Fro-yo frenzy

We've been watching frozen yogurt spots pop up all around the city with reckless abandon this spring (Yoberri, Berry Chill, Starfruit, need we go on?), but the 'burbs just scored its first fro-yo chain, Red Mango, this week. The Naperville location opened Wednesday (with the Evanston one coming any day now) and we stopped in last night. The place was empty -- who else wanted to get frozen yogurt when the temps were tipping into the 40s? -- but fast-forward a few weeks from now, and there's no doubt that the location will be crazy. It's smack dab across from the Naperville Riverwalk, a perpetual hangout for skateboarding high schoolers, strolling after-dinner daters and everyone in between.

The last time I had frozen yogurt, I was probably 11 years old, standing in TCBY ordering a styrofoam cup of chocolate-peanut butter swirled yogurt topped with gummi bears. No doubt, Red Mango's version feels a ton more grown up, with just two flavors swirling out of the machines here: green tea and original (not vanilla, as the staffer behind the counter politely corrected me when I placed my order). Sugary cereal toppings like Cap'n Crunch and Fruity Pebbles keep things from getting too serious.

The original flavor was creamy, had the smooth tangy flavor of actual yogurt (as opposed to soft-serve ice cream with no actual yogurt in it) and was a perfect match for fresh, super-plump blackberries and raspberries. The green tea (we tried it with blueberries and mini-Ghirardelli dark chocolate chips) had a smoother, less yogurt-y tasting flavor, so if you're not particularly a fan of what actual yogurt tastes like, this should be your pick.
 
Red Mango is also looking pretty angelic when it comes to the health factor. There's the whole live active cultures deal -- it packs probiotics reportedly good for your digestion -- and a small (which isn't all that small) is less than 100 calories. That's a lot easier to justify than my stand-by frozen treat in downtown Naperville: ice cream topped with a scoop of cookie dough at Cookie Dough Creations. Not to say we won't be back there, too, angling for a spot in line along with what always seems like the entire senior class of Naperville North. Now we'll just have to alternate between the two.