The Spot — Organic Frozen Yogurt Like You’ve Never Tasted

By Anni Caporuscio

Nani Lane and Ellie Marcus originally added it to the menu for the açaí fad but it quickly became super popular. Unsweetened açaí is blended with apple banana sorbet in the drill blender so it’s smooth and naturally sweet. It sits on crunch granola and is surrounded by tropical fruits and a honey drizzle. Good for breakfast, lunch and treat!

Before we start, I want you to erase from your mind the image of a machine that drips out soft-serve yogurt into a bowl and then somebody throws some gummi bears on top. What we’re going to talk about isn’t fro-yo. Rather, it’s a real food-interactive experience. It’s something I’ve never seen before.

Let’s remake your thinking on what frozen yogurt should be. Yes, it’s a treat, but it’s also a nutritious healthy snack. Some use it as a meal replacement, especially when you choose to pack it with superfoods, which happen to be on hand.

At The Spot, they start with a really nice frozen yogurt called Cloud Top, which is, among other great things, hormone-free, preservative-free and GMO-free. Then you can add Blend-Ins, which include seasonal fruits (they get as much local fruit as possible and blend it right there), or you can choose Superfoods like tahini, spirulina, maca, hemp hearts, flax seeds, cacao powder and more. And then there are toppings!

Let’s erase another concept: that you should feel guilty about treats. Treating yourself is a good thing. Our culture carries with it the notion that “if something tastes good, it has to be bad for you” (remember that yogurt slogan from the 1980s?) and that if we are going to enjoy our food, we are somehow harming ourselves with the sugars or artificial-ness of it all. Not so! For the aware eater, The Spot offers an indulgence for the health-conscious consumer.

The Decadent. Oreo cookie blended with apple banana and chocolate yogurt, topped with chocolate chips and homemade whipped cream with peanut butter drizzle. Even though it’s crushed oreos, the flavor is clean. The scoop on top is a light vanilla flavored whipped cream, firm and delicious.

Frozen yogurt retains all the healthy probiotics of not-frozen yogurt. It also contains the proteins and fibers. The sweetness comes from the fruit, not sugar distilled; the nutrients are bio-available. Most items are already gluten-free, if that’s your preference, and anything can also be made vegan. They offer a banana sorbet made 100 percent from apple bananas, and a coconut cream, too.

The Spot has this cool blending machine that looks like a giant drill bit to get the job done. The yogurt comes out smooth and colorful and the taste is clean and fresh. No sugar is added; it all comes from the fruit (and the chocolate drizzle)! So while you decide on your flavor, you can talk to the servers about what they’re doing, and participate in the whole customizable process. Be creative: you can do anything. But, and I recommend this, leave it up to them. There are 12 Signature Bowls to choose from, in combinations I would not have imagined on my own.

Much like the drink, the Lava Flow is a tropical fruit swirl of pineapple, coconut, apple bananas blended with yogurt, topped with coconut flakes and strawberry drizzle. Very refreshing.

Co-owners Nani Lane and Ellie Marcus have been at it for 10 months. Nani says she loves treats and likes to be health-conscious while she does it. She grew up on Kaua‘i and returned to find a void of healthy frozen treats. She met Ellie, who grew up in Israel where it is common to blend local fruits into frozen yogurt for snacks and even as meal replacements. They found they had the same dream and they created a shop that serves exactly what they want to eat. They are both talkative and passionate about their product and it is an uplifting experience all around.

Nani and Ellie have lots of creative options. For example, you can call ahead orders to take home. You can do special orders for parties. You can purchase quarts of frozen yogurt to take home. And they have a punch card!

Find The Spot in Old Kapa‘a Town at 4-1384 #A203 Kuhio Highway on the second floor, directly upstairs from The Local restaurant. It’s a great spot, no pun intended, to watch the traffic go by on a lazy afternoon. Find them on Instagram and check out beautiful shots of delicious yogurt bowls. Visit them and talk treats.

Anni Caporuscio is a food lover and can be found daily at her Kapa‘a business, Small Town Coffee.

Co-owners and masterminds of The Spot in Old Kapa‘a Town Nani Lane and Ellie Marcus. The best part is talking to them about the great things they do. Have a treat and have a chat!

The Spot makes yogurt bowls, custom smoothies and a collection of exotic beverages. Of particular note is their nitro machine, a little magic-maker that will infuse anything with a light carbonation to give it just a little kick. Pictured here is a nitro cold brew coffee (which I was keen to try), but I also tried a coconut cream chai. The nitro gives it a creamy head that makes me think I’m having a Guinness, and it’s so refreshing.

This the Açaí Bowl. Nani Lane and Ellie Marcus originally added it to the menu for the açaí fad but it quickly became super popular. Unsweetened açaí is blended with apple banana sorbet in the drill blender so it’s smooth and naturally sweet. It sits on crunch granola and is surrounded by tropical fruits and a honey drizzle. Good for breakfast, lunch and treat!

The Exotic Halva is an Israeli-style bowl that is, indeed, reminiscent of the sesame candy I grew up with. Your choice of vanilla or one of the vegan yogurts is blended with tahini and hemp hearts. It’s got honey and Hawaiian sea salt. It turns out almost savory, a sure departure from the generic gummy bear fro-yo.