Frozen yogurt trend scoops up students

It's cheap, it's healthy and it offers customers the chance to be as picky as they want.

Just what sort of place affords these opportunities? Self-serve frozen yogurt shops, and they're popping up all around the UCF area.

Within a five-mile radius of UCF, there are at least five different self-serve frozen yogurt shops: iKiwi Yogurt, Yogurtopia, Mix Frozen Yogurt, Yogurt Factory and Simply Frozen Yogurt.

Local cupcake shop Sweet! By Good Golly Miss Holly added a self-serve fro-yo bar about three months ago.

The concept is simple. Grab a cup, pick as many flavors as you want, top it off with everything from fresh fruit to M&Ms, weigh and pay. Most of the stores charge about 40 cents per ounce.

"Every 15 to 20 years, a new concept comes along," H.G. Parsa said regarding food trends.

Parsa, an associate professor and chair of food service and lodging management department at the Rosen College of Hospitality Management, said start-up and operation costs for fro-yo shops are less than meat-based businesses and they bring in capital much quicker.

Simply Frozen Yogurt, which opened April 16, is owned and operated by UCF alumnus Robert Allen and his wife, Amy Allen. It is in the Waterford Towers off Alafaya Trail between Buffalo Wild Wings and Fuji Sushi.

The couple said they always wanted to run their own business together, but until a trip to California, they didn't know what kind of business they wanted to run.

"He was an ice cream kind of guy," Amy said of her husband, "but he had [frozen yogurt] over there and thought it was really good."

Soon enough, the UCF alumnus who graduated with a degree in management information systems was craving the frozen treat.

Robert said he could probably eat the stuff everyday.

After the couple decided to relocate from South Florida to their hometown of Orlando, Amy decided to incorporate interior design styles often seen in Miami.

"Frozen yogurt is fresh, so we wanted to keep it bright and fun," said Amy, who chose all-white furniture to keep with the South Florida-feel.

Customers who pay a visit to Allen's shop can choose from 12 flavors of yogurt and 50 toppings.

"That's the whole beauty of this," Amy said. "Everyone is different and they can put whatever flavor they want in it."

Some of Simply's most popular flavors are simply tart, cake batter, cookies and creme, red velvet cake and Reese's peanut butter.

Flavors that can always be found in the store are chocolate and vanilla, as well as a dairy-free option and a sugar-free option.

Health-conscious customers can rest easy knowing that the frozen yogurt contains live and active cultures that meet the standards of the National Yogurt Association.

According to the National Yogurt Association, the cultures are probiotic and aid in digestion and general health.

The college crowd, who tends to show up in the evening, can get 10 percent off their purchases with a student ID.

Senior citizens and members of the military are also qualified to receive a 10 percent discount.

Although the Simply located in Waterford Towers has been in business for a little more than three months, the Allens are already planning on opening up a second location.

Allen said he did not want to release too many details yet, but that the second location will also be in Orlando and is expected to open before Thanksgiving.

For now, his focus remains on his first location.

"It's exciting because it's new," Robert said. "So for us to kind of see it growing every week, we can't ask for anything more."