Red Mango Instead of Ice Cream

Frozen yogurt joints are popping up all over place in Los Angeles, the most ubiquitous being Pinkberry, but joining Pinkberry in Westwood is Red Mango, the newest fro-yo shop to hit that neighborhood. It opened last month, but I didn't get to it until last Friday when I nipped in for a frozen treat after catching No Reservations at the Mann Bruin across the street.

Now I'm not going to take sides on the frozen yogurt fight between Pinkberry and Red Mango, suffice to say that each is the other's biggest competition, but I will discuss the difference in their "original" plain frozen yogurt. Pinkberry's fro-yo has an icier consistency than Red Mango's, which is smoother in texture and richer in taste. I was hard press to distinguish it from regular, full on ice cream just from mouth feel, although its tart flavor gave it away as yogurt.

The live and let live part of me feels that there's room enough in world—and in people's stomachs—for both fro-yo chains to be around for sometime. Although I was a skeptic last year, now I thing the the frozen yogurt craze is back, revived from the 1980's, and alive and thriving in LA. And the apologist in me can comfortably say I like both on their own merits, light and refreshing Pinkberry and the richer Red Mango. But if you want to feel like you're eating ice cream without the calories then hit up Red Mango the next time you're craving something cool and creamy. And I just might there, too, doing the same, because the adult that I am should be watching all the sugar and fat I eat more than I do.


Red Mango
10942 Weyburn Ave.
Los Angeles, CA 90025
Ph: 310-464-8526
www.redmangousa.com

Note: More shops are coming soon to LA, the OC, and San Diego, CA, as well as Las Vegas, NV, New York City, and Washington State.

Pinkberry on the Brain

For the past 2 weeks, the few friends I've come in contact with either on the phone or over lunch have all asked me one question: have I been to Pinkberry?

Unbeknown to me, there seems to be frozen yogurt revival in Los Angeles--one friend thinks this "fro-yo" craze could potentially sweep the country. It might be the 1980's all over again when TCBY appeared in strip malls everywhere. Let me know if a Pinkberry shows up in your neighborhood—currently, they have shops in LA and NYC.

Well, regardless of frozen yogurt's current popularity, perceived of otherwise, I must confess I'm rather ambivalent of this form of frozen desert. Those who know me well in food know I'm completely committed to ice cream. I love the creamy goodness of ice cream and wouldn't think of being unfaithful to it with other forms of frozen treats that seek to reduce its sweet richness with a lighter, lower calorie alternative.

But I'm also a person who likes plain yogurt with fruit and granola for breakfast, and I'm open-minded enough to try to its frozen equivalent, not as an ice cream replacement, but as a snack in its own right.

So, A. and I went to Pinkberry for Friday lunch—an end of the workweek treat. I got a medium-size cup of plain frozen yogurt with 3 toppings. The toppings I chose were blueberries, blackberries, and granola—my tried-n-true yogurt topping combo. A. got the same thing, but picked 3 fruit toppings: kiwi, mango, and blueberries. (Pinkberry also has green tea frozen yogurt.)

Flavor-wise, I found Pinkberry’s yogurt pleasantly tart—how I like my yogurt, soft or frozen, to taste. Its texture was smooth; while icy, it wasn’t grainy. The fruit toppings were generous applied, which I appreciated, especially with berries that tend to be a pricier fruit. All in all, it was light and refreshing, satisfying without being filling. Pinkberry wasn’t ice cream, but it was still good in its own way.



Pinkberry has 5 locations in the Los Angeles Area.

868 Huntley Dr.
West Hollywood

7123 Melrose Ave.
Melrose & La Brea

6th & Berendo
Koreatown

10911 Lindbrook Blvd.
Westwood

12044 ½ Ventura Blvd.
Studio City

www.pinkberry.com