Holsom by Yogurtland Concept Revealed

 

Fro-yo girl here. Thanks to my obsessive internet froyo research, I was the first to write about the new Holsom by Yogurtland concept. The official announcement from Yogurtland followed a few weeks later. My guess that they would soon launch a new concept was correct. Holsom by Yogurtland is expected to open in mid-November at 7598 Edinger Ave., Huntington Beach, CA 92647. This is the site of a current Yogurtland shop, one that will be remodeled and become Holsom by Yogurtland.

Holsom by Yogurtland will provide healthy, delicious and affordable grain bowls, sweet and savory goumet toasts, handcrafted beverages and Yogurtland’s frozen yogurt. Some of the menu items will include Everything Egg Toast, Roasted Tomato Basil Toast, Southwest Crunch Toast, made-to-order grain bowl flavors such as Classic, Thai Peanut, Greek and Chipotle Southwest, Ricotta & Berry Toast with fresh blueberries, and customizable sweet bowls such as Strawberry Banana Granola or Peanut Butter with acai and sweetened chia pudding as base options. The menu will also feature handcrafted beverages such as Strawberry Lemonade Fresca, Strawberry Mint Sparkler and Pineapple Green Tea. Sounds good. Who doesn’t like grain bowls and fancy toasts? The bread has to be really good though.

Keep up with what’s going on at Holsom by Yogurtland on Facebook and Instagram.

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.

Fremont Froyo History

Yoswirl, 2008

Fro-yo girl here. I’m in Fremont several times a year, so I’ve tried about every froyo place there, past and present. The froyo scene was much more vibrant in the past. It peaked around 2010. Only two froyo shops are still standing in 2020: Yogurtland and Menchie’s. It seemed like Yogurt De Lite (4378 Thornton Ave.) would stay open forever, but it finally closed last year. Yalla Mediterranean stopped serving froyo last year at all their locations, including the one in Fremont. Sad.

Yogurt De Lite opened decades ago, I’m not sure when. I’m pretty sure that the ownership changed a few times. Honestly, it wasn’t very good, though maybe it used to be better. It was close to a few schools though and there weren’t many other options in the area to get a snack or treat.

Fro-ggie (1554 Washington Blvd.) which opened in March 2008, was the first of the new froyo shops in Fremont. Independently owned, it was modeled after Pinkberry offering 4 counter-serve tart froyo flavors a day. They were even one of the few shops that served soy froyo. I liked it! Frog-gie closed in 2011.

A few months later in May 2008, Fremont got its first self-serve froyo shop, Yoswirl in Warm Springs (43773 Boscell Rd.). I was at the grand opening and there was a huge crowd. The froyo was definitely on the icy side. Yoswirl closed in 2012.

Back in 2010, Fremont was a froyo hot spot. At the time, I wrote:

“Fremont is now home to Fro-ggie, Yoswirl, So Frais Frozen Yogurt Cafe, Cafe Verona, Yogurtouille, Sweet Orchid, Yogurtastic, Pink Swirl, and Yogurt Bees. Old school Yogurt Delite is still around. I get the feeling more fro-yo is on the way.”

More shops opened, including Freshberry (a franchise, later it became Pure Yum) with cupcakes and froyo, Fusion Mix, Yogurt Mantra, Menchie’s and Yogurtland. The dates the shop existed appear in parentheses.

• FreshBerry, 2010-2014
• Yogurt Mantra, 2012-2015
• Fusion Mix, 2014-2019
• Pure Yum, 2014-2016

Yogurtland and Menchie’s both opened during the summer of 2013 and both are on Mowry Ave. While the Menchie's and Yogurtland were late arrivals, they have survived longer than most of the independent froyo shops.

• Menchie’s 5030 Mowry Ave, Fremont, CA 94538
• Yogurtland, 4069 Mowry Ave, Fremont, CA 94538

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.

Calling All US Froyo Shop Owners: The National Frozen Yogurt Shop Owner Survey is Now Open

Fro-yo girl here. The Fourth National Frozen Yogurt Shop Owner Survey, sponsored by the International Frozen Yogurt Association, is now open. 

