Frozen Yogurt Nostalgia: A Sweet Topping Of Lawton’s Past

When I was attending Cameron University, one of our favorite places to hang out was at Orange Leaf, a local self-serve frozen yogurt shop. We had a friend that worked there, and it was a bonus that the frozen yogurt and all the toppings were good. Unfortunately, the self-serve frozen yogurt craze started to dwindle after I graduated in 2015. Lawton was once home to multiple self-serve frozen yogurt shops, but today, none remain.

It the early 2000s, it seemed like every other day a new self-serve frozen yogurt shop was opening. Two of the main locations in Lawton were Cherry Berry, located in the shopping center at the corner of Gore Boulevard and Sheridan Road, and Orange Leaf, located in the shopping center on the corner of Cache Road and 67th Street.

But neither shop is open today. In fact, most self-serve frozen yogurt shops either closed after 2015 due to over saturation and a decrease in demand, or they didn't make it through the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020. Today, there are no self-serve frozen yogurt shops in Lawton, or hardly anywhere for that matter. And most millennials craving a taste of nostalgia find themselves asking, "did ALL of the self-serve frozen yogurt shops really need to close?"

Self-serve frozen yogurt was a popular dessert stop in Lawton during the early 2000s.

In the early 2000s, a self-serve frozen yogurt shop was one of the most popular places to get a sweet treat and hang out with friends. You could have your pick of dozens and dozens of frozen yogurt flavors. My favorite was always coconut.

And you could put on as many different toppings as you wanted. I wasn't super adventurous and would always stick to fresh fruits. But I had friends who loved to pile on gummy bears, Oreos and chocolate syrup.

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Then once you were done creating your frozen yogurt masterpiece, you checked out by weighing your frozen yogurt and you paid by the ounce. Partly the reason I only got fresh fruit as a topping because I didn't want to add the extra weight.

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Lawton's last self-serve frozen yogurt shop was Cherry Berry before it closed in 2020.

The last remaining self-serve frozen yogurt shop was Cherry Berry. The shop first closed in January 2014 before new ownership took over that March. Cherry Berry remained open till 2020, but did not remain open through the year, presumably due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

Now, if you want frozen yogurt in Lawton, the only place to get it is one of the Braum's locations. You'll only be able to get vanilla, chocolate or swirl, but at least there are still different toppings to add, like fruit, candy and chocolate or caramel sauce. But it won't be able to ever replace the iconic self-serve frozen yogurt shops.

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