Donna Tortorice and Syndie Darnell of Pop Craft. Photo by Thomas Bender

Top 7 Frozen Dessert Destinations for the Summer

I went to multiple frozen dessert shops around Sarasota and these were the top 7 on my list.

  1. Pop Craft

Pop Craft puts a fun spin on the traditional popsicle with their unique and delicious flavors. The owner, Donna Tortorice, gets her popsicle ideas from seeing fresh fruit and different ingredients in food magazines. Pop Craft popsicles are home made from all natural ingredients and include chunks of real fruit. You can choose between popsicles made with herbs, fruit, chocolate, or cream. Blood Orange Lemon Grass is one example of their interesting combinations. Flavors change throughout the season based on which fruits are ripe. Pop Craft is currently transitioning between citrus and summer season so you can expect to see some new flavors. The current new flavor is Strawberry Kiwi.On Tuesdays you can purchase four pops for $10 and there are grab bags that include six sample popsicles for $8.

Photo by Olivia Neal

Photo by Olivia Neal

  1. Orange Leaf

Orange Leaf has a large variety of delicious flavors to choose from as you walk through their frozen yogurt bar. Some of the unique flavors they currently have are Cookies & Cream, Coffee, Peanut Butter, and Birthday Cake. If you are looking for a dairy free option, they also have “Freshly Squeezed” Orange and Pineapple. If you want to try more than one frozen yogurt flavor at once, you can. Orange Leaf offers separators for your cup so you can make three different sections of yogurt with as many toppings as you would like. The final touch to the Orange Leaf experience is their orange, shovel-shaped spoons.

Photo provided by Orange Leaf Facebook page

Photo provided by Orange Leaf Facebook page

  1. SunniBunni

For those people out there who want a smoothie early in the morning during the hot summer, SunniBunni is the place. They open at 7 A.M. and serve smoothie and frozen yogurt options throughout the day. You can choose to put toppings on your frozen yogurt, such as fresh fruit or coconut. SunniBunni is one of the healthier frozen dessert destinations in Sarasota with their detox smoothies made from whole ingredients. SunniBunni goes by the motto “Lighter and brighter.” There are smoothies, however, that are geared more towards the sweet tooth, like the DirtiBunni. Whether you want to go healthy or more on the dessert side, SunniBunni has a large selection of choices. They will be offering a new yogurt soon that contains all the probiotics and coconut water instead of skim milk.

Photo provided by Sunnibunni Facebook page

Photo provided by Sunnibunni Facebook page

Yogurtology

Yogurtology is the largest frozen yogurt bar on the list with a toppings bar that ranges from fresh fruit and boba to cookies and gummy products. Yogurtology has any yogurt topping you can name. They currently have Fluffy Cotton Candy as a premium yogurt flavor. On the yogurt menu there is also Captain N’ Crunch, Golden Cupcake Batter, Pom Raspberry Explosion and Nutella to name a few. You can enjoy your cup of frozen yogurt out on Yogurtology’s contemporary, outside table area.

Photo provided by Yogurtology Sarasota Facebook page

Photo provided by Yogurtology Sarasota Facebook page

  1. TCBY

TCBY has been serving frozen desserts for thirty two years and are known for having some of the healthiest yogurt in the area with seven probiotics. They have a chocolate almond yogurt made with Silk milk, and yogurts that have no sugar added. You can have yogurt in a cup or a hand dipped cone. The frozen yogurt at TCBY is different in how similar in taste and consistency it is to ice cream, yet it is a healthier alternative.

Photo by Olivia Neal

Photo by Olivia Neal

  1. Frozone

Frozone is a frozen yogurt shop that also offers smoothies and fruit shakes. Their flavor of the week is Cheese Cake. Frozone does specials for teacher appreciation and schools. The service is wonderful with the new owner whose goal was to apply business into the real world through managing the yogurt shop. I tried the cheese cake frozen yogurt with strawberry boba and it was the perfect combination of sweet and tart.

Cheese Cake frozen yogurt with strawberry boba Photo by Olivia Neal

Cheese Cake frozen yogurt with strawberry boba
Photo by Olivia Neal

  1. The Skinny Dip

With a name as great as “The Skinny Dip” their desserts are just as good. The Skinny Dip is a mini frozen yogurt bar with fun decorations and many options and toppings to choose from. Their current flavors include Pumpkin Cheesecake, Strawberry Shortcake Gelato, Key Lime, and Sea Salt Caramel Pretzel. If you are pressed for time this summer or want something to cool you down right away, you can purchase a cup of pre-made frozen yogurt from The Skinny Dip.

Photo provided by The Skinny Dip at Palmer Ranch Facebook page

Photo provided by The Skinny Dip at Palmer Ranch Facebook page

 

Where are some of your favorite places to get frozen treats during the summer months? Let us know on Facebook.

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