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Lets change gears a bit and try something new for the loft. Many blogs that I read or stop by on a daily basis (apartmenttherapy, curbed, coolhunter, daily candy, autoblog, thrillist, engadget, designsponge…) have a weekly or some other timed interval of posts that are a list of interesting links. So lets give it a go and try it here at the loft.

LoftLinks

Eats: There has been a lot of buzz about pinkberry and its constituents in the air lately. Other than the hint of litigation on the definition of “yogurt” most of the press has been positive. And those who know what ‘Mikey doesn’t like,’ its the ocular experience that their interior desecrater’s so very much blessed us with. Bah! Either way, another note of not-so-good press is always a delight!
Rats in Pinkberry

Beer: Hanging out in the UK? Drove your car to the pub? Drink another 1/2 pint for the road.
The UK to lower its blood-alcohol-content?

Architecture: Remodel of the day, Vortex House!

Music: So you still use CDs and DVDs do yah? Sharpie on Maxwell not looking so hot? Bump it up a notch at 5inch.com Order up some custom printed discs, and cool ‘trigger’ cases.

As I’m sure everyone is aware, pinkberry imposters have been infiltrating the southland.  Not to be overlooked was Irvine, as the city welcomed its first sour yogurt host this past weekend: Yogurtland.

Nestled in another non-descript strip mall between Tofu House and Taiko, Yogurtland and its bright sherbert colors screamed at us as we walked into Tofu House. Mikey was beside himself; he couldn’t believe that there was a sour yogurt joint in his neighborhood, and not only was it sour yogurt, but it was a wannabe. I couldn’t tell if he was excited or horrified or tickled pink, but I dragged him in there with me anyway.

I don’t even know where to begin with this place. How about: Sensory overload. Or, Yogurt propaganda. Clearly, they were striving to be a pinkberry. I won’t describe it all here as I can go on and on so just view the pix below.

I will note that what makes Yogurtland different from pinkberry are:

- Yogurtland is all self-serve, frozen yogurt and toppings
- Yogurtland charges by the ounce: $0.30/ounce
- Yogurtland’s menu offers much more variety: from NY cheesecake yogurt to peanut butter to no-sugar-added strawberry banana to– everybody’s favorite– the original

Let me tell you, it is easy to go buck-wild when you’re serving yourself– especially when you’ve got a greedy b*tch like me controlling the yogurt dials. So, while I helped myself to the strawberry and original yogurts with the mochi, kiwi, and strawberry toppings, Mikey roamed the store.Â

If you read Mikey’s previous post on his lactaid-pinkberry challenge, you’ll remember that Mikey was on the fence about this sour yogurt phenomenon. As I filled up my medium-sized cup, I looked back and saw this gleeful look on Mikey’s face. Giggling to himself, Mikey was taking photos of the store (unlike pinkberry, Yogurtland allows photographs) with his camera phone and, really, he seemed to be having a grand old time. I asked if he wanted any and, as expected, he refused.Â

After filling my cup, we approached the cashier where my yogurt concoction was weighed: 1.03lbs, which totaled $4.90. “You get more bang for the buck here compared to pinkberry,” Mikey commented.

We opted not to eat there, taking the sour stuff home instead. When did finally ate it after dinner, Mikey skipped the strawberry (which wasn’t so good anyway), diving straight into the original. And, pretty soon, most of 1.03lbs of yogurt was devoured.

So, after a month of mocking pinkberry, its tart yogurt, its creepy cult-following, and its overdone pop decor, guess what freaking happens: Mikey admits that, though he doesn’t care for the environment, he actually likes the yogurt.Â

Hell, Mikey likes it; he really, really likes it!