Ice cream and its relatives – custard and sherbet – co-existed peacefully until America got fat. After that, lower-fat gelato replaced sundaes; lower-calorie soft-serve replaced gelato; and smoothies replaced milkshakes.
There have always been healthier alternatives: TCBY and Tasti D-Lite surfaced in the 1980s. But now frozen yogurt means more nutritional benefits: low-fat, non-fat, no sugar added, low-carb and dairy-free. It also contains active bacteria that aid in digestive health, live cultures that may reduce the risk of certain cancers and large amounts of calcium and protein.
Yet we forget that a serving size of yogurt is four ounces, which would cost about $2 at Yogilicious before toppings, and contains about 100 calories. This is the standard “small” size at most places. But at self-serve places, customers will inadvertently serve themselves three times the suggested size. (I personally try to avoid self-serve; if I’m not careful I’d walk out with a $10 cup of yogurt.) The cups are more like the size of bowls, so the space unoccupied by yogurt is filled instead with cookie dough, cheesecake, candy bar pieces, cereal and sprinkles. You might as well have gone to Baskin-Robbins and enjoyed a scoop of Jamoca Almond Fudge in a cone.
Today, it seems like there are more frozen yogurt chains in Dallas than there are cases of the flu at the Health Center. It has been a year since Orange Cup, Yogurtland and Yogilicious exploded in the Dallas scene, and franchisers are flocking to the Metroplex. California-based Menchie’s set up a shop at Jamba Juice’s former space in Highland Park Village; I Heart Yogurt has taken over Smoothie King’s old spot on Hillcrest; FreshBerry popped up on Park Lane; and Canada’s Yogen Früz recently opened at Preston and Forest. Now, competitors Pinkberry and Red Mango are bringing more unnecessary frozen yogurt shops to Dallas, and Red Mango is moving its corporate headquarters to Uptown. I will be first in line at Red Mango when it finally opens on Lovers Lane; the original flavor is best, but pomegranate and Tangomonium are equally good.
While the Red Mango/Pinkberry rivalry spans from New York to LA, Dallas has its own fro-yo divide. While some people like their frozen yogurt to taste like ice cream, like Gooey’s or Yogilicious, I like my frozen yogurt to taste tangy and tart, like yogurt. But at Orange Cup, Red Mango and Yogen Früz, thirsty customers can opt for a yogurt smoothie.
Nevertheless, out of all Dallas yogurt outposts, I prefer Natsumi. Located on Henderson, it has gelato – with flavors like Nutella and red velvet cake – and two frozen yogurt flavors. A “small” is the perfect size, and to ensure a pretty presentation and proper topping distribution, layering comes standard: yogurt, topping, yogurt, topping. The plain flavor is tangy and tart and goes perfectly with mochi – Asian rice cake – which is my topping of choice no matter where I go.
When Henderson’s too far and I get lazy I’ll go to Menchie’s. Their peanut butter flavor is perfection and it’s fat free. Since it’s not as crowded as Yogilicious, I weigh my cup before I add fruit or mochi.
It’s been less than two years and frozen yogurt chains are popping up here like Starbucks in Manhattan. Aside from that minor annoyance, my only qualm with fro-yo is that it ruined the romance and simplicity of ice cream. What used to be a chocolate shake at the soda fountain for my mom, or a Nestle drumstick from the ice cream truck for me, has been washed away by health nuts and obesity statistics.
As kids, we used to stand with our faces pressed against the glass of the ice cream freezer, eyes wide with eagerness to dig into two scoops of mint chocolate chip decadence. I didn’t care whether the cups were biodegradable, the nutrition facts were printed out or if the ice cream was organic or gluten-free. Had my mother told me my dessert contained active, intestine-dwelling bacteria that aid in digestion, my fond memories of ice cream would spoil, turning tart and sour.
