Tutti Frutti | Savory Frozen Yogurt

Staff Writer, Chris Bennett

Are you or your family looking for a new place to eat this evening? Do you enjoy variety, originality, or both? Is a welcoming, pleasant environment important to you when it comes to restaurants? If the answer to any of these questions is yes, visit Tutti Frutti.

Tutti Frutti is a self-serve, pay by weight frozen yogurt store, where customers create their own frozen delight. Clean and well maintained, the eatery offers a peaceful, casual dining experience. The inside is colorful and modern in appearance, and furnished with several tables and booths. For those who enjoy dining outside, there are benches lining the plaza and outdoor tables. Lastly, those who desire dinner before enjoying a savory frozen yogurt can do so, as there are several different restaurants beside Tutti Frutti, making dinner and dessert easy and convenient.

Tutti Frutti’s signature is their frozen yogurt, of which there are many flavors. Beyond classics like chocolate and vanilla, there are dozens of options to satisfy any type of customer. For those that desire something sugary, the chain offers a variety of flavors sweet flavors, including bubble gum, chocolate peanut butter cup, and cheesecake. For those that crave a healthy treat, the restaurant also hosts a wealth of fruit flavored creations. Some of these options include blueberry, strawberry, mango, and original tart, Tutti Frutti’s signature confection. For the adventurous eaters, there are several wild flavors offered, like pistachio, toasted marshmallow, and creamed corn, and the option to combine flavors through the swirl option, or just using multiple different flavors. For the consumer that wants something new, but doesn’t want to fill up a cup right away, sample cups are available upon request, ensuring customers find the right flavor every time. Best of all, flavors alternate daily, meaning there’s always new options at every visit.

The fun doesn’t end with the yogurt either. Tutti Frutti offers a wide variety of toppings to grace frozen treats as lightly or heavily as desired. And as with the yogurt, there’s a topping for everyone. Those who like a simple confection might enjoy whipped cream and hot fudge with a fruit like strawberries or blueberries, or a candy topping, like M&m’s, Reese’s Peanut Butter Cups, or York Peppermint Patties. Customers can even savor baked goods like brownie pieces, cookie dough bites, or pound cake. Those who like it extravagant can enjoy crazy toppings like gummy bears, marshmallows, kiwi slices, or even Captain Crunch cereal on their sweet treat. For those who don’t like solid toppings, there are also several syrup flavors to utilize, including a variety of chocolate syrups and caramel syrup.

But what if a customer doesn’t want frozen yogurt? Tutti-Frutti offers as many options for frosty beverages as they do for yogurt. There is a bountiful selection of frappes, lattes, and fruit smoothies on the menu, as well as a multitude of bubble teas, the signature drink at the establishment. There’s even the option of iced coffee or a frozen hot chocolate.

For those that can’t eat frozen yogurt, desire a healthier choice, or just want something different in general, Tutti Frutti also offers a selection of fruit flavored sorbets. These sorbets are both dairy free and a healthier alternative to the yogurt, making them ideal for the health conscious or the lactose intolerant. For those aiming to avoid gluten, the restaurant even has a few options for soy yogurt.

Directions to Tutti Frutti from Voyager Academy: Retrieved from https://www.google.com/maps/dir/Voyager+Academy+High+School,+Ben+Franklin+Boulevard,+Durham,+NC/Tutti+Frutti+Frozen+Yogurt,+3710+Shannon+Rd,+Durham,+NC+27707/

Reviews: Tutti Frutti. Retrieved from https://www.yelp.com/biz/tutti-frutti-durham-3

Photos: Tutti Frutti Frozen Yogurt. Retrieved from www.tuttifruttify.com

Jessica, M.M. Retrieved from http://www.foodfindsasia.com/tutti-frutti-perfect-for-everybody/

Inside Look:

Tutti Frutti Frozen Yogurt of Durham NC. Retrieved from https://www.tripadvisor.com/Restaurant_Review-g49092-d4417562-Reviews-Tutti_Frutti_Frozen_Yogurt_of_NC-Durham_North_Carolina.html

Menu and Official Website of Tutti Frutti:

