Ben & Jerry’s Fro-yo Truck Visits SF

Fro-yo girl here. Ben & Jerry’s fro-yo truck arrived today! The truck was parked at Yerba Buena Gardens today. You had your choice between two flavors, Raspberry Fudge Chunk and Peanut Butter Banana. The cups were 3.6 fl. ozs and include a tiny spoon tucked in the lid. Ben & Jerry’s West will be on tour in the area for another 5 weeks. They’ll continue to offer the same two flavors at all their stops. To find out where they’ll be, follow @BenJerrysWest on Twitter. 

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

Pinkberry Coming to Downtown SF, Finally!

Fro-yo girl here. Thanks Ann L. for the tip that Pinkberry is finally coming to downtown SF. It’s right next to the entrance to Macy’s Union Square on O’Farrell St. The space is covered up so one can’t see the shop. However, the sign says Swirling June 2012. For jobs, email unionsquarejobs@pinkberry.com. See Craigslist for more information on the positions available.

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

Fro-yo Coming to the Inner Richmond, Finally!

Fro-yo girl here. Sweethut, the new milk tea shop on Clement from Wonderful Foods, is going to offer self-serve fro-yo. I spotted the wall with cutouts for the fro-yo machines. They’re going to have four fro-yo machines (presumably this means 8 flavors of fro-yo). The toppings bar is in place, just waiting to be filled with toppings. 

Those of you who follow the SF fro-yo scene might recall that Wonderful Foods opened a self-serve fro-yo shop on Irving St., Wonderful Yogurt. I hope Sweethut offers better fro-yo than the short-lived Wonderful Yogurt.

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

* SWEETHUT: 519 Clement St., San Francisco, CA

Yasso Frozen Greek Yogurt Bars Review

Fro-yo girl here. I still haven’t spotted Yasso’s frozen Greek yogurt bars in the Bay Area, but I have spotted them at supermarkets in Seattle and Los Angeles (e.g., Vons, Ralph’s, Gelson’s).

Yasso bars come in three flavors: strawberry, raspberry and blueberry. At QFC, a box of 4 bars was $3.99 on sale, $4.99 regular price. The bars are all natural and made without corn syrup. One fat free bar is 70 calories.

* RASPBERRY YASSO BARS: Each bar is individually wrapped. The thick bar looks smooth and the texture is indeed creamy and smooth. It’s also light (not dense). The texture is very good but the flavor is quite bland. There isn’t enough raspberry or yogurt flavor. The aftertaste is bitter. I can’t say that I liked the taste but the bars do seem pretty healthy.

3 out of 5 stars

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

* QFC: 1401 Broadway, Seattle, WA 98122

TCBY & Mrs. Fields Co-Branded Shops

Fro-yo girl here. Carl’s Jr. and Green Burrito...Taco Bell and KFC...and now TCBY and Mrs. Fields. I’m talking about co-branded eateries. TCBY/Mrs. Fields locations can be found in several states, including California, Minnesota, Arizona, Delaware and more. A new location just opened in downtown Seattle which features self-serve fro-yo. The Pasadena, CA TCBY/Mrs. Fields location carries only scoopable TCBY.

Mrs. Fields Brands, LLC, owns both Mrs. Fields and TCBY. In 2011, TCBY rebranded, opened its first self-serve stores last year and embarked on a 200 store expansion plan over the next 10 years. This year they hit supermarket shelves with frozen yogurt pints, quarts and novelties.

I wouldn’t mind having Mrs. Fields fresh baked cookies as a fro-yo topping.

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

* MRS. FIELDS COOKIES/TCBY: 394 E Colorado Blvd., Pasadena, CA

New Yogurtland Flavors: Blue Lychee Bliss & Almond Midnight Mocha

Fro-yo girl. The flavor elves at Yogurtland have been busy again and they’ve come up with two new fro-yo flavors. You won’t want to miss trying both. Expect to see them at participating Yogurtland locations till the end of June. I found both at Yogurtland Burlingame.

* BLUE LYCHEE BLISS: The combination of lychee and blueberry is a pale purple creamy yet refreshing treat. The lychee flavor is more dominant than the blueberry but you can definitely taste the blueberry flavor and see the blueberry flecks. I liked how it was quite tart.
* ALMOND MIDNIGHT MOCHA: Two types of chocolate, coffee and almond make this super rich and decadent without being super sweet. The rich nutty chocolate flavor reminded me of the center of a chocolate truffle or a firm, extra chocolatey mousse. Wow.

* YOGURTLAND BURLINGAME: 225 Primrose Rd., Burlingame, CA

Ciao Bella Adonia Greek Frozen Yogurt Review

Fro-yo girl here. Adonia Greek Frozen Yogurt by Ciao Bella officially went national in April 2012. I’ve seen Adonia at several Target and Whole Foods locations. Whole Foods Haight carries their pints and yogurt bars. Target Colma carries just the pints ($3.99) in three flavors: Wild Blueberry, Vanilla, Raspberry. 

* VANILLA FROZEN YOGURT: I liked the texture: dense, firm, thick and creamy. It’s denser than most of the supermarket fro-yo out there and a little chewier. It’s very sweet (too sweet I think) but does have lots of vanilla bean flavor. The number of vanilla bean flecks was impressive. It had a mild yogurt taste and a slightly bitter aftertaste. Overall it reminded me of gelato but less sticky and with some yogurt flavor. It’s nonfat and the main ingredients are nonfat milk, cane juice, and cultured nonfat milk protein concentrate.

Adonia pints are available in 7 flavors, including Espresso, Key lime, Peach, Mango, Wild blueberry, Vanilla, and Raspberry. The yogurt bars come in two flavors: Wild blueberry and Peach.

I’m curious whether their fruit flavors are tangier.

4 out of 5 stars

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