Who Should Take the Survey

Anyone who owns a frozen yogurt shop or a business that serves frozen yogurt in the US is invited to participate. Owners who take the survey will be able to sign up to receive the survey results while taking the survey. The results will help froyo shop owners better understand how their shop compares to other shops. This year’s results will also be compared to last year’s results. The results should be available in November.

The Fourth National Frozen Yogurt Shop Owner Survey asks shop owners about shop performance, satisfaction with suppliers, operational practices, management practices, outlook, etc. The questions have also been modified to capture the impact of the coronavirus pandemic.

Coupled with the results of the IFYA's National Frozen Yogurt Consumer Survey, the shop owner survey results will be used to better understand the overall frozen yogurt market in the United States.

The anonymous survey takes about 7 minutes to complete and can be found at https://tinyurl.com/froyoshopsurvey

The survey will remain open from now till midnight PST on Wednesday, October 28, 2020.

How to See the Results

Suppliers and others who are interested in the results but do not own a frozen yogurt store can receive the survey results by sharing IFYA’s pinned Facebook (@froyoassociation) post about the survey, reposting the Instagram post about the survey (@intlfroyoassn) or retweeting the pinned survey tweet (@froyogirl).

Only foodservice business owners who participate in the current National Frozen Yogurt Shop Owner Survey, those who share the survey URL, and IFYA advisory board members will have free access to the full results of the shop owner survey. IFYA members will have free access to a limited set of results.

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.

New Menchie’s October Feature Flavor, Pumpkin Spice made with Nilla Wafers & a New Cup

Fro-yo girl here. Menchie’s has a new pumpkin flavor this month: Pumpkin Spice froyo made with Nilla Wafers! Also, there’s a new cup design for a new animated movie from Sony Pictures called Connected. And Menchie’s in Valley Village (Los Angeles, CA) had Halloween decorations and Halloween froyo cakes.

As for Pumpkin Spice froyo, it’s made with real Nilla Wafers and cinnamon and has no artificial colors. And it’s lowfat. Nilla Wafers are pretty mild but I like them. Pumpkin Spice froyo seemed sweeter and milder to me (vs. Menchie’s Harvest Pumpkin) though I could taste the warm spice. It’s not as gingery or spicy as Harvest Pumpkin. The creamy mildness was quite pleasant. Recommended toppings: Nilla Wafers, Cinnamon Toast Crunch and Heath.

The Connected Cups and Pumpkin Spice froyo are available for a limited time, while supplies last. Menchie’s Valley Village is still full service.

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.

Golden Spoon Replaces Menchie's in Whittier

Fro-yo girl here. I knew that Menchie’s moved to the old Frugos space on Whittier Blvd. in Whittier, California last year and I knew they closed the 10122 Carmenita Road location but I didn’t realize that Golden Spoon took over the Carmenita space till recently. They opened this summer. You can serve your own froyo or have them serve you.

This isn’t the first Golden Spoon location in Whittier. They used to have a shop at 15588 Whittwood Ln. I didn’t make it there before the shop closed in 2013. It’s also not the first time Golden Spoon has offered self-serve. A few of their locations went self-serve back in 2015.

The Carmenita space was occupied by Menchie’s from 2012-2019. Golden Spoon took over, painted the walls pastel pink and mint green and changed the decals, though the interior still looks like a Menchie’s. The toppings bins are the same. The toppings are the same as they were at Menchie’s – candies, cookies, fruit, nuts, syrups, chocolate chips, sprinkles, marshmallows, graham cracker crumbs, etc. The round chalkboard that was at Menchie’s now belongs to Golden Spoon. They kept Menchie’s chairs and tables too.

Self-serve froyo (14 flavors a day) and toppings are 49 cents an ounce (Menchie’s charged 53 cents an ounce). If you want them to serve your froyo, a mini is $3.99, regular $5.99, large $6.99 and quart $12.99.

Gloves were provided and most of the toppings were covered. I was allowed to get my own froyo and toppings. They even had sample cups.

Golden Spoon offers freshly made waffle bowls, shaved ice, banana splits, bottled drinks and cones. The freezer that used to hold cakes was empty.

Sign up for rewards through Five Stars. They were giving away 2 ozs free during my visit or $1 off your first purchase.

