Review: Cultive Frozen Yogurt Shop in Vacaville, California

To be honest, I couldn't wait for Cultive to open up in Vacaville, California. I drove by their shop once a week for a month just to see when the doors would open. That day finally came on July 3^rd, 2008, and it was well worth the wait. Cultive (pronounced "KUL teh vay"), which is located on Davis Street across from the Brendan Movie Theatre in Vacaville, California, is the second frozen yogurt shop opened up by Ross Hanstad. His first one, Swirl Frozen Yogurt, dominates the frozen treat scene in the college town of Davis, California. My family and I made the 30 minute drive to Davis several times a month just to satisfy our craving for Swirl Frozen Yogurt. Cultive serves the same style of yogurt except with a twist: the amount of frozen yogurt and toppings you get is determined by you.

Cultive is a self-serve style of yogurt shop where you pay per ounce instead of the typical three-size option. With over two dozen toppings to choose from and several types of yogurt, the combinations are endless. Although there are some particularly sweet treat toppings like kids' cereal, white chocolate chips and popular chocolate candies, Cultive still keeps it real by offering healthy toppings. There are several fruits-kiwi, strawberry, mango and pineapple to name a few- and other healthy grains ready for the body-conscious consumer.

I started off making a decent-sized cup of the sweet and tart yogurt like they serve in Swirl Frozen Yogurt. I topped it with granola, strawberries and mochi balls. When the server rang up my cup I paid a whole $2.30. I went outside and took my first bite. To say the least, I finished my cup in five minutes and went back in for more.

Cultive definitely opened up this frozen yogurt shop not with a whimper but a bang. The fruit was extremely fresh and the yogurt didn't lose its quality. It wasn't too runny and nor was it easily confused with ice cream like many other frozen yogurt shops do. It took a little while to get used to the brand of granola they used, but I liked it in the end.

My second cup was the same mix, except this time I threw in some white chocolate chips. The same experience. I was so happy I brought my family back after dinner and had, yes, a third serving of Cultive frozen yogurt. Later that weekend we came back and I had their country vanilla flavor of frozen yogurt as my base instead of my usual tart. It was definitely a change from the norm for me, but I may have found a new favorite. I have no idea how Cultive comes up with their recipes, but they should be branded and locked up. Every flavor seems as good and as different from the next. I learned this from "sampling" my children's cups of vanilla-chocolate swirl.

I'm pretty certain that Cultive will take off. Their first day of service racked up 80 proud patrons and there were still a few hours to go before closing (11am to 11pm). With the self-serve style, spacious seating and attractive design, Cultive can quickly be a healthy alternative ending to a great family night out.