture. It’s best to let them thaw for 10-15 minutes before eating.

• Raspberry: Really intense, fresh flavor, didn’t notice any seeds, liked how tangy it was, it was lightly sweetened
• Blueberry: Very good but not as tangy as the raspberry, sweeter than the raspberry
• Tangerine: Sweeter than raspberry and blueberry with a bit of pulp
• Banana: I couldn’t eat this because I hate bananas but Mr. Froyo thought it was terrific, very natural and fresh tasting
• Dark chocolate: I couldn’t eat this because it has some banana, it should be called Dark Chocolate Banana

The pops are full size (2.5 fl. Oz) and only 60 calories each. It really does taste like fruit on the stick only much easier to eat. Chloe’s pops are carried at grocery stores, markets, restaurants, zoos, etc. Chloe’s soft serve mix is served at restaurants and frozen yogurt shops. To find Chloe’s, check out their list of retail locations: http://www.chloesfruit.com/find-us/wholesale

You can also catch Chloe’s Soft Serve Fruit Co. at Expo West in Anaheim, CA from March 6-8. Drop by booth #6250 for a sample.

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.