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

GOLDEN SPOON FROZEN YOGURT: 10122 Carmenita Rd., Whittier, CA 90605

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.

New Yogurtland Fall Flavor: Cold Brew Coffee Light Ice Cream

Fro-yo girl here. Happy Fall froyo flavor time! Yogurtland’s new fall flavor is Cold Brew Coffee light ice cream. Cold Brew Coffee has become a popular froyo flavor (Dannon YoCream, Menchie’s and Pinkberry already introduced cold brew coffee froyo). Yogurtland’s Sumatra Coffee used to be one of the flavors that I’d get all the time, but I have not seen it since last year (sad face).

Yogurtland describes Cold Brew Coffee Light Ice Cream as “This frozen brew coffee is sure to perk up your day! Dark, rich coffee flavor from cold brew coffee and just a hint of sweetness makes this light ice cream an uplifting treat.” It’s made with real cold brew coffee, gluten free, and 35 calories per oz.

Cold Brew Coffee Light Ice Cream: Well, it’s no Sumatra Coffee. The coffee flavor is stronger than Sumatra but also more bitter and less smooth. It was also not as creamy as Sumatra and melted quickly. Recommended toppings: Chocolate chips, whipped cream, toffee.

Yogurtland also brought back Dulce De Leche yogurt for the fall. FYI, Yogurtland Alhambra is still offering full service.

Chameleon Cold Brew has a recipe for cold brew coffee froyo for those of you who’d like to make some at home. No ice cream machine needed!

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.

Lyft Rider Guides Include Top Frozen Yogurt Shops in Multiple Cities

Fro-yo girl here. I stumbled across Lyft’s rider guides online and found several city guides for top frozen yogurt shops. The shops are picked because they are the “most visited” by Lyft riders according to 2020 Lyft rider data.

For example, in the Culver City area of Los Angeles, Menchie’s on Sawtelle is listed as the top/most visited frozen yogurt shop. The Lyft webpage provides the address, hours of operation, phone number, website, a short description of the shop and a button to book a ride. The information on the page looks pretty current but there are cases where the most visited frozen yogurt shop is either temporarily or permanently closed.

Here are some of the most visited frozen yogurt shops, according to Lyft:

• Crenshaw, CA: Yogurtland
• Culver City (Los Angeles, CA): Menchie’s
• Hollywood, Los Angeles, CA: Pinkberry and Yogurtland
• Long Beach, CA: Pinkberry and Ice Cream & Frozen Yogurt on the Boardwalk
• Redwood City, CA: Yumi Yogurt and Yoho. I know that Yumi Yogurt definitely closed. The final day of business was September 15, 2019. The city guide must not have been updated since then. I’ve never even heard of Yoho Frozen Yogurt and no address is provided. Strange. Oh wait, I know about Yoppi Yogurt in downtown Redwood City. They changed their name to Yoho. The top shops are supposedly determined by 2020 Lyft ride data. But Yumi Yogurt closed in 2019.
• Santa Monica, CA: Menchie’s & Pinkberry
• Sherman Oaks, CA: Menchie’s
• University Town Center, Irvine, CA: Yogurtland. Irvine is where Yogurtland HQ is located.
• Hayhurst, Portland, OR: Sunny’s Legendary Frozen Yogurt
• South Tacoma, Tacoma, WA: Menchie’s
• Glendale, NY: Menchie’s
• Saint Paul, MN: Menchie’s
• Avondale, Chicago, IL: Forever Yogurt
• Hancock, Austin, TX: Menchie’s
• Midtown NYC (New York, NY): Uptown Swirl – Google indicates that this shop is permanently closed (Google is sometimes wrong though). It was open earlier this year.
• Downtown Washington DC: FroZenYo. Yelp marks this location as permanently closed but Google does not. Google reviews are still being posted, as recently as 3 weeks ago.
• Midtown Atlanta, GA: Yoforia. This location is marked as permanently closed by Google and Yelp. It was open earlier this year. Yoforia Midtown was the last location of a regional chain that at one point had 12 locations in Georgia and a few in Charlotte, NC.

According to the rider data, Menchie’s is the most popular. It also has the most locations.

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.