Yoku Yoku

Pumpkin Pie and Peanut Butter: Happiness in a Cup

Yoku Yoku
11146 Palms Blvd
Los Angeles, CA 90034
(310) 391-0571

Yoku Yoku

I went here for the first time about two weeks ago. I have fallen in love. It has become my new favorite frozen yogurt place. As you can see below, the pros outweigh the cons which makes this place rank very high. I was tempted not to write about it because I wanted to keep it my little secret, but then I decided I wanted to share it with the world ten people.

The cons
-Kinda far from where I live; farther than Bigg Chill (it’s practically in Culver City)
-Completely furnished with the predictable “Ikea” style

The pros
-Close to a Trader Joe’s (2 birds, 1 stone)
-Not as busy as Bigg Chill
-Takes credit cards ($5 minimum, so you HAVE to get a large with toppings)
-Parking lot is not too crowded or overwhelming (like Bigg Chill)
-You’re practically in Culver City so you might as well go get a glass of wine at Bottle Rock
-Pretty wide selection of flavors (tart, chocolate, vanilla, cookies and cream, peanut butter, specials for the week)
-Menu offers nutritional information (allowing me to know that I am eating way too much)

I am a simple girl and ordered Peanut Butter and Chocolate. No toppings necessary, even though they had mochi. Peanut butter is my favorite flavor ever and Yoku Yoku’s seems to have the best recipe for it. So if you too enjoy Peanut Butter frozen yogurt, you should go try it. Or if you just like frozen yogurt, check it out.

Yoku Yoku
11146 Palms Blvd
Los Angeles, CA 90034
(310) 391-0571

Red Mango

Stopped by Red Mango last week to see if it was in anyway like Blue Mango. Turns out the answer is No, it’s not like Blue Mango at all. Instead, it is exactly like Pinkberry. Red Mango has two flavors: Plain Tart and Green Tea. They have the standard toppings of fruits and cereals. I chose the Twist of Tart and Green Tea with mochi. It tasted so similar to Pinkberry that I would probably have to try them side by side to distinguish the real differences. I think that Red Mango might be less tart as Pinkberry, though. Red Mango claims that their yogurt is fat-free, gluten-free, and certified Kosher. If there were one closer to me (there are only 10 total located in Southern California), I would place it in the yogurt rotation more often to add “variety.” If you need your yogurt fix and enjoy the taste of Pinkberry, then there is a high chance that you will also like Red Mango.

Red Mango
3101 Main St.
Santa Monica, CA 90405
Phone: 310 664 9600
Hours: noon-11pm
Other Locations

Yogen Früz

A new frozen yogurt chain (from Canada) has entered Los Angeles! Unfortunately, it is located in Beverly Hills. It is for this reason that I waited until Sunday evening to go check it out. The company has been around since 1986 and plans to open 1,000 more stores across the nation over the next decade.The place is small with very limited seating. Their big “thing” is blending the yogurt and the fruit via machine, which isn’t anything new (Humphrey Yogart has the same type of machine for their mixing). But, the majority of their yogurt is prepackaged and individually wrapped like popsicles. At this point in time they have one soft serve flavor and that is called Probiotic Soft Serve on their website, which means that it is the same as Original/Plain/Tart.

I was very interested in the packaged yogurt. The have a variety of package flavors: lowfat vanilla, lowfat chocolate, nonfat vanilla, and nonfat no sugar vanilla (the green packages in the picture). On the wall they have a picture of the Matcha Green Tea Blend. I chose that in Lowfat Vanilla flavor with some mochi topping. They use actual matcha green tea powder and blend it with the yogurt. The yogurt was not as sweet as I am used to, but it certainly was creamy. I am unsure how I feel about the matcha green tea powder because it made the not-sweet yogurt taste even less sweet by adding a bitter component. I am guessing that the workers there have not learned to master the yogurt blending yet and this is why the taste isn’t perfect nor is the cup aesthetically pleasing. The mochi pieces were also not very sweet and less gummy than most other yogurt places; completely different in taste and texture than any other yogurt store’s.

In the end, it was new and interesting. I am sure people will enjoy it and it will become popular especially as an alternative to other yogurts. But personally, I will give it time to work out it’s kinks before I go back.

Yogen Früz
9401 Brighton Way
Beverly Hills, CA 90210

Tutto Tutti

I recently read on the LAist that Tutto Tutti on Melrose is the best frozen yogurt in Los Angeles. Those are some brave words! Naturally, I had to check this place out. All their yogurt is organic and from the pyramids of Horizon Organic Nonfat Yogurt tubs (which you can kind of see in the picture) I am guessing that is the yogurt they use. They do not have a website up yet, but here is what I gathered from just being there.

