Pinkberry Opens Georgetown Store

Pinkberry has arrived in Georgetown. Though the new M Street store was to have been the first location for the L.A.-based chain in the D.C. area, it comes in at number five instead.

D.C. area chain owner Stavros Roberts said when he first got the go-ahead to open stores in the region three years ago, Georgetown was his first stop. But he said the real estate market in the neighborhood initially made it hard for him to find just the right location.

Eventually Karen Snyder, who owns the building at 3288 M St., worked with Roberts to create a space for the new Pinkberry store at the former home of the .

Snyder was so accommodating, said Roberts, that she even gave up her coveted off-street parking spot so that Pinkberry could put in a covered patio.

Roberts said he first discovered Pinkberry when he wandered into a store in Santa Monica. Once he and his wife tried the yogurt he said, "we fell in love with it."

The Georgetown store shares many of the same design elements as Pinkberry's more than 100 locations. Founder and designer, Young Lee, seeks to incorporate natural elements in the store's decor. You'll find colors like the blue sky and green grass, cheery warm lighting and a floor meant to resemble sand with its light-colored pebble material.

Georgetown neighbors and visitors were quick to take up the offer for a free small yogurt on Thursday, Dec. 22, the sneak peek day.

Maureen Hirsch, the director of marketing at Clyde's, stopped by for some fro-yo for lunch. She said she loves the yogurt because it is tasty and relatively guilt-free when it comes to calories.

Sandon Nixon, a graduate of Catholic University, was in town from Arizona with his mother, Eileen, from Rehoboth Beach, De. The two stopped in for a peppermint and chocolate treat respectively.

Mr. Nixon said he was glad to find the free treat to add to the trip he made with his mother to D.C. to see Billy Elliott at the last night. He said he liked the design of the store, which was warmer and less harshly white than many of the fro-yo places he's been before.

Mrs. Nixon said she's an unabashed "chocoholic." "I know chocolate and THIS is chocolate," she said as she enjoyed another spoonful of her free creation.