People looking for a fresh treat during the smoldering days of summer heat have lately developed a new obsession: frozen yogurt.Self-serve frozen yogurt bars have been consistently popping up throughout Baton Rouge, and the community is taking notice.Local business owners are jumping on the snack wagon to join the frozen yogurt craze, following the lead of national chains like TCBY and Menchie’s Frozen Yogurt, as well as Baton Rouge staple Counter Culture. Marlana DiVincenti, University alumna and owner of recently opened Splendido! Frozen Yogurt Bar on Highland Road, said she became obsessed with frozen yogurt after visiting places that serve it in larger cities like Dallas.        “I love the do-it-yourself quality,” DiVincenti said. “You can get as much or as little as you want, and you can top it with just about anything.”Local frozen yogurt bars like Splendido! offer multiple flavors of self-serve yogurt such as cookies and cream, peanut butter and raspberry tart that can be topped with a wide sampling of candies, fruits, nuts and other delectables. The cold treat, commonly abbreviated as “fro-yo” or “frogurt,” also provides a feature that most ice cream does not: healthiness.”Ninety percent of our yogurt is fat-free and/or sugar-free,” said Chad Hughes, co-owner of Bosco’s Frozen Yogurt on Nicholson Drive.
DiVincenti said frozen yogurt eaters can determine how healthy they’d like their snack to be with their choices of toppings.”Some people get fruit. Some people get chocolate,” she said. “There’s no fat from the yogurt, so you get the benefit of the cultures.”Yogurt is nutritionally rich in protein, calcium, potassium and vitamins B-6 and B-12, according to WebMD.The wide selection is another aspect of the frozen treat that appeals to people looking for a quick snack.”Frozen yogurt is a fun thing to eat because you can mix and match flavors,” DiVincenti said. “Try three flavors together. Try 12.””Fro-yo” also seems to be taking the food business by storm.  Restaurants and Institutions magazine, a publication on the food-service industry, named frozen yogurt one of the “Big Menu Ideas of 2009.”Hughes, a University alumnus with a business degree, said he and his business partner are looking to franchise Bosco’s and are currently on the hunt for a second location in Baton Rouge.”[Frozen yogurt] is getting really popular,” Hughes said. “We were pretty much the first one here that was local. We’d love to take it nationwide. The sky’s the limit.”The nationwide chains are expanding in the Baton Rouge community as well.Menchie’s, which already has a location in the Mall of Louisiana, is one of several businesses currently being developed in the North Gate area near Highland Road and West State Street.The new Menchie’s location will open in the fall, according to a March 16 story by The Daily Reveille.Menchie’s currently has 36 locations across 11 states, according to its website.The chain also has 27 locations currently in development to open, which will expand the store to 15 states.Students are taking notice of the increased popularity of yogurt bars, especially as the hot summer months settle in.”I’m in the mood for ice cream all the time,” said Stella O’Rouke, communication studies senior. “I eat frozen yogurt because it’s healthier. It’s also softer than ice cream.”–
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