Philadelphia has been invaded. But don’t be scared: we’re only referring to the recent infiltration of frozen yogurt shops, both on Penn’s campus and in the greater Philly area. With an array of choices like Sprinkles, Sweet Endings, Marathon and Phileo, who has time to contemplate yet another place satisfy their fro-yo fix?
We made the time for Yogorino, the Italian cremoso (that is, Italian-style yogurt) café on the corner of 20th and Locust. It’s the chain’s first store in the US, and it offers a European take on traditional American yogurt. This café has only one tart flavor that serves as a base to both simple toppings like fruit, chocolate and nuts as well as eclectic ones like muesli, meringue, caramelized rice puffs and various sauces. The milk used is 2% organic, and Yogorino has six probiotic (read: good for digestion) strains. Customers can order a mini ($2.95), small ($3.95), medium ($4.95) or large ($6.00) with however many toppings they’d like ($0.50 per topping).
Though it's hard not to be excited about sophisticated toppings and healthy yogurt, be warned: behind this façade of the perfect fro-yo experience is one that is actually sub-par. Although the toppings are delicious and fresh, they’re ungenerously served.
Once you’ve finished the toppings, more than half of the yogurt still remains (all the health benefits!). This problem is exacerbated by the fact that the yogurt itself is pretty bland — it tastes like milk that’s just the tiniest bit sour. Although the creamy texture is pleasing, the taste underwhelms. Yogorino’s major redeeming quality is in its interesting sauces, like dulce de leche and white chocolate wafer. These warm and sweet sauces, 12 of which rotate daily, upgrade the lackluster yogurt.
Ultimately, you shouldn’t go out of your way for Yogorino. At its high price and low return, we say stick to hitting up your already-established favorite. We’ll leave this one to the Europeans.
Yogorino 233 S. 20th St. (267) 639-5287 Don't Miss: the toppings Skip: the yogurt Bottom Line: Americans do it better.