Frozen Yogurt Flavors. Retrieved from http://tfyogurt.com/mhome/flavors-creamy/

 

Homecoming King, Laughter and Cries

Staff Writer, Amith Jagannath

Imagine this: There’s an Indian biking as fast as he can to a his prom date’s house on his blue BMX bike. He stumbles up to the doorstep to find his date with another boy and they’ve already exchanged corsages! In general, comedy shows appeal to their audience by relating real-life experiences that they have gone through, to other instances where the audience can relate. When it comes to the demographics of the audience, it really depends on the race and religion of the comedian, because the viewers most often relate to comedians that share the same obstacles and/or advantages.

Being an Indian American, social interactions between me and my peers are still a little awkward because there’s always a constant stigma I can sense in even the closest friends. The film “Homecoming King,” a Netflix special of “Daily Show” starring Hasan Minhaj, discusses one man’s journey during a decade of interracial conflicts. Minhaj addresses his struggles to fit in as a resident of Davis, California, as well as his efforts to develop a stronger relationship with his father. There’s always this problem in Indian relationships where the father struggles to understand the son’s issues or fitting in at school, and normally, one would think that the father would take time to understand the son, but instead, he just moves on with his life.

Now, I am not going to say that I can relate to that because thank all the gods in my religion, my father is so down to earth. Typically, when I watch comedy shows, I don’t understand all the references made, because half of them are about ancient crap that I don’t really care about. For example, while Gabriel Iglesias is a great comedian, most of his jokes are directed to either white people or Mexicans because he can relate to those people the most. However, watching this specific comedian make such relatable jokes, as an Indian, made the entire experience so positively and negatively emotional.

Throughout the show, Minhaj addressed specific instances throughout his life, where he felt that he was living vicariously through his father, rather than himself. Spoiler Alert: He explains that his mother is in India working towards her medical degree, while he and his father are trying to get by in America. His entire world turns around when he realizes that he has a younger sister that was five years old that he had no idea about. It is only when his mother walks in the door that he understands that his father had impregnated his mother in his frequent trips to India.

Moreover, Minhaj describes how there exists this norm of “conditional love,” where the kids have to work their butts off to get the parents’ love. To describe this, Minhaj shows a clip of the 2013 Scripps National Spelling Bee where Arvind Mahankali won. His parents are shown towards the end of the clip emotionless, which explains itself.

While this may be the comical side to living in America as an Indian, even the American Dream is not as easily achievable as it is described. Minhaj touched many people in one of his areas of discussion, where he talked about the emotional environment post 9/11. Many of us out there are privy to racial discrimination and unfortunately the more we hear it, the more it becomes a part of us. He told his audience that the night of the event, his family had gotten a call from a group of teenagers calling his family racial slurs. Minhaj went on to explain that he had “the audacity of equality,” after this event. He uses this event as a mode of explaining his righteousness and freedom during such a difficult time for the United States.

In the entirety of Minhaj’s comedy special, he talks about one high school experience that changed his life. So, I’m in highschool and I’m Indian and after watching this, it made me realize that this could happen to me. Spoiler Alert: Bethany Reid, Minhaj’s high school sweetheart is what this is about.  They get to know each other in their Calculus class as Bethany finds herself being the new girl. After a process of studying together, going to each other’s houses, and a class bracket to decide prom dates, Bethany and Hasan see that they’re meant to be. Minhaj goes to the extent of climbing out of his window on the second floor, to racing on his Blue BMX bike to fulfill his and Bethany’s dreams. But, it all changes when he is welcomed to a puzzled mother who tells him that he wouldn’t fit into the family pictures. Their connection resumes a couple years later over Facebook where he finds her profile to see that she’s with an INDIAN! Minhaj even relates this instance to greater social problems such as the Trayvon Martin and Freddie Gray issues to portray that prejudice against brown people is prevalent each and every day.

From those moments onward, Minhaj depicts more of his father’s worldly views and his own. He tells the story as it is, without seeking the reaction in laughter or gasps that other comedians seek. “Homecoming King,” still but a few weeks old, casts its banner as an interracial comedy like no other.

Comfort Zone | A Review

Staff Writer, Madison Carter

Sopadelic, Album Cover

It’s not an uncommon occurrence for an individual to be guarded, especially in a relationship. The heart and brain are vital organs, but they are fragile and can be affected by love both beneficially and detrimentally. Young Bull is a band that likes to focus more so on the beneficial aspects of love rather than the topics that can lead to pain and heartbreak. Their first album, Sopadelic, was released August 9, 2016. The Durham natives Tahmique Cameron, Gabe Fox-Peck, and Christian Sinclair all share a common understanding in the vitality of “feel good music.”

In their album, Sopadelic, the theme of love was evident in someway, shape, or form. Out of the 11 songs on their album, there were two I found the most sonically pleasing: “Can’t Get You Outta My Head” and “Let Down Your Guard.” These songs allowed me to formulate a story in my head, “Can’t Get You Outta My Head” would be the beginning, “Let Down Your Guard” would be the near to end event. The two songs specified work together hand in hand to showcase the easy and hard phases of love.

When lyricism and instruments work together as a coalition, they create emotions that convey what individuals should expect in relationships. A piano introduces the song “Can’t Get You Outta My Head,” the bass guitar and maracas follow. The use of these instruments can be theorized in a way that relates to how relationships are in the beginning stages. The three instruments that began “Can’t Get You Outta My Head” represents the complexity of relationships, yet how beautiful they can be in the long run. After about 21 seconds of the instrument’s playing, Tahmique Cameron, the lead singer of Young Bull, came in with the vocals. “I can’t get you out of my head, the way you laugh at all the stupid things that I’ve said,” was the first line of this masterpiece. This line was simple, but held so much significance. Relationships tend to start off with an “I can’t get you out of my head” mentality. Infatuation gets a hold of one’s mind, causing them to want to be with their mental captivator more and more.

This next song, “Let Down Your Guard,” has to do more so with the implementation of the relationship. I went on to interview individuals to get more insight on why people guard themselves in the beginning stages, this is my favorite response: “Love is built on openness and exposure; that same openness and exposure can be exploited or abused, thus you can get hurt. This is the risk of love,” J Kameron Carter stated. The entirety of “Let Down Your Guard” was built upon the fact the people want to protect themselves from harmful endeavors. “Close your eyes and let your hair down…, you ain’t gotta be scared,” was one of the lines that showed how some people need to relax and allow love to make its way in existence. “I can stay awake until the month of June, from the tension in this room. So let down your guard girl… You can make it— we can make it easy.” Harboring hurt and resentment towards a past relationship can lead to people’s inability to love and be at ease in a relationship. “Love is not just a one sided thing, there’s multiple components to a relationship it requires compassion sensitivity, and the ability to make yourself vulnerable…Love is work, compromise, sacrifice, and a whole lot of laugher in between,” Felicia Carter claimed.

From listening to these songs, and collecting multiple interviews, I came to a conclusion; new couples have to learn, grow, and figure each other out. Love goes from requiring general knowledge, to something that holds way more of a complex foundation. The beginning stages of love can sometimes be superficial and not stable enough to endure the events that arise in the beginning. The task at hand is to be able to grow with your loved one, which can be hard because in this world, it’s a common occurrence for relationships to break at the first sight of struggle instead of staying sustained and finding its deep roots. In Young Bull’s song “Can’t Get You Outta My Head” the instruments and lyrics work together to form a piece of work that’s not commonly produced by 19 and 20 year olds. The beginning stage of infatuation is one of the most vital parts of a relationship if an individual wants to stay with that partner for the rest of their life— Young Bull understands this and conveys it through lyricism and musicality. Lastly, “Let Down Your Guard” represents the time corresponding to the beginning of the relationship. People keep their guard up in the hopes of protecting themselves from getting hurt more, from beginning hurt for the first time, and simply because the relationship feels like a foreign essence. There comes a point in time where the hurt ones must realize that everyone is not looking forward to their downfall. An individual must figure out what it’s like to have their heart stolen with no intent of being returned, and experience what it’s like to be mentally captivated by the love of their life. These realizations were commenced by none other than the phenomenal, Young Bull.