A Summer of Frozen Yogurts

Summers in Southern CA are HOT! Where I live, sometimes it gets to 104! The only way to cool down is to hang out somewhere that has free air conditioning or cooling down with some wonderful frozen yogurts. In the last couple of years, frozen yogurt chains have been popping up everywhere, especially the self serve kind. For the longest time in my city, there was only one frozen yoghurt chain and that was Penguin's frozen yogurt. That joint is not long gone. It's great and healthier for you than ice cream. As for the self serve joints, you basically choose the size cup you want, put the yogurt flavor of your choice (or two) into your cup, sprinkle some of your favorite toppings on top, bring it to the register and according to the entire weight of your original creation, they charge you per ounce. It's really a genius idea. You don't need a lot of labor, maybe just someone to clean (some people make a mess!) and ring up customers. Though my ultimate favorite self serve fro-yo (as many people call it) shut down, I had many other options to keep cool this summer.

Menchie's is a self serve fro-yo place with many different fro-yo flavors and toppings. Their fro-yo's are more on the creamy side.

Today, I decided to get the original tart flavor with mochi rice balls and a few sprinkles of mini chocolate chips (as you can see). For a location near you Menchie's, click here.

Next up is Pinkberry. When this place first opened up in our mall, the lines were crazy. The lines have now since died down but I may have to say, this place is still my favorite. Though it is not self serve, you do get to choose from different flavors and toppings. Their fro-yo's are more on the tart side and they charge according to cup size and the number of toppings. I love their clean, simple look.

Pinkberry's topping bar where you can choose what you want. My husband always gets Fruity Pebbles on his...why, I don't think I will ever understand.

I decided to try their new seasonal concoction, Salted Caramel with Crepe Flakes. This is Caramel fro-yo with tiny little brown sugar infused salt sprinkled on top. It was very good! It was a perfect blend of sweet and salty. Too bad it is only seasonal. For a location near you Pinkberry, click here!

The last place my husband and I enjoy is Golden Spoon. This is similar to Pinkberry where you choose the cup size, flavor and toppings. It is not self serve. Their fro-yo's are on the creamy side as well but they usually serve a very generous portion and you can get 2 flavor twists. The adding touch to the dessert is their famous golden spoon (which is plastic but still looks very cool). For a location near you, Golden Spoon click here!

And if eating out at these frozen yogurt chains starts draining your wallet, there's always McDonald's ice cream cones and sundaes. Another one of our favorites!