A Cool, Sweet Delight
One day after having lunch at Carmela's Caffe, I decided to walk a few doors down in the Erin Way Shopping Center to YoLo Frozen Yogurt, a place that many of my friends have raved about for the past few months. Not familiar with the place, I didn't know what to expect. The place is very spacious, with the dining area about 20 ft. x 30 ft. (of course, this is a VERY rough guess).
I believe the reason that there is so much space is because the yogurt and toppings "line" is self-serve, with the yogurt being kept in dispensers that the customer uses to pour into the paper bowls provided. It was a little confusing at first, for I didn't notice the dispensers and walked past them, however after getting some Animal Crackers from the toppings counter, I saw other customers getting yogurt so I went back and did the same. After looking over my choices, I decided to get the Cookies 'n Cream in order to stay within the "dessert" theme, and got an entire bowl of it (because YoLo charges its yogurt and toppings by the pound, different yogurt flavors can be mixed together, for those who want to experiment like I did later). After looking over the various candies, cereals, cookies and fruits displayed on the toppings counter, I topped my yogurt off with the aforementioned Animal Crackers, something simply called "yogurt topping" which are little white sugar candy beads, a strawberry and a blackberry. With a name like "Cookies 'n Cream", the yogurt's taste lived up to it's name, for it tasted like a combination of cookie dough and whipped cream. Along with the toppings (sans blackberry), the combined taste was wonderful and it really hit the spot, especially after eating a huge panini with potato chips and a beer. After my initial experience at YoLo's East Memphis location, I decided to visit their Midtown location to see if the great experience I had was consistent.
Upon visiting YoLo's Midtown location, at Cooper St. and Madison Ave., I noticed the place has a similar vibe as its East Memphis counterpart, although it is somewhat smaller. It appeared that the Midtown location has the same yogurt flavors as the one I visited earlier, although some of them weren't available when I tried to dispense them. I eventually went Neapolitan, for I got a combination of vanilla, chocolate and strawberry, plus I added another flavor, California Tart. For my toppings, I chose rainbow 
sprinkles and ice cream cone chips, which seemed to work well with my yogurt blend. In all, the yogurt and toppings tasted great, and I will definitely try again. This location also serves gelato and has a bakery (Lady Bugg Bakery), so for those who desire other dessert options, YoLo might have it covered. With the Midtown location situated next to Lenny's, the two eateries could be a great one-two punch for anyone looking for a complete dining experience. If you're hungering for Italian, Bari Ristorante is also close by (for East Memphis diners, juxtapose Carmela's/Ciao Bella for Bari).UPDATE: Yolo's Midtown location has closed, replaced by Hopdoddy Burger Bar.
After experiencing both locations, my assessment of YoLo is positive, for the yogurts I had were delicious and a nice alternative to traditional ice cream (will eventually travel to the Collierville location, but for now I will assume that it is the same as the other two locations). With the various flavors and toppings (made from locally produced ingredients), most will surely find something they like and will likely be satisfied with it. I hope that YoLo has continued success, and I intend to make many visits there in the future.Website: www.yolofroyo.com
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