Family Friday: Orange Leaf Frozen Yogurt

I accidentally skipped Family Friday this week because I was busy celebrating Independence Day.  The article I had written for family Friday was about the new Orange Leaf frozen yogurt chain that just opened in Pleasant Ridge shopping center, on Cantrell Road.

Orange Leaf is a unique concept, at least in Little Rock.  I was expecting something like Cold Stone when I heard about the chain: frozen yogurt and you pick the toppings.  However, Orange Leaf is completely self-serve.  You walk in and are greeted, told the rules and then you have at it.  They had about a dozen different flavors.  Some flavors can be swirled, but you are encouraged to mix and match whatever flavors you want.  When I visited Friday, they had some berry flavors, pomegranate,  peanut butter, chocolate and strawberry.  I'm told the flavor selection changes.

The first thing you do is a grab a bucket.  They are not kidding when they call it a bucket, either.  They only have two sizes.  I would call the sizes large and family sized.  That is probably my biggest complaint about the chain. The buckets were huge.  Kids would have a hard time "self-serving" a reasonable portion. . . heck, I'm a grown up and I ended up getting too much.  I wish they had a smaller bucket.

After filling up your bucket with the desired flavor or flavors, you get to put on whatever toppings you want.  They have everything you normally find on a sundae and then some. At the end of the topping bar, you can drizzle on some sauce (chocolate, caramel and peanut butter to name a few).  Then you pay and eat your creation.

The portions are sold by weight and are only $0.45 an ounce, which is reasonable.  The only thing that gets you is the tendency to overfill. In my excitement of trying the new store out, I ended up getting a little over 10 ounces, and my bucket wasn't even full.  I also ended up not eating it all, because it was way more than I thought.   So, if you bring your kids, be sure to work the ice cream machine or tell them to pace themselves.  On the plus side, I put the reminder of mine the freezer, and it still tastes about the same after thawing.

I'll be writing a full review after another visit.  The chain just opened, so I like to give them a few visits before a full review.