4 posts tagged “pinkberry”
My last blog on the new yougurt phenomenon was about a month ago, but now with a new competitor in town I thought it would be my job to spread the word on the newest Pinkberry competitor, Kiwiberri.
Kiwiberri just opened on 3rd and La Cienega 2 weeks ago. They seem to be doing well. The interior design is similar to Pinkberry, but it felt a little less Apple-store like and a little more like TCBY. The price was cheaper than Pinkberry, by $1-$4 dollars depending on your order. the yogurt was...well we though tit was kinda gross. It felt like a cheap version of Pinkberry yogurt. It melted faster, so you were left with yogurt sitting in a little pool of water. It must have more water in its recipe than the Pinkberry yogurt. The texture was more icey, less creamy.
The one bonus was that they gave us a lot of toppings. My husband got about $2.00 worth of fresh blueberries plus coconut and almonds in his $5.00 large Green Tea yogurt w/3 toppings. I got my usual with a twist, Regular yogurt w/mangos, blueberries and Go-Lean (usually opt for the granola or almonds).
So after all of the yogurt tasting here is my ranking:
1st Pinkberry
2nd Cake House (Korean Galleria, Koreatown @ Olympic)
3rd Fiore (Little Tokyo)
4th Kiwiberri (Beverly Hills)
It's worth the extra trip and a little extra money to get the real deal. Check out Triplecreme who shares the same thoughts on these competitors. Especilly now that Pinkberry has more stores open, maybe it wont be so packed all the time.
What's going on here and why am I suddenly the yogurt specialist?! (not that I mind really)
We found another Pinkberry competitor located in the Galleria on Olympic in Koreatown. Galleria Cake House, which was been written up for it's sophisticated desserts and finely made confections, has a new yogurt machine thats pumping out the same tart frozen yogurt. They also have a variety of fresh fruits to add to you yogurt, similar to Pinkberry. It doesn't come as a surprise that the yogurt is popping up in the Korean Galleria as this new yogurt phenomenon is coming from Korean where the Red Mango and Ice Berry yogurt and shave ice dessert houses have been a hit in Korea and can be found all over the place.
My Review:
I liked the Galleria Cake House yogurt about the same as Pinkberry, much better than Fiore (who's yogurt is more sweet with less character). The main difference between Cake House yogurt and Pinkberry was in the texture and temperature. Cake House yogurt was a little more icey and less creamy. I think it was served at a cooler temperature. While the yogurt is good, it definiely does not have the same effect buying this tastey treat at the Galleria bakery along the walkway from the Korean market to the parking structure. While I did enjoy spending only $2.50, I missed the ambiance.
Mochi and I just went down to Little Tokyo and there is a new yogurt "Fiore Yogurt" place that looks like its going head-to-head with Pinkberry that just opened up in the Japanese Village Plaza Mall. The store is a subsidiary of the Todai buffet chain, and is apparently planning to open stores in Westwood and Newport.
My Review:
The yogurt wasn't quite as good, it didn't have that strong sour taste like Pinkberry does (they also seemed to skimp on the toppings compared to the blueberries, mangos and almonds I might have gotten at PB). Same motto - promoting healthy lifestyles through the finest, all-natural non-fat ingredients - only there's not a 30 minute wait here. We split a med. original w/ my fav 3 toppings and it came out a few bucks less than it might have at PB, which is nice. For now I think I'd still choose PB over Fiore, long line and all. The wait gives me a chance to people watch, last time I saw some hot Marc Jacobs bags and a semi-celebrity!
Mochi and I have been going to Pinkberry in West hollywood for the last couple months after his sister recommended it to us. This place is awesome. The decor is modern and hip, reminiscent of an apple store in the way it is brightly lit with very minimailstic. The WeHo store is pretty small and I do admit the layout sucks for the crowds that are flocking to this place. That won't stop me from going though! We just took Katers and Dan there and we were in line for 25 minutes at 11:00PM. Yogurt madness.
My favorite: Green tea with mangos, bluberries and almonds.
Love it. Let's franchise.
