Swirl Into Spring at Swirlie Whirlie

The self-serve frozen yogurt trend has undoubtedly stole the sweets scene in recent years, and now it's more local than ever—perfect timing weather-wise, right?

Swirlie Whirlie, located in Waterdam Centre off of Route 19, opened in earlier this month. Owners Nicole and Brian Goettler saw a need for the business in the community.

“I had the idea two years ago, then we started to see a lot of frozen yogurt shops popping up in the North Hills,” Brian said. “We loved the Peters area and the location.”

The two celebrated the shop’s grand opening on March 3 with a ribbon-cutting, and said they are proud to be the first frozen yogurt shop in McMurray.

“Peters has good economics and great family structure,” he said. “It has good facilities and everything’s really nice. We also noticed people are health-conscious here and we loved the idea of frozen yogurt because it is healthy.”

Originally from North Versailles, the couple relocated to Upper St. Clair in 2009. They said they were dining at  in Waterdam Centre twice a week when they noticed the spot a few doors down for lease. 

“Traffic was crazy during lunch and dinner time,” Brian said. “We knew it was the spot we wanted, so we went with it.”

He also said the location has been a hit with  and Canon-McMillan students—as well as area families.

“I hear we’re the talk of the town,” he said. “It’s pretty exciting. We’ve been so busy—beyond my expectations for the month of March.”

The fro yo joint offers more than most—77 toppings (soon to be 80), which, he said, is the most offered in any yogurt shop in Pennsylvania. The business has popular candies and an array of sugary toppings, but also offers cereals high in fiber, and gluten- and sugar-free yogurt flavors.

“Our vanilla flavor—one of eight—is really clutch for families and anyone on a diet,” Brian said. “