Menchie's frozen yogurt is coming to the Admiral Junction in late October in a new retail space on California Avenue as part of the new Safeway complex, and promises to be a unique and customizable experience for those seeking a frozen treat. Mix it up Northwest is the company and the owner Leslie Castanha is excited about bringing the company to West Seattle.

A franchise of a national company the location at 2620 California Ave s.w. will offer indoor and outdoor seating and a "mix it up" yourself experience.

Menchies is a self-service, interactive, and customizable frozen yogurt cafe where customers dispense their own yogurt from a choice of over 100 rotating flavors of yogurt (16 rotating daily flavors), and move through lines to select from over 70 rotating “wet” and “dry” toppings. You are free to add as little or as many toppings as you want, then your unique treat is weighed and paid for by the ounce.

Swirl options include nonfat, low carb, no sugar added, gluten-free, vegan, dairy-free, kosher and tart. Topping options include fresh fruits, granolas, assorted nuts, candies, hot fudges and chocolates. The store has some fun options for kids too with chalkboards to write on as well as take-away branded merchandise like stickers and rub-on tattoos.

Menchie's will also offer cold beverages, and pre-packed frozen yogurt to go. The location will be 1200 square feet in size and will include a party room for special events.

Castanha spoke about the importance of the experience at Menchies. "Really it's the satisfaction of making your own combination of yogurt flavor and toppings. You really only get what you want."

Her background includes a lot of retail experience but this is the first food service business her family has been involved in. She will run the business and her husband will assist with operations and coordination.
They chose Menchie's as a business almost by accident.

"My family and I were in Hawaii for a vacation and we happened to visit a Menchie's," said Castanha, " They had six or seven machines and two flavors per machine and we got to go up and pick which flavors you wanted and which toppings you wanted and they had a whole big topping bar with marshmallow creme, fresh fruit, hot fudge, any kind of toppings you can think of. The whole concept was you weigh it, and you pay for what you get. My kids and I did not think it would be such a great experience but it was just full of people all different ages, all hanging out. We went back three more times and it was a half hour drive to get there and we couldn't stop talking about it. So we thought, 'Why not set up a Menchie's here in Seattle?' "

They did their homework but never really considered any of the other yogurt franchise operations. Menchie's has over 100 locations in the U.S. and Canada and is growing fast. The stores now open in Washington include Federal Way, Vancouver, WA , Lynnwood, Queen Anne, Puyallup, University Village.

Their research meant learning more about the company itself as well as their product. "We learned that Menchie's is a company with a high degree of integrity, that they are committed to being supportive of families and the community," Castanha said. She is also enthusiastic about the product. "They use a very high quality yogurt and they were endorsed by the National Yogurt Association," she said.

Frozen yogurt was introduced to the market in the 1970's but at first it did not sell well. Consumers said that it tasted too much like plain yogurt. But the health benefits and the potential market just meant that manufacturers had to reformulate and refine their frozen yogurt recipes, and by the increasingly health-conscious 1980s the low-calorie dessert started selling extremely well.

The market saw sales of $25 million in 1986 with triple-digit growth rates. Major ice cream manufacturers quickly jumped on the band-wagon and started producing their own brands of frozen yogurt. By the early 1990s, frozen yogurt captured about 10% of the total frozen dessert market with sales of $330 million.

Frozen yogurt gets its unique, often tangy flavor from strains of friendly bacteria that actually promote digestive health. The yogurt culture in the product makes up about 1% of the base ingredients. "The pro-biotic cultures help aid your digestion," she explained and the company offers a variety of choices that ought to satisfy anyone including lactose free, non fat. low carb, no sugar added, kosher and tart versions of their yogurt.

The company promises a fun, safe, and family-friendly environment - one that promotes a healthy lifestyle and supports the local community. Menchie's plans on being actively involved in the community, working with local school programs and charitable organizations. The national company donates tens of thousands of dollars each year to various charities and school programs, including Autism Speaks, The American Red Cross and the Muscular Dystrophy Association.

"Hopefully we'll be open by the end of October or possibly by early November," said Castanha.

"We want to make people smile. The most exciting thing is for people to be happy. We want the experience to be fun and safe for families and kids,"

You'll find them on Facebook and Twitter here.

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