Jason and Tiffany Martin outside of their new store Chill Berry on Lenox Avenue. (Photo courtesy of DNAinfo)
By Jeff Mays
DNAinfo Reporter/Producer
Harlem’s path to gentrification has brought chain stores, celebrity chef-led restaurants, gourmet grocery stores and high-priced condos in a steady march uptown.
But unlike other city neighborhoods, where Pinkberry, Tasti D-Lite, and Red Mango shops are scattered on every other block, Harlem’s fro-yo selection was scarce to nonexistent. A Google search of yogurt shops in Harlem brought up nothing but Baskin-Robbins and Dunkin’ Donuts stores.
That’s about to change, as husband and wife frozen yogurt enthusiasts Jason and Tiffany Martin have opened what they believe to be the first stand-alone, self-service frozen yogurt shop in Harlem, Chill Berry, on Lenox Avenue between West 130 and 131st streets.
Some people tried to dissuade the couple from opening in the neighborhood, saying the shop was a bad idea.
“They said: ‘You are opening a frozen yogurt shop in Harlem? It won’t last,'” said Jason Martin, 37, an entrepreneur previously involved in the printing and music business.
On Wednesday, the shop received a steady flow of foot traffic, with grateful customers approaching the Martins to thank them for slashing their former fro-yo commute.
Read more about the new frozen yogurt shop in Harlem from DNAinfo:
harlemfyi 