Matcha Ren Rebrands as United Matcha, New Menu Includes Greek Froyo

Fro-yo girl here. Frozen yogurt is back at the Shops at Santa Anita! It was last spotted inside Kirin Buffet which closed in 2020 due to the COVID-19 pandemic. I noticed the Matcha Ren shop changed names. It’s the same business but they rebranded as United Matcha and changed the menu. The new menu has matcha mochi crepes, kakigori shaved ice, parfaits, and shiratama ice cream.

Plain Greek frozen yogurt replaced Hokkaido milk soft serve on the menu. The only toppings listed on the menu were three drizzles (strawberry, mango, Kuromitsu), and mochi (these are big Japanese rice balls, not the packaged Korean mochi).

Prices:

• Cup or cone, $6.90
• Drizzles, $0.50 each
• Mochi, 3 pieces for $1

The cup was small – what I would consider to be a mini. The yogurt was better than I expected – creamy, smooth, with a milky flavor, mild tang, and sweet finish. Personally, I would prefer a stronger yogurt flavor and more tang. It wasn’t crazy sweet. The rice balls were nice and chewy.

The parfaits come with other toppings like tea jelly, toasted rice cereal, red bean paste, and matcha castella. I wonder why these aren’t available as soft serve toppings. Or are they?

Westfield Santa Anita, rebranded as the Shops at Santa Anita, was once the home of Nubi Yogurt, Tutti Frutti, Cefiore, and Sweet XO.

Matcha Ren in San Jose and Costa Mesa are now known as United Matcha (and serve Greek froyo).

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

* UNITED MATCHA: 400 S Baldwin Ave, Arcadia, CA 91007

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.

Anita Gelato Opens in Los Angeles and Here's What I Thought of the Froyo

 

Fro-yo girl here. Anita Gelato, which serves froyo, finally opened in Los Angeles! Anita Gelato was founded in Tel Aviv, Israel in 2002; their first US location was in NYC. They're known for their froyo and of course, premium hand-made gelato. They also serve coffee drinks and milkshakes. I heard that they were coming to LA a few months ago.

The grand opening took place on September 2 in Tarzana, a neighborhood in Los Angeles (San Fernando Valley). I called before heading over there but no one answered the phone. I made the trek and wandered in…only to be told that the frozen yogurt was not available. My next thought was that they might make yogurt gelato but alas, they didn’t have that either. I visited again last weekend and they had froyo.

They have one soft serve machine which they use for their froyo and acai. Froyo and acai swirls are also popular. They have one flavor of froyo, plain/original. The price includes unlimited toppings and topping refills. That is, once you start eating your froyo, if you want more toppings, they’ll give you some!

Froyo: Small ($7.50)/ Medium ($8.50)/ Large ($11)/ Small take away ($18)/ Large take away ($27)

The toppings include homemade sauces, homemade jams, cookies, candies, nuts, chocolate, coconut, granola, sprinkles, marshmallows, fresh fruit, and more. They’re known for their jams and sauces. Sauces: Date honey, white chocolate, honey, tahini, cherry, pretzel, cookieman, white chocolate and cookies, caramel cookies

Jams: Passion fruit, strawberry, mulberries, mango

The frozen yogurt was silky smooth, dense, rich, and mildly tangy; a high quality froyo. It’s as rich as frozen custard. Mr. Froyo found it too rich and I also missed the refreshing and light aspect one usually finds in plain froyo. The toppings were excellent – a cut above. The tahini sauce was thin and nutty. The cherry sauce added some tang.

I ordered a small yogurt and the portion was generous. They were generous with toppings too.

The shop looks beautiful and luxe with gold accents against pink and green. Find free 90-minute parking in the covered garage. There’s plenty of seating but the outside tables are not shaded.

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.