Fro-yo girl here. I first spotted Wei-Chuan frozen yogurt bars at a Chinese market in West Covina, CA. I didn’t have my cooler bag and ice with me, so I didn’t buy them at the time. I was also hoping that I’d see them again somewhere closer to home. Luckily, I spotted them again at Great Wall Supermarket in Monterey Park. Great Wall was selling Wei-Chuan frozen yogurt bars for $2.99/box.
One 10 oz box contains 4 individually wrapped bars. The bars have zero trans fats. Wei-Chuan is a local company that manufactures food products in the US and is headquartered in the City of Industry, CA.
Strawberry Frozen Yogurt: The bar had little fragrance. It was pale pink and looked icy. The bar was firm and icy. It had a faint cream/milky flavor with a hint of yogurt. I liked that it wasn’t too sweet and tasted a bit like yogurt but the strawberry flavor was very faint and the bar was bland (but inoffensive). The bar was not tangy. One bar is 80 calories, 3g total fata, 11g total carbs, 9g total sugars, and 1g protein.
The list of ingredients was nice and short: yogurt culture, ice cream mix (cream, sugar, nonfat milk powder, guar gum), water, sugar, frozen strawberries.
Available flavors: Strawberry, Blueberry, Peach
3 out of 5 stars.
You know you love me. X0 X0, fro-yo girl.
* GREAT WALL SUPERMARKET: 421 N Atlantic Blvd., Monterey Park, CA 91754
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.
Noosa Greek comes in 5.3 oz cups with a more traditional cup shape. The flavors are blended and the high protein aspect is still emphasized. Noosa Greek is lower in sugar than the regular Noosa line.
I found Noosa Greek at Gelson’s in Sherman Oaks for $1.25 each (sale price) or $1.79 each, regular price.
Vanilla Bean: The yogurt looked different than it did when it was called HiLo. The HiLo version had vanilla bean specks and was thicker. Compared to the regular Noosa Vanilla Bean, Noosa Greek Vanilla Bean has a milder vanilla flavor and no wildflower honey and it’s smoother, less sweet, and not as thick. I still found it to be sweet enough but regular Noosa has more flavor and a better texture.
Strawberry: I didn’t see the strawberry bits that I found in Strawberry HiLo but the strawberry flavor was quite pronounced. The yogurt was thick and smoother than regular Noosa. It was definitely less sweet with a little sourness and tang. This or Mixed Berry was my favorite. It has a little honey.
Mixed Berry: Very nice, thick, tangy, and fruity. The fruit flavor wasn’t as pronounced/strong as regular Noosa. It was a bit sour and a bit tangy.
Blueberry: Seemed more watery and not as thick as Strawberry and Mixed Berry but it was tangier than both.
Available flavors: Plain, Mixed Berry, Peach, Strawberry, Blueberry, Vanilla Bean (the same flavors offered by Noosa HiLo)
One serving (vanilla bean) is 170 calories, 7g total fat, 14g total carbs, 12g protein and 12g sugars
Ingredients: Whole milk yoghurt (Grade A pasteurized milk, live active cultures), Vanilla blend (water, cane sugar, vanilla extract, natural flavor, pectin, locust bean gum, vanilla bean, lemon juice concentrate)
The size is just right for breakfast or a snack. Noosa Greek yogurt is almost as good as regular Noosa.
4 out of 5 stars.
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.
Fro-yo girl here. I’ve been looking for purple rice yogurt drinks in Los Angeles for over a year now, with no luck. A new purple rice yogurt was about to open in Arcadia last spring and then the pandemic struck. I don’t think they ever opened? Then one of my Yelp friends mentioned ordering a purple rice yogurt drink from The Alley. I’ve actually been to The Alley’s Pasadena location but at the time, they did not have purple rice yogurt drinks.
The Alley Pasadena has original purple rice yogurt, matcha purple rice yogurt, peach oolong purple rice yogurt and a create your own yogurt (drink) option. The drinks are $5.95 each and feature fresh yogurt (not made in-house) and sweet glutinous purple rice, aka forbidden rice. You can specify your desired sweetness level. It’s a cold, tangy yogurt shake with chewy bits of sweet rice.
Original Purple Rice Yogurt: I was a fan since I obviously love yogurt and I appreciated the simplicity of the yogurt flavor with the chewy sweet rice bits. I’m sure they added ice too, because I encountered some icy bits. The yogurt is plain and sweetened (I asked for 25% sweetness and it was plenty sweet for me) but not super thick. It tastes like lightly sweetened plain yogurt that’s mildly tangy. While the basic purple rice yogurt might be too simple for some but it’s also healthier than boba drinks (apparently). And they have variations in case you’re looking for more flavor. I think I’ll try another one soon.
For a history of purple rice yogurt drinks and health benefits, see IFYA’s post, Now Trending: Purple Rice Yogurt Drinks.
The Alley, a Taiwanese chain, has locations in Southern California, Las Vegas, New York, Hawaii, Taiwan, China, Japan, Canada, France, and Australia.
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.
I’ve been going to Yogurtland for NFYD/IFYD ever since their first NFYD in 2011. This would have been NFYD #10 but they decided not to celebrate this year. I asked a few Yogurtland locations about NFYD and even walked by Yogurtland yesterday to look for NFYD signs. Nothing. A few Yogurtland locations are celebrating on their own, but it’s not a chain level celebration.
There were still MANY NFYD offers from other froyo shops, franchises (e.g., Orange Leaf, TCBY, 16 Handles, sweetFrog) and independents.
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.
Former Go Greek location
Fro-yo girl here. Go Greek Yogurt quietly closed its Village at Westfield Topanga Woodland Hills location several months ago. The closure initially seemed temporary and due to COVID-19 but the location is no longer listed on the Westfield Topanga website or mentioned by Go Greek since last spring. Due to COVID-19, I did not visit the Village at Westfield Topanga last year. Google still lists the location as temporarily closed, while Yelp lists it as permanently closed. The last Yelp review was posted in August. It seems to have closed in April 2020? It's definitely closed, since another business is in the process of renovating the space.
One Medical, a primary care clinic, will move into the Go Greek space. How boring. The Village is such a cute outdoor mall but a lot of the tenants are not interesting (e.g., Wells Fargo, UCLA Health).
Go Greek Yogurt opened in Woodland Hills in 2015. It was one of the original tenants of the new Village at Westfield Topanga, the outdoor mall adjacent to Westfield Topanga. Yogurtland was also an original tenant. It closed in 2018. I reviewed the Go Greek Woodland Hills location in 2015 and returned a few more times over the years. The grand opening celebration was held on November 7, 2015.
You know you love me. X0 X0, fro-yo girl.
GO GREEK YOGURT: 6250 CA-27 Suite 1587, Woodland Hills, CA 91367
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.
Fro-yo girl here. The official National Frozen Yogurt Day is this Saturday, February 6, but I’m up for celebrating it early. It makes it easier to take advantage of multiple NFYD offers. First up, Menchie’s! They had a buy one, get one free offer today (US locations). Also, if you use the Menchie’s app on NFYD (February 2), you’ll be entered into a contest. Twenty lucky people will win $20 uploaded to their Menchie’s app account.
In other Menchie’s news, Menchie’s has a new featured flavor for February, Rich Dark Chocolate made with Hershey’s Special Dark Chocolate. February happens to be National Chocolate Month and National Dark Chocolate Day was Feburary 1. Also, Menchie’s offers Valentine’s Day froyo cakes that can be customized. They even have mini sizes.
I was fortunate to find Rich Dark Chocolate froyo at Menchie’s Valley Village (Los Angeles) today. Though chocolate froyo is not a favorite of mine, I really liked this new flavor. It might be the best chocolate flavor that Menchie’s has ever introduced.
Rich dark chocolate froyo: The texture was definitely smooth, creamy and dare I say, luxurious. It didn’t look darker than the typical chocolate froyo but it seemed less sweet with a little bitterness from the dark chocolate. Really good! I might have added too many chocolate toppings but it’s National Chocolate Month. Recommended toppings: Hershey’s Dark Chocolate Chips, Nilla wafers, nuts.
This flavor has no artificial colors or artificial flavors, no high fructose corn syrup, and it’s gluten-free. It's available for a limited time, while supplies last.
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.
Fro-yo girl here. I was pleasantly surprised to hear about a new TART froyo flavor from Yogurtland. Small Batch Super Tart froyo is plain tart “on a whole new level” and the supply is limited since they only made a small batch. The launch date is February 1. Last year, Yogurtland did not introduce any new tart flavors.
Small Batch Super Tart was created in honor of Yogurtland's 15th anniversary. It's a reimagining of their Plain Tart flavor.
Small Batch Super Tart froyo: It’s quite similar to Yogurtland’s Plain Tart. I was expecting it to be very tart and it wasn’t. It seemed a little creamier and sweeter than Plain Tart. I guess it was a little more tart but I noticed the additional sweetness more than the tartness. Small Batch Super Tart is gluten-free and nonfat. Recommended toppings: Fresh fruit, mochi, popping boba.
I noticed prices have gone up at some Yogurtland locations. Yogurtland San Gabriel is now $0.56 cents/oz. It was $0.52/oz in late 2020. Yogurtland usually raises prices around the beginning of the new year. Also, there was no mention of National/International Frozen Yogurt Day at Yogurtland San Gabriel. I asked about it but they didn’t know of any NFYD plans. They had Valentine’s décor up though. It’s still full service with no indoor dining allowed.
Use the Flavor Finder feature on the Yogurtland website or app to find Small Batch Super Tart froyo.
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.
