menchies

this is a mixed review. my yogurt partner and I, felt as if the valley was running out of yogurt dispenseries, but alas, another one has joined the bandwagon. menchies has now taken over the spot where 'chugajib' had once built shop. hopefully, mechies's outcome will prove different. on a rainy sunday evening, we found ourselves approaching a brightly lit hut, along the entrance was a bonfire lit with fiberglass (don't ask how they did it, for i have not the slightest clue). menchies has surprisingly, am ample amount seating-- 3 seperate sections to be exact. out of all the yogurt shoppes we've reviewed, by far this is the place to go when seeking a place to eat your yogurt, alongside being entertained.
the picture says a thousand words, although, my personal motto is that you make your own fun. packed with 'fun,' i wish my review of the yogurt was just as positive. here we go... i had previously tried menchie's at their canyon country location, and to say the least i was not expecting much. low and behold, once again, menchies had proved to fail me! the original tart left a horrible aftertaste, similar to that of lotus except creamier. The toppings bar was disturbing, the fruit was obviously sitting there all night possibly since saturday night. Bananas are meant to be beige in color if freshly cut, however menchies' bananas were grey. The porker running the cashier seemed friendly enough however sloth-like he may have been. despite the sluggish service, the yogurt is expensive and mildly pleasing.

fruity tutti

swiftly becoming one of the most frequented yogurt dispensaries in the San Fernando Valley, me and my artist friend / fellow yogurt connoisseur decided to base our latest review on Frutti Tutti. Being located across the street from Red Mango, I’d originally believed this business would flop, but indeed the underdog has won. Like pigs to a trough the brightly lit yogurt shop had a flock of college 20 somethings, high school teeny boppers, and the occassional family all pounding out the goods. The staff is all generally young, hip, and uber-friendly. 

 

Let me start off by saying, for a frozen yogurt ‘sell by the ounce’ place, FT knows how to do it right. With a vast array of equally tasty and unique flavors to fresh toppings, ultimately this frozen yogurt connoisseur is at a loss of words. On an average I review a new business once a week, and unless the yogurt is striding along side the lines of near perfection the cup will not be scraped clean. 

i have no pictures.

Yogurt Zone.

charged with mediocrity.

by Crystal Shin

Porter Ranch, CA

As yogurt critics, we are left utterly speechless when we try something extraordinary.  When we try unacceptable and disgusting dishes we are angry and making every last attempt to scrape off what is left of the food on our taste buds. Well... Christmas is over so here I go..

I am still pondering what is worse? A completely negative review or one of true indifference?

Converted from a Maggie Moo's ice cream parlor to Yogurt Zone, this cubic zirconia of yogurt shops is located in the heart of Porter Ranch in the Tillys, Ralphs, Bestbuy plaza. Apparently this spot is overwhelmingly convenient for the people residing in the gated communities adjacent to the plaza, ergo the fact they are still in business. Their customers are made up of those who are simply not expecting much and choosing to settle for 'what ever' tasting yogurt. Basically, they are eating it just to eat it.

Mediocracy at their finest is found here at Yogurt Zone.

We were completely protocol in our reviewing procedures, Jennie Chang from UC Berkeley bought us our normal victims, and it just wasn't amazing..... nor was it horrible. The fruit was unusually fresh, but the original tart was just decent. It was tart not sweet at all, and left this weird aftertaste in my mouth similar to that of drinking whole milk. Their attempt to follow the crowd with their mosaic tiled counters, weird modern light fixtures, and random (not so great tasting) frozen yogurt flavors, the only word that comes to mind is : mediocre.

On a more constructive note, the only bit of advice which comes to mind is:  stick with ice cream, please.

I am passionate about my writing, and yogurt (obviously), but it's hard to find inspiration to write about a business who could give a rat's ass about their craft.

To be anything in between the best and the worst means you're in the middle; you can stay or go unnoticed and nobody will miss you. The only bragging rights Yogurt Zone holds is their fresh fruit toppings, and their ice cream. But they sell yogurt.... so shouldn't it be their yogurt that is great? Just some food for thought.

Snolly

so what exactly does snolly mean?

Located in the Boba Loft/Hookah Source plaza [Reseda/Nordhoff] we ventured out to try Snolly. Yes, good friends, for the first time in Yogurt Review history we have two surprises: a positive review, and a guest!
Cute. Matching the snowy theme & holiday season the majority of the cafe is white white white. Our guest was *drumroll please* Christina Choe from Biola University! (All yogurt was purchased by Christina **thank you we love you**) Putting the ammo down we asked the worker what this unusual choice of name meant, she answered Snolly=Snow+Lolly.
 Prior to tasting  the original tart (Forever Tart) I chuckled at the silly name.

not being distracted by good company or the strategically marketed 'holiday cheer' we get straight to the point. upon first taste, i was pleasantly surprised. fluffier, frothier, and sweeter than most, the original tart (Forever Tart) is unique and delicious! The toppings choices are typical but all fruit is fresh. Had they realized how rediculous the name Snolly was, the tart would have been even better! Snolly's version of  Original Tart turned out to be a cross between lollipop/candy and frozen yogurt, thus the name.


Happy Holidays!
CSUN Students recieve some sort of discount here, but we didn't bother to jot it down because, well... we are not from CSUN. 


barharhar.

LOTUS

LOTUS Frozen Yogurt [Reseda/Plummer]

Nestled in a relatively new plaza located per Reseda Blvd. and Plummer lies possibly the worst ‘Mom & Pop’ frozen yogurt dispensary in the San Fernando Valley. The first clue could have been the customer population of about 1, and that is including the depressing worker holding down the fort. As protocol we tend to test two flavors at every yogurt shop, and that is the ‘Original Tart’ and the ‘Pastachio.’ 

Although the interior decor is trendy and bright, the topping bar is in nicer wording: disconcerting. The strawberries were not ripe and the kiwis were particularly shriveled thus showing their ‘unfresh-ness.’ Sticking with the safest bet, I added mochi, captain crunch, and a very conservative spoonful of mango. To my surprise, the original tart was as unsatisfactory as the toppings. There is a common mistake many of these new frozen yogurt cafes consistently seem to make and that is making their original tart too sweet or too watered down, but Lotus has taken the cake!

I have never tasted Original Tart quite as TART as this.

And the more tart the flavor, the more the yogurt seems to resemble the taste of spoiled milk.

Yes, LOTUS, has earned the achievement of producing the most fermented, spoiled-milk tasting Original Tart available to the good citizens of the San Fernando Valley. 

Conclusion: Don’t waste your money. Go anywhere but here.

As for me, I found myself at the ice cream shoppe located inside of good old Rite-Aid. The ice cream at Rite-Aid is always a promising medication for traumatized taste buds.