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Driven by the heat, shorts-clad customers come in droves to the little TCBY shop on N. Santa Cruz Avenue in downtown Los Gatos. They're seeking crisp, freshly cooked waffle cones, filled, perhaps, with 11 ounces of white-chocolate macadamia-nut frozen yogurt, or an ice cream sundae drenched in chocolate. The benches out front are filled with folks catching the melting stuff with their tongues as it oozes down the side, their missed drips spotting the pavement. It's a warm afternoon/early evening tradition.
Frozen yogurt as a fast food was introduced in Little Rock, Ark., in 1981. TCBY (which stands for "This Can't Be Yogurt") was immediately a big hit, and before 1990 there were 3,000 franchised outlets nationwide. In 1991 TCBY came to Los Gatos, to the La Cañada Building on N. Santa Cruz Avenue, which had just been restored after the 1989 Loma Prieta earthquake.
"People here are very picky about what they're eating," says owner Loc Le, who bought the local franchise in 1993 after nine years with TCBY Enterprises, Inc. TCBY yogurt is a low-fat or nonfat dessert, precisely measured, mixed and dispensed by special machines. Customers entering a store in Arizona or New York can be sure that the product they are getting is of the same quality as from one in California. "In order to provide all this, we have to go to an upscale area," Le explains, adding, "I'm happy with the town. It's unique, and the friendly customers make it rewarding."
Last summer, Mrs. Fields Famous Brands bought TCBY, making it part of a family of companies that includes Pretzelmaker, Pretzel Time and Great American Cookies. It was a logical pairing to put Mrs. Fields with TCBY in Los Gatos; Le expanded his counter space for the display of a full line of the company's cookies, ice cream and party plates.
"Customers love it," he says. "They don't have to go to the mall anymore." Cookies run $1.50 each, but if three are purchased, one is free.
Mrs. Fields ice cream, Le says, is "really rich." Flavors include chocolate chip cookie dough, chunky chocolate mint, chewy fudge brownie, cotton candy and rainbow-vanilla. Ice cream prices range from $2.99 to $3.99.
For the folks who want the fun but not the fat, TCBY frozen yogurt comes in nonfat Dutch chocolate, old-fashioned vanilla, and white chocolate mousse (also without sugar). A refreshing nondairy, nonfat fruit sorbet is also a favorite. Prices range from $2.49 to $3.49. Cookies and pies are made either with nonfat yogurt or ice cream.
Le, 43, a native of Vietnam, started his career as a music teacher. In 1983, he traveled to Oklahoma, where his sister lived. A year later, he was a division manager for TCBY Enterprises, Inc. After living in five states and traveling in 25 others as part of his job, the opportunity to buy his own franchise arose following a transfer to California.
"There are many levels of customers in the country, and this is the best," he says of the town. "It's honestly from my heart that I feel that."
TCBY and Mrs. Fields Cookies, located at 13 N. Santa Cruz. Ave. in Los Gatos, is open 11 a.m. to 10 p.m. weekdays; 9 a.m. to 11 p.m. Saturdays; and 9 a.m. to 10 p.m. Sundays. For more information, call 408.354.5639.
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Photograph by George Sakkestad