Fro-yo from The North: Yogen Früz

There are so many frozen yogurt shops opening up these days, I’m starting to get fro-yo burnout. Isn’t the fro-yo trend over already?

It seems like every time I turn the corner, I see a different frozen yogurt shop with its bright colors, contemporary design and the promise of a creamy fro-yo cup. That’s what happened when I was at the Embarcadero in San Francisco and noticed Yogen Früz with its smiley face logo.

Yogen Früz is from Toronto, Canada, and has more than 1,100 locations around the world. Its location at the Embarcadero Center 3 is fairly new. It’s smaller than other fro-yo shops in town, and lacks any seating. So it’s buy, and buh-bye.

When I checked it out, the girl behind the counter told me Yogen Früz is known for its blended yogurt, where they take your choice of frozen fruits and blend it with the plain yogurt, creating this colored creation. I didn’t like the idea of frozen fruits because I thought it’ll just give the yogurt an icy texture, and I’m not a fan of the icy fro-yo.

So I got their regular frozen yogurt with toppings. They only have one flavor—plain. I got a small cup and topped it with mango. I forgot how much I paid for it (maybe around $3) but it was pretty average to what other fro-yo shops charge.

First off, the girl didn’t do a good job making the swirl. Doesn’t it look kind of like a flying piece of poop? I know, not the best imagery but that’s what came to mind. Then the fresh mango was not really that fresh, so it had this odd slimy texture to it.

OK, so the fruits could be better if I chose something more local and in season like blueberries or strawberries. What about the fro-yo? Well, it was milky and did have slight touches of iciness to it. I wouldn’t describe it as very creamy. In fact, it did have a feel of being almost watered down. It’s more the plain side than tart, which you get from the Korean-influenced fro-yo spots like Pinkberry and Red Mango.

Yogen Früz’s yogurt wasn’t bad, but it wasn’t great. I think this is why I currently feel burned out on fro-yo. After eating this cup, I’m starting to forget what’s the big fuss about fro-yo?

For you, my readers, I will still venture forward and test the many new fro-yo shops even if it kills me. I hope one day one fro-yo cup will reignite my love of frozen yogurt.

Moving forward, I’m going to provide a ranking of the fro-yo spots I’ve tried, listing them in the order of my favorites. Of course, the standings will change with each new shop I try. For now, here’s how it stands:

1. Red Mango, Palo Alto
2. Fraiche, Palo Alto
3. Icebee, San Francisco
4. Jubili, San Francisco
5. Yogurt Harmony, Berkeley
6. Yogen Früz, San Francisco

Yogen Früz, 3 Embarcadero Center, street level, San Francisco. PH: 415.627.9158, www.yogenfruz.com