TCBY-style frozen yogurt in the Loop?

Hi all - I'm new here and hope you can help me!

For weeks I have been craving soft-serve frozen yogurt - not the trendy premium Berry Chill/Red Mango kind, but the sweet, old-school, doesn't-really-taste-like-yogurt TCBY kind that comes in flavors like amaretto and white chocolate mousse. (Vanilla's okay if worse comes to worst.) I'm wondering if there's somewhere I can get it downtown, preferably within walking distance of the Quincy el stop? It seems like there has to be some yogurt stand somewhere in the lobby of an office building, but my search has come up short.

Thanks in advance!

Baskin Robbins has a similarly crappy product they call "vanilla soft serve". They seem to make a conscious effort to leave the name at that, because to call this artificial, barely edible concoction "ice cream" or "yogurt" might expose them to a lawsuit. You can find several BR locations in the loop.

Kennyz wrote:Baskin Robbins has a similarly crappy product they call "vanilla soft serve". They seem to make a conscious effort to leave the name at that, because to call this artificial, barely edible concoction "ice cream" or "yogurt" might expose them to a lawsuit. You can find several BR locations in the loop.

I'm no fan of soft-serv, but I actually found B-R's version of vanilla soft-serv more palatable than Dairy Queen's, which tastes to me like nothing but chemicals. Like, I don't even get a taste that's reminiscent of dairy from the DQ product, raising the possibility that they're not even going for that! Whereas with the B-R, I could sense at least that "some kind of dairy product" was what the soft-serv was masquerading as.

riddlemay,

Unfortunately, I too must admit that I have tried both products (haven't yet convinced 10 year old nephew that there's better stuff to be had). I agree with your assessment. DQ's product tastes like the soap they use at the car wash. BR's is bad, but not that bad.

To clarify: I'd prefer something low-fat or fat free. Unfortunately it doesn't look like DQ or BR fit the bill. (McDonald's soft-serve, it appears, is slightly better...)

They have Colombo frozen yogurt at the food court with the McDonald's at Clark and Lake. It's on the second floor and called Yogurt and More or something similar. Last time I was there, they had Alpine Strawberry. Double Dutch Chocolate and Peanut Butter flavors (which you can have swirled). Probably a ten-minute walk from Quincy.

You could try the fro-yo at Wow Bao at the corner of Van Buren and Financial Pl. in the 175 W. Jackson building.

It's plain vanilla and you can get a number of fruit or nut toppings and one of three syrups (ginger, tangerine, or pomegranate-hibiscus)

I do not know the nutritional info, it's not online, but they might know in-store.

Best,
Michael

I could have sworn that DQ makes a fat-free fro yo. Check their website.
For what it's worth there is a DQ in the County Building on Washington in the basement.

Also, does Spa Cafe on Monroe have Fro Yo??
That seems like something they might carry.
Or the new Freshii or UFood Grill. Both are supposed to be low fat/cal dining places.

Please post your findings!

Fresh Choice in the 233 N. Michigan building has frozen yogurt.

There is a frozen yogurt shop under the building at 55 E. Monroe St.

under 55
55E. Monroe St.
Chicago, IL

They usually have four different fat free flavors. I think if you get a combo lunch, one comes included with your meal, or you can just buy it on its own.

My fro-yo craving has always been satisfied by Macy's food court on their lower level. It's low fat/low calorie...AND you can get fruit toppings on it! Enjoy!

Chloe54 wrote:I could have sworn that DQ makes a fat-free fro yo. Check their website.
For what it's worth there is a DQ in the County Building on Washington in the basement.

Also, does Spa Cafe on Monroe have Fro Yo??
That seems like something they might carry.
Or the new Freshii or UFood Grill. Both are supposed to be low fat/cal dining places.

Please post your findings!

uFood does have low cal frozen yogurt, in vanilla, raspberry, or swirl. They have a variety of toppings (sadly, like Wow Bao not including any chocolate products). The yogurt was quite good, but I found the toppings rather lacking for the price. They charge $1 for the first topping, which consisted of 8 and a half raspberries.

Also, last time I was at the Spa Cafe (a few months ago), they did not have frozen yogurt. While some DQs do carry it, the one on Washington has vanilla soft-serve ice cream only. However, there is a place next to the DQ (I forget the name) which has very good chocolate and vanilla frozen yogurt.