For a while, frozen yogurt felt like a leftover from the 2010s, the kind of dessert you remembered fondly but rarely went out of your way to order. Now it’s making a comeback, and in New York City, lines are forming around the block at a new wave of froyo shops.
The bigger surprise is what’s happening to ice cream, the classic summer favorite that most of us would have bet on in this matchup. Traffic data from the first half of this year shows froyo chains pulling in more visitors, while traditional ice cream shops struggled to hold on to their crowds. That’s quite a turnaround for a dessert that plenty of people had written off as a fad that had already run its course.
Froyo Is Pulling Ahead of Ice Cream Shops
Visits to frozen yogurt chains rose above last year’s levels in nearly every week from January through June, according to foot traffic data. In some weeks, that growth topped 18%.
Ice cream shops told a different story over the same months. Their visits fell below last year’s levels again and again, dropping as much as 8.5% in several weeks.
Froyo Has Become a Weekend Plan
Friday and Saturday bring in about 36% of weekly visits to froyo chains, a slightly bigger weekend share than ice cream shops get. That suggests people are planning froyo runs with friends instead of grabbing a cup on a whim.
Viral buzz is part of the story, too. In New York City, the newest shops have made froyo look stylish again. They pitch it as a treat for people who care about protein, not a diet dessert.
Greek Yogurt Is Crossing Over Into Ice Cream
One shop in Washington, DC, is taking the yogurt trend in a different direction. Yala Greek Ice Cream calls itself the nation’s first authentic Greek ice cream shop.
Instead of soft serve, the shop crafts its Greek yogurt flavors batch by batch as premium ice cream. Each one blends authentic Greek yogurt with A2 dairy that Yala describes as farm fresh and single origin. The company says that mix makes its ice cream lighter, brighter and more digestible while keeping it rich and creamy.
Plenty of people are giving it a try. Yala’s Georgetown location logged more than 150,000 orders from January through early September 2026.
Its summer pop-up at the Conrad hotel is staying open through the fall. The brand has also teamed up with Levain Bakery, which is famous for its giant chocolate chip walnut cookies.
If you haven’t had froyo since the 2010s, this might be a good year to give it another try. Just expect company if you go on a Friday or Saturday, since that’s when the crowds tend to show up. And if you can’t pick a side, Greek ice cream gives you a tasty spot right in the middle.