2023 Froyo Wish List

froyo machine & toppings, Anita Gelato, Tarzana

Fro-yo girl here. Happy Froyo New Year! And the new year means a new froyo wish list. But before I get to the new wishes, let’s see which of my 2022 froyo wishes came true.

Recap of 2022 Froyo Wishes

Purple Rice as a Froyo Topping: This didn’t happen. In fact, purple rice yogurt drinks didn’t catch on in the US and many of the Yomie’s Rice x Yogurt shops have closed or changed names. Yomie’s Rice x Yogurt in Arcadia became Der Tea. Yomie’s Temple City became Zhen Tea. Yomie’s San Gabriel closed. The only Yomie’s shops left in the area are in Rowland Heights and Tustin. The last few times I visited Yomie’s, the rice was hard. Other purple rice yogurt shops like From Yogurt in Alhambra, CA have also closed.

Trying Israeli and Australian Froyo: Anita Gelato, which started in Tel Aviv, opened in Tarzana in September and they brought their froyo! The frozen yogurt was silky smooth, dense, rich, and moderately tangy; a high quality froyo. The toppings were excellent and also truly unlimited (you can ask for topping refills). They make their own jams and sauces.

Pinkberry Pops: Pinkberry Pops (popsicles) are still available in other countries but not the US. While I didn’t have a Pinkberry Pop, I did get Pinkberry from a vending machine for the first time. Back in April, I got a cup of Pinkberry Original Tart from a vending machine in Arcadia, California. Eight Pinkberry vending machines were installed around Southern California this year. Most are in shopping malls and two at the Ontario International Airport. The first time I wished to be served by a froyo robot or vending machine was back in 2013!

Boba Froyo: I didn’t see any pints of froyo with tapioca pearls but L’Moon Creamery opened in Pasadena and they offer soft serve ice cream with tapioca pearls as a topping. Yogurtland offered brown sugar crystal boba as a topping this year! On another note, I lost interest in boba ice cream bars.

2023 Froyo Wishes

Many of my froyo wishes do eventually come true but they often take a few years. I feel like I’m running out of froyo wishes, so I’m going to share some old wishes that haven’t come true yet.

Erewhon starts stocking Yoga-urt: This could happen by offering pints of Yoga-urt or better yet, offering Yoga-urt at the Erewhon Coffee Bar. Perhaps they could even have an Erewhon exclusive Yoga-urt flavor!

Llaollao opening in California: llaollao is Europe’s largest froyo chain and I think the largest in Asia as well. They have one location in the US, in Houston. I’m still hoping to try it. Or maybe they’ll open one closer to me.

Souvla opens in Los Angeles: Souvla is conservative about opening new locations. They’re still only in the Bay Area but it wouldn’t be that much of a stretch to open in Los Angeles. This is a new wish that I’ve had on my mind for years but never included on a froyo wish list. Souvla has inspired many Greek/Mediterranean cafes to offer plain Greek froyo with Greek toppings but Souvla still does Greek froyo best. 

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.