They have six flavors:

1. Virgin - Plain Organic Yogurt

2. Double Wonder - Sea Salt and Caramel mixed in with Plain Organic Yogurt

3. Seven - 7 Healthy Whole Grains Blended with Plain Organic Yogurt

4. Super Bee - Ginseng, honey infused in with Plain Organic Yogurt

5. Freckle Snow White - Black Sesame Seeds and Plain Organic Yogurt

6. White Velvet - Vanilla Organic Yogurt

Along with their unique flavors they also have different toppings: Balsamic Raspberry Reduction, Bittersweet Chocolate Sauce, Balsamic Berries, Banana Nut Berry, Candied Walnuts, and probably a few more that I don’t not remember. No kiddie cups here, one size fits all. The yogurt starts at $4.50. If you add 1 “layer” (topping) you add 1.00 to your total. If you add 2 “layers”, you add 1.50 to your total. If you add 3 “layers” you add 2.00 dollars to your total. Yes, they take credit cards! But, you can’t tip on the receipt, if you’re into that sort of thing.

I sampled and enjoyed all flavors, but one really stood out for me. Call me boring, but I ordered the White Velvet with Balsamic Raspberry Reduction and Banana Nut Berry (more of just Bananas and nuts). The White Velvet is creamy and thick. Out of all the yogurt places I have tasted, this is on the more custard side of textures (which I love). The vanilla is sweet and subtle, but stands out (especially in comparison to the other flavors made with plain yogurt). I greatly enjoyed the balsamic raspberry reduction and thought it worked well with both the bananas and the yogurt. I hope to go back again. It is organic, delicious, and they have a parking lot! Don’t be fooled though, there are approximately 8 parking spots with 10 minute only signs AND the lot is shared with a California Chicken Cafe. So it might be one of those just go at night when street parking is free places. They also have organic coffee, but I forgot to look at that menu because I was so excited about frozen yogurt. In the end, I cannot say that it is the best frozen yogurt in Los Angeles, but I can say it certainly does rank high in my book. It’s worth checking out.

Tutto Tutti
6803 Melrose Ave
Los Angeles, CA 90038

Get Directions(323) 939-9424

Blue Mango

I recently stopped by Blue Mango on Sunset with my roommate. It is bright, blue, and clean inside and there was no line because it was a weekday afternoon. I noticed immediately that there was a large variety of both frozen yogurt flavors and toppings.

The flavors, which are all kosher (UO-D), are: Plain Tart, Blue Mango (which is their crazy bright blue colored tart yogurt), Peanut Butter, Vanilla, Chocolate, Strawberry, Coffee, and a Flavor of the Day.

The toppings available are: carob chips, yogurt chips, butterscotch chips, mini m&ms, white chocolate chips, chocolate chips, reeses chips, sprinkles, gummy bears, mochi, oreos, pecans, cashews, peanuts, sliced almond, hazel, walnuts, pistachios, strawberries, pear, kiwi, blueberry, mango, peach, blackberry, lychee, raspberry, pineapple, peanut butter crunch, apple jacks, captain crunch, fruity pebbles, honey bunches, coco pebbles, granola, and coconut. So many decisions!

I sampled the Blue Mango flavor, but the novelty of the neon blue colored tart yogurt was not enough. Instead, I ordered Peanut Butter with Mochi and Blueberry. I know it sounds a little weird, but it was delightful. The peanut butter yogurt was not too creamy but not too icy, nor was it a dominating flavor to the toppings. I love mochi/rice cakes and am thankful they do not sell it at stores (or I don’t know what stores they sell it at) because I would snack on it all the time. I enjoyed the yogurt, but the location is too far away for me. Their brochure says they validate 30 minute parking at 1114 Hilldale Street from 11am-8pm and then at 8961 Sunset Blvd from 8pm to close. However, I don’t know if that means free. They also take credit cards!

Blue Mango
8961 Sunset Blvd
West Hollywood, CA 90069

Get Directions(213) 590-4545

Hours:
Sunday - Wednesday: 11am-12am
Thursday - Saturday: 11am-2am

Frogo Waffles!

Last week I stopped by Frogo to see if they had any new flavors. Alas, they only had their usual (Tart, Green Tea, Death By Chocolate, White Chocolate Mousse, and Wild Mountain Strawberry). I ordered my favorite: White Chocolate Mousse with M&Ms. I found out that their yogurt is made from all natural fructose instead of high fructose corn syrup. So that’s good news; the less high fructose corn syrup in life, the better! I also learned that they just added waffles to their menu. The people behind the counter were kind enough to give me a sample too. I chose Wild Mountain Strawberry to pair with my warm waffle which was then topped with strawberries, syrups, and powdered sugar. I never combine yogurt/ice cream with cookies/cakes/waffles, so the warm waffle and fruity yogurt teamed up to be a pleasant treat.

Frogo
1300 Wilshire Blvd
Santa Monica, CA 90403

Get Directions(310) 395-6794