Be prepared to pay a hefty price to design your own bowl of frozen yogurt at Tutti Frutti

There may be cheaper places, but you won’t find a better atmosphere to enjoy ice cream’s healthier and slightly less delicious sibling."

TUTTI Frutti is so new that you have probably never heard of it. But it might be the most important thing to happen to frozen desserts in the Kingdom since freezers started being imported. The new frozen yogurt shop on Sisowath Quay, a few blocks north of the Royal Palace, has been open for two weeks, and per my friend’s recommendation, I decided to give it a try.

I make it no secret that ice cream is my favourite desert, and I am therefore always a bit sceptical about frozen yogurt, a food that struggles to develop its own identity separate from the real thing. I have tried frozen yogurt before at Sorya mall. But with its own modern space, Tutti Frutti promised to be a more substantial setting for savouring sweets.

I stepped into the store with my friend and was immediately impressed with the sparkling white interior and the brightly coloured chairs and expansive pictures of different fruits and berries. With no menu on the wall or directions for what to do next, I was relieved to see a well-dressed waiter coming towards us.

My friend convinced me to take a big bowl and I decided to serve myself a mix of original taste yogurt, chocolate and green apple. My friend opted for grape, kiwi and green apple. It looked so tasty I almost started eating before reaching step three.

At the toppings counter I felt a bit overwhelmed, as there are 30 or more choices. But after a bit I decided on raisins and dragon fruit while my friend threw on chocolate and raisins.

While there were many choices, I was disappointed in the selection of fresh fruits, which while their likenesses adorned the walls, were notably absent in their edible form. Dragon fruit and pineapple were the only fresh fruit choices. I also learned to be less liberal in my yogurt dispensing if I choose to return. One hundred grams of yogurt cost US$1.50 – our two bowls of sweetness ran about $10 .

Ouch! Even the waitress who rang up our order admitted that “it seems expensive for Cambodia”. To her credit as an employee, she added “but it is beneficial to people’s health since it will not make people fat”.

Upon dishing out the dough, we moved on to the top floor. To our surprise it was completely empty, but still very attractive.

“Wow! That’s cool design and decoration with bright colours,” my friend said. Indeed, the blue, green, yellow, pink and red chairs really jumped out from the white interior and, along with the American pop music playing over the sound system, I could imagine myself happily chatting with a group of friends to unwind after a day at school or work. There is no WiFi yet, but we were told that will change soon.

The first few bites were a taste explosion; I particularly liked the chocolate frozen yogurt. While things started out well between me and my bowl of frozen goodness, the slight sour taste of the yogurt seemed to get stronger the more I ate and as I neared the end of the bowl I had to set my spoon aside and call it quits. My friend had no such problems as he polished off the contents of his bowl and then licked the spoon to make sure not a drop went uneaten.

After we finished we stepped out onto the balcony overlooking the river. With sugar coursing through my body, the glow of the full moon along with the lights from the boats sparkling across the water made my stresses fade away. As I floated above the city with my friend we listened to the traffic and commotion below, content to just sit and enjoy out perch atop the riverside.

You may not get the place to yourself, but you should check out Tutti Frutti , especially if you like frozen yogurt.

There may be cheaper places, but you won’t find a better atmosphere to enjoy ice cream’s healthier and slightly less delicious sibling.