The Mix Grand Opening Coverage

Fro-yo girl here. Congratulations to the Mix! Today was the grand opening celebration and true to their announcement on Facebook, guests received a free mini fro-yo (4 ozs) of their choice, with or without chocolate or rainbow jimmies (sprinkles). Today's flavors included: Chocolate, Vanilla, Mixed Berry and Original Tart. They also had other specials - free topping with a purchase of a medium fro-yo with two toppings and mix-ins of the day for $3.95. I saw some balloons out front and The Mix temporary tattoos but for a grand opening, it was fairly subdued.



There was a steady stream of customers and many of them paid for a larger size vs. choosing the free fro-yo. I guess "free" isn't as exciting in Menlo Park? I tried the vanilla fro-yo today and liked the rich, creamy texture.

The free fro-yo offer is good all day today, so there's still time...

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

THE MIX: 3536 Alameda de las Pulgas, Menlo Park, CA

Chicago Fro-yo Report: Berry Chill vs. Starfruit

Fro-yo girl here White Sox vs. Cubs, Thick Crust vs. Thin Crust, Chocolate vs. Vanilla...in Chicago, the two homegrown chains that come to mind when someone thinks of fro-yo (or frozen kefir) are Berry Chill and Starfruit Café. Berry Chill was the first tart fro-yo shop to open in Chicago, swirling since late 2007. Starfruit soon followed in April 2008. I was eager to try both places to see how they’d compare (and I brought Tuttimelon Bear along for a second opinion).

* PRICE: They're the same but Berry Chill charges a dollar more for their flavored tart fro-yo, but I think Berry Chill has larger portions. Advantage: Tie

* TOPPINGS: Both serve Milk & Honey granola and have better than average toppings. Starfruit toppings seem healthier since they have goji berries and flaxseeds, whereas Berry Chill has Thin Mints, peanut butter pretzels. Fruit toppings looked equally fresh. Advantage: Tie



* VARIETY: During my visits, they were offering very fro-yo/frozen kefir flavors. Both offer smoothies. Starfruit has some organic frozen kefir flavors. Advantage: Tie again

* MARKETING: Berry Chill has the cutest signature cups and spoons, delivery, self-serve order kiosks and Yogi the bear mascot. YogiJones is constantly tweeting. Starfruit has a very bright and fruity image. I like how you can create your own frozen kefir creation on their website. Advantage: Berry Chill



* TASTE: I like kefir and everyone knows that I'm obsessed with fro-yo. For me, taste is the most important and Starfruit wins here. Berry Chill is too icy and the original tart tastes too lemony. Starfruit tastes more natural and doesn't taste lemony. Advantage: Starfruit

Since taste is the most important, I’m picking Starfruit Café (so sorry Yogi). It isn't enough to be cute (but thanks for the cup and spoon, Berry Chill).

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

Chicago Fro-yo Report: Part 1

Fro-yo girl here. After several days of wandering around Lincoln Park, the Magnificent Mile and the Loop, I’m ready to report the Chicago fro-yo scene.

1) There isn’t enough fro-yo. There are several large shopping centers on Michigan Avenue (900 North, Water Tower Place, The Shops at North Bridge) and none of them have fro-yo! The horror. Granted, mall fro-yo can often be inferior but there’s something so nice about stopping for fro-yo while shopping. I wandered around for a long time without running into that many fro-yo signs.



2) No self-serve fro-yo in downtown Chicago. Self-serve fro-yo does exist but you have to go to the suburbs for it. I prefer full serve anyway, so this doesn’t bother me. I’d be surprised if someone doesn’t open up a self-serve place downtown this year.



3) The best neighborhood for fro-yo seems to be the Loop. The Loop has Starfruit, Berry Chill, Yogen Fruz, Fruigurt, Simply Fresh, Under 55 Café, Green Apple, etc. Fruigurt, located inside Macy’s food court (lower level) on State St., is really cheap. For $1.95 + tax, you can get a big cup of fro-yo. Watch out for the fruit toppings (they looked old). Under 55 has a $6.99 lunch special that includes fro-yo and a fountain beverage. I walked by Green Apple on a Sunday. It’s in a food court which was closed and locked up.

4) I don’t mind flying into O’Hare because there are several places to get fro-yo. I went to TCBY this time.

In my next report I’ll weigh in on Berry Chill vs. Starfruit.

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

* FRUIGURT: 111 N State St, Chicago, IL 60602
* GREEN APPLE YOGURT: 201 N Clark St, Chicago, IL 60601
* UNDER 55 CAFÉ: 55 E Monroe St, Chicago, IL 60603
* TCBY: Chicago O’Hare, Terminal 3, Concourse K4, Chicago, IL 60666

Interesting Fro-yo Topping: Tea in a Jar

Fro-yo girl. I'm currently busy exploring the fro-yo scene in Chicago. I've seen some interesting toppings here (full report later). I was at Blush awhile ago where I met up with the guys behind the Around Dublin blog, Jimmy and John. They've best source of information about Dublin, CA, including breaking news and local opinions. They're loyal Blush fans as well (as an aside, I miss Blush!!!!). Jimmy invited me to try Blush original fro-yo with aloe vera tea in a jar. Puripan's tea in a jar is a traditional Korean fermented tea. It comes in five organic, caffeine free flavors. The tea in a jar is combined with hot or cold water to make tea but some people also put it on ice cream, fro-yo or toast.

Aloe vera tea in jar looks like a clear, light green, jelly like substance. I was expecting a strong tea flavor. The flavor is actually very mild and it was much sweeter than I expected. What's interesting about having it with fro-yo is that the sweetness brings out the tartness of Blush's original tart in a way that I've never experienced with their other toppings (e.g., I usually get mine with berries and mochi). Interesting topping - if you get a chance, try it out. There are several Puripan locations in the Bay Area and the five tea in a jar flavors are: Citron, Ginger, Pomegranate, Aloe Vera, and Papaya.

* BLUSH DUBLIN: 4640-A Tassajara Road, Dublin, CA

http://www.arounddublinblog.com/
http://www.puripan.com/tea/info/tea_descriptions.asp

More Blush Burlingame Pictures

Taken on training night...

Blush Burlingame Training Night

Fro-yo girl here. After a really loooong wait, Blush Burlingame is really going to open!!!!! Yes, finally. I had the honor of visiting them during employee training night (they were practicing their swirls) and checking out the space. It’s a huge space for a fro-yo shop. Taking over the space of a former art gallery, Blush Burlingame features high ceilings, playful touches (green walls, painted with butterflies), recycled glass tiles & tabletops, three 65” flatscreen TVs, iPod docking station, floors made out of recycled materials, skylights, Italian chairs, and plenty of places to lounge and hang out. Remember to follow the butterflies…

I spotted the giant chocolate bar (ready to be shaved) and the 3 fro-yo machines. I also saw the shaved ice machine. I’m pretty sure that menu will be the same as the other Blush locations (Blush Blends, shaved ice). The soft opening is this Friday, 2/19. Enjoy a free small fro-yo with two toppings from 12 – 5 PM.

Fro-yo flavors you’ll see (remember these are all organic and delicious):
* Cookies n’ cream: their newest flavor, has a chocolatey flavor that goes well with crunchy toppings
* Pineapple tart: love it, if you like pineapple, you need to try this flavor
* Acai blueberry: one of my favorites (but I have so many Blush favorites)
* Original tart: the perfect original tart, sweet finish, real yogurt flavor
* Blush (pomengranate-dragonfruit): their signature flavor, a favorite of many
* Mango tart: this was the flavor they were practicing with. I hadn’t had it in awhile and it was even better than I remembered. Great texture (firm, smooth), sweet and real tasting – tastes like real mango and real yogurt

Saturday is the grand opening (at noon) so come by to support Blush. They’re giving away a ton of prizes – for every purchase, you’ll get a raffle ticket and 3 winners will be announced every hour from 1 – 5 PM. The prizes include a Sony Blu Ray player, iPod Nano, iPod Touch, Xbox, Warriors courtside tickets, SF Giants memorabilia, Jerry Rice signed memorabilia and something signed by Joe Montana. Wow.

Thanks for the Blush Burlingame t-shirt and congratulations Blush!!!

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

* BLUSH BURLINGAME: 1212 Donnelly Avenue, Burlingame, CA

The Mix T-Shirt

Fro-yo girl here. My collection of fro-yo t-shirts expanded today. I hurried over to the Mix, the new Menlo Park fro-yo shop. They were giving out t-shirts to anyone who mentioned being a Facebook fan. The shirt has their grand opening date on it, February 27. Expect free fro-yo and other yet to to be named festivities. Thanks to The Mix! I like that they're serving organic fro-yo and the shop is spotless and gorgeous. Blue Bottle Coffee is always a plus as well.

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

* THE MIX: 3536 Alameda De Las Pulgas, Menlo Park, CA 94025