The Midwestern Frozen Yogurt Blog goes international!

I recently spent a month alone in southeast Asia and didn't have to go entirely without tart frozen yogurt during my travels. Although it was very much against my nature, I didn't research anything in advance of arriving, including yogurt. I had no itinerary, no reservations, no tickets....If I happened upon a yogurt shop, I was thrilled, but I didn't go seeking any out. Therefore, Malaysia and Vietnam (both short stops - the former, fortunately; the latter, regrettably) aren't represented in this post.

Bangkok, Thailand

Red Mango
Siam Square and Central World




















No berries and a plethora of gummy tapioca offerings meant I chose kiwi, mango, and pineapple as my toppings. The yogurt was the same as Red Mango's in New York City - that's international consistency for you!

Yogen Fruz
Central World

















Located inside a Swensen's Ice Cream Parlour, Yogen Fruz is the only merchant I have come across that blends fruit into the yogurt. Because of this, their fruit is frozen, and it isn't recommended you ask them to put it on top of your yogurt, which is why I opted for my order to be unadorned. The yogurt was very creamy and only slightly tart. I found myself wishing I had gone back to Red Mango instead.

Singapore

Yoguru
Raffles City Mall



















Yoguru was by far my favorite yogurt place in all of southeast Asia. The plain flavor (they also had pomegranate) was tart, not sweet, and had a delicious icy whipped texture. Although I have always been an advocate of fruit-only toppings, I had such a strange hankering for cereal while traveling that I chose Fruit Loops in addition to strawberries. This combination was perfection after one of my dosa feasts in Little India.

J. Co
Raffles City Mall

















J. Co is a doughnut shop steps away from Yoguru, and I can only hope their signature product is better than their J COOL Yogurt. Their excellent website touts J COOL as being 97% fat free, which explains the creaminess but not the chemical aftertaste. I recall less than a dozen topping possibilities but was delighted to see strawberries, until closer inspection showed little bits of fruit suspended in sickeningly sweet syrup. I took two bites, threw it away, and sashayed myself over to Yoguru. There apparently are also J. Co locations in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia.

Siem Reap, Cambodia

Fruit N Toot

















To access this particular location of Fruit N Toot I visited, you have to enter a 7-11 type convenience market and ascend a flight of steps. (My directions are fuzzy - it's right next to the hotel I stayed in, which was gloriously close to Bar Street. I was too busy partying to take detailed field notes.) The space was chic - a long white banquette spanned one wall, and the view was spectacular. Unfortunately the three flavors of yogurt available were taro, pineapple, and mango - all very sweet and not at all tart. Although the topping selection was wide, the Fruit Loops were definitely stale. If the 2008 presidential election doesn't turn out as I hope and we pack up for Cambodia, I doubt I'll visit Fruit N Toot very much.