A Sign of Things to Come?

What does it mean when 3 frozen yogurt stores open within 2 blocks of each other, all within the span of about a month? And what if this occurs, not in some posh, fully yuppified and Starbuck-ified area of New York like Tribeca or SoHo, but in the heart of downtown Brooklyn?

Would you think the End of Days is upon us?

Would you assume we must be pulling out of this nasty recession?

Well, if you haven’t guessed already, this isn’t some hypothetical, LSAT-style scenario. There will be no written essay. Besides, your theory as to why there are 3 frozen yogurt stores along a couple blocks of Court Street near Atlantic Ave. would be as wrong as mine. Or anyone else’s for that matter – except perhaps the owners of said stores. Only they know why this area has suddenly become the primary front in the New York City Fro-Yo Wars.

You might think now would be a great time for me to give you my review of all three fro-yo joints. A taste test. A comparison of the interior designs. A rundown of the employees’ level of malaise.

Well, I’ve only tried one of the stores – the one I’m familiar with from its other New York locations – Red Mango. It’s a great frozen yogurt experience. Even better than Pinkberry, if you can imagine that.

The other two stores along what I’ll dub “Frozen Yogurt Row” are Yogo Monster and Yofiore. And they’re relative unknowns around these parts. Apparently, there are 6 Yofiore outlets in Queens, and several more in surrounding states. There’s another Brooklyn Yogo Monster in Park Slope, and one in Forest Hills, Queens. This is all news to me, but I don’t spend my time scouring frozen yogurt message boards for the latest store openings.

Rather, the story of my discovery is as follows. I was on my way to The Downtown Bar and Grill in Cobble Hill to watch the Eagles game this past weekend. I did a double take as I passed Yofiore. A minute later, I passed Yogo Monster – slowing down to let my brain absorb and digest the information. Then, mere seconds later and about 20 feet further down the block, I saw Red Mango.

My mind just couldn’t wrap itself around all of this fro-yo. I was struck dumb. I may have wet my pants a little bit. I’m pretty sure I blacked out.

Three frozen yogurt stores where there had just been zero?

When I regained consciousness, I stood up, brushed myself off, and looked around. 123, 115, and 32 Court Street. Red Mango, Yogo Monster, Yofiore. The new nexus of the frozen yogurt universe. What does it all mean?

More to follow.

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