You Scream, We Scream, We all Scream for Yogurt: CF Family Starts Their Own Self-Serve Yogurt Shop

Meg Lane/Opinion Editor

Former CF student Allyson Vuong keeps her eyes open when she travels. With a family of business entrepreneurs, Vuong and her family are always looking for new ideas. Their newest endeavor: a self-serve frozen yogurt joint, YogurtPro, that now sits by Texas Roadhouse and Sakura.

“Down in Texas and in the southern parts of the East Coast, there are tons of these self-serve yogurt shops, and one day we were like, ‘we should do this in Iowa,’” Vuong said.

And so Yogurt Pro was born. It’s the only self-serve frozen yogurt joint in Cedar Falls. The place has a lot going for it, but one of its claims to fame is the nutritional benefit of the yogurt they serve.

“Yogurt Pro offers a healthy kind of yogurt,” Vuong said. “We use skim milk instead of whole milk so its fat free. And it’s sugar free.”

Not to worry, though. According to Vuong, the yogurt still tastes amazing.

“[It’s great because] if you are on a diet and you want something to relieve your cravings, you can come get some yogurt and still be eating healthy.”

YogurtPro offers more than just basic flavors. Their wall of self-serve yogurt machines range from cheesecake to espresso to even honeydew. Customers are left to choose for themselves which kinds they want and of how much, as prices are tabulated by weighing at the register.

“The first time I went, I was tempted to put every single one of the flavors in my bowl,” senior Alicia Pierce said. “I resisted, but I ended up going back the same day because it was so good.”

In addition, flavors are changed on a daily basis.

“[It’s great] because you can try something new each time,” junior Evan Cayton said.

If the flavors don’t offer enough variety, customers can take their pick at the line of toppings to load up on. Of course there are the traditional toppings– fruit, chocolate chips, sprinkles– but Yogurt Pro also boasts an array of unique toppings customers aren’t likely to have seen any place else, like ‘bursting boba.’

Boba are edible bubbles filled with fruit juice that bursts in your mouth. YogurtPro offers three different flavors, mango, lychee, and passion fruit.

Although they may look like small fish eggs, most customers find they are surprisingly delicious.

If the yogurt doesn’t sell customers, its modern layout and clean-cut atmosphere will.

“It has a very clean and cool atmosphere,” Cayton said and sophomore Alli Hunt concurred, “I like the way its set up. Its a cute date place and the cost is affordable.”
And that is what has kept many students coming back for more.

“ I’m glad Cedar Falls finally has a place that is fun and original,” senior Conner Klein said.

“ It was a really cool experience,” junior Carissa Herkelman said, “ the yogurt and everything was really good and reasonably priced. It was really retro and I just felt cool being there! I’ve been there twice and definitely plan on going back!”