By Norb Garrett and Tiffany Young
San Clemente Times
As spring turns to summer, frozen treat options abound
It’s that time of year again—yup, it’s finally warming up, which means it’s time to make those regular stops at your local ice cream/frozen yogurt store. San Clemente’s added yet another frozen yogurt store since last summer—Swirlz Frozen Yogurt opened in Talega Village Center in December—and another frozen yogurt store promises to open sometime soon on Avenida Del Mar in downtown (one did close this year—Goodie’s Frozen Yogurt). So, choices are plenty—as are the tastes.
To aid your cravings, we’ve pulled together a list of the shops in town offering ice cream or yogurt as their primary draw. There are other spots that don’t specialize in frozen treats but have some smokin’ deals (Rite Aid’s ice cream bar comes to mind, as does Kelly’s selection of Dreyer’s ice cream), but for the purposes of this story, we focused entirely on the shops who’ll be doing battle for your Cold War dollars this summer:
Baskin-Robbins
104 N. El Camino Real, 949.492.2440, www.baskinrobbins.com
The familiar ice cream legend has occupied the corner spot at the top of Avenida Del Mar at the intersection of El Camino Real for 32 years, a testament to the city’s love for the iconic American frozen treat hotspot. With its famous 31 Flavors pitch and favorite flavors such as Mint Chocolate Chip and Rocky Road, Baskin-Robbins is a San Clemente favorite. Owner Nick Ragenovich purchased the store a year and a half ago and can often be found behind the counter scooping up ice creams for eager customers. While Baskin-Robbins has added a number of trendy goodies such as smoothies, it stays pretty true to its roots with its scooped cones and cups, ice cream cakes and shakes, although it does offer soft-serve ice cream, too. Ragenovich said that the store also offers some frozen yogurts, but only in scoop form. Don’t miss $1 scoop night on Tuesday nights from 6 p.m. til closing.
Hours: Monday–Thursday, 11 a.m.–9:30 p.m.; Friday, 11 a.m.–10:30 p.m.; Saturday, 10 a.m.–10:30 p.m.; Sunday, 10 a.m.–9:30 p.m.
—NG
Cold Stone Creamery
638 Camino de los Mares D2-A, 949.661.6425, www.coldstonecreamery.com
Look to Cold Stone Creamery for the ultimate indulgent frozen concoctions, from their famous ice cream and shakes to cakes and smoothies—smoothness of texture and creaminess of flavor are trademarks. The “Cold Stone” in the name refers to the frozen granite stone upon which servers mix candy and fruits into the ice cream at each patron’s request, blending the sweets into the dessert so it feels like custom ice cream, not just a separate topping. The philosophy of the franchise is a dream because the super premium ice cream is made fresh every day at each of its locations, not shipped from some remote and faraway destination. For the health-conscious individual, there are non-fat and no sugar added varieties, fruity fresh sorbets, and non-dairy smoothies. Cold Stone also guarantees that walking in is a cheerful experience, particularly their promise that the entire staff will sing you a song impromptu if you gift their tip jar.
Hours: Sunday–Thursday; 11:30 a.m.-9:45 p.m.; Friday–Saturday, 11: 30 a.m.–10 p.m.
—TY
Frugurt
2720 Camino Capistrano, 949.498.8949
The name Frugurt—a portmanteau of the words “fruit” and “yogurt”—aptly describes the treats served here. Frugurt offers self-serve frozen yogurt priced by weight with over 36 choices of toppings. There are four flavors to choose from; vanilla, chocolate, fat free/sugar free tart and one rotating fruit flavor. Frugurt also offers fresh fruit smoothies and breakfast and lunch items including paninis. Owner Jackie Navarian, who opened the store this past November, just announced a Tuesday night special: 6 p.m. to 7 p.m. $0.29 per ounce!
Hours: 8 a.m.–8 p.m. seven days a week
—Andrea Swayne
Golden Spoon
800 Avenida Pico, 949.498.3227, www.goldenspoon.com
Golden Spoon Frozen Yogurt is a highly recognizable Orange County presence, and its outpost in San Clemente is prospering from steady business. With an ever-expanding customer base, this franchise has established that it is here to stay. Owner Greg Frock opened his first franchise 15 years ago in Dana Point, opened the San Clemente spot four years ago and recently opened a third spot in San Juan Capistrano.
“I love it. It’s been a wonderful business,” said Frock, who said his store offers 12 different flavors every day—all being non-fat with the exception of Heath Bar. “It’s a fun business because of our clientele.”
The shop boasts diversity of flavor; old favorites such as Old Fashioned Vanilla, Peanut Butter and Chocolate are always available, but the remaining slots are filled with a long roster of rotating flavors that change often. This service model, part of Golden Spoon’s long-standing and growing success, means that everyone can always find the means to get what they want. The Golden Spoon standard includes taking fresh skim milk and inoculating it with three live and active cultures in order to make milk into yogurt, adding secret flavorings, and freezing right before serving, ensuring the best quality of its product. Touting itself as the “Ice Cream Lover’s Frozen Yogurt,” Frock said that Golden Spoon’s secret is all about the taste. “I think it’s more pure and richer tasting.”
Hours: Sunday-Thursday: 11 a.m.-9:30 p.m.; Friday-Saturday: 11 a.m.-10 p.m.
—NG/TY
Kultured Kitchen
360 Camino de Estrella, 949.661.6755
The longest-serving yogurt joint in San Clemente, Kultured Kitchen is a treasured spot among locals. Tucked into a small strip mall-like spot on the San Clemente/Capistrano Beach border line of Camino de Estrella, Kultured Kitchen’s offering of soft-serve style frozen yogurt is somewhat limited, but the yogurt has customers returning in droves. Owner Jeff Jeong said that the store originally began serving soft-serve yogurt 27 years ago—he has owned the store for the past 14 years.
Jeong said that the hands-down favorite is the Mocha/Coconut split cup. The Raspberry is also always a favorite. The spot also has a full deli-like sandwich and soup menu, but its best known for the frozen yogurt.
Hours: Monday-Saturday: 10:30 a.m.-6 p.m.; Sunday: 11 a.m.-5 p.m.
—NG
Le Matin Ice Cream & Coffee
624 Avenida Del Mar
Located just across the street from the San Clemente Pier, this small ice cream shop is right next door to Cassano’s Pizza—making for a perfect dinner/dessert combo. The selection is limited, and information even more difficult. Efforts to pry basic info out of the guy working the counter proved to be absolutely worthless; he was convinced we were trying to sell him something. Suffice it to say there are a handful of ice creams to choose from, but its location makes it a great post-beach stop on the way home. If you happen to know the owner, please tell him/her we tried…
Hours: Who knows.
—NG
Swirlz Frozen Yogurt
821 Via Suerte, 949.366.6888, www.swirlzfrozenyogurt.com
Ever since San Clemente’s newest Fro-Yo spot opened December 6, 2008, it has been a favorite of the Talega crowd. Located in the Talega Village Center next to a handful of restaurants, Swirlz was opened by Mercedes Gleich and partners—just three years after she and her husband opened the Chronic Tacos franchise on Avenida Pico. “We love San Clemente,” said Gleich, who moved to town about a year and a half ago with her husband and their two young children. “We used to live out in Ladera.”
It was while in Ladera that she sampled her first Swirlz frozen yogurt and fell in love with the taste—in fact the franchise started in Ladera. Featuring a large selection of soft-serve styled yogurts, Gleich said that the store always features at least one non-dairy flavor and a no-sugar added vanilla. Another motivation for moving to San Clemente and opening a store? Get mom, Pam, a job and move her out of the Palmdale/Lancaster area and to the beach.
“It’s a great time to open a business, especially when it’s a great product,” said Gleich.
Hours: Sunday-Thursday: 11 a.m.-9 p.m.; Friday-Saturday: 11 a.m.-10 p.m.
—NG
Velvet Yogurt
120 S. El Camino Real, 949.276.4625, www.velvetyogurt.com
This downtown, centrally located shop is one of the newest additions to San Clemente’s frozen yogurt selection, and opened its doors just last summer. Owner Faye Clapp commented that Velvet Yogurt is designed to be a “trendy and modern place for a healthy indulgence,” and it’s the “coffee shop character” of the location that makes all the difference. Indecisive customers will be glad to have the freedom of choice, able to devise their desired combinations from 12 flavors (both tart and sweet options available, for those who swear by one or the other) and a range of fresh toppings with which to complement their choices. The self-serve aspect means that quantity is always at the customers’ choosing, but self-control is difficult at Happy Hour (every Friday from 3 p.m.–5 p.m.), during which all orders are half-off. Another plus: all cups and spoons are 100-percent biodegradable, proving that Velvet Yogurt is a “healthy alternative” in more ways than one.
Hours: Monday-Thursday: 11 a.m.-11 p.m.; Saturday-Sunday: 11 a.m.-11 p.m.
—TY
WHAT IS FROZEN YOGURT?
By Tiffany Young
Frozen yogurt as we know it today was first introduced to a 1970’s crowd that bemoaned the fact that it tasted too much like regular yogurt. But frozen dessert creators didn’t give up on their model, and they continued to refine and improve their product. Frozen yogurt reappeared in the 1980’s, this time in response to past woes: the yogurt was treated with a makeover in sweetness in order to gain ice cream-followers (and diversity of flavor) yet retain the healthy benefits of frozen yogurt. The history of the dessert has continued to evolve, and has enjoyed a recent upswing in demand thanks to, ironically, a back to basics approach. Frozen yogurt today is guided by the hallmarks of the original product: tart flavors, low calories, and live and active cultures. Milk is a primary ingredient, and the non-fat, low-fat, or regular variations we look for in yogurt shops depend on milkfat content. Water is the liquid element that shifts to a partially solid state (curiously, frozen yogurt is never technically frozen, but gets its consistency from ice crystals), and air provides the volume and pleasantly smooth texture. In addition to sugars and extracts, taste comes from strains of the lactobacillus bacteria that make up 1% of our yogurt cups and account for such unmistakable tartness. Frozen yogurt begins as a liquid—its components are processed, pasteurized, inoculated with cultures, and flavored—that is then agitated while frozen in order to create a finished product that resists melting and results in the distinct flavors that we all know and love. Traditional or self-serve, sour or sweet, two flavors or twelve, the “Fro-Yo” scene today is populated by a slew of ever-expanding yogurt chains offering a multitude of different options proving that one need not look far for an irresistibly refreshing frozen treat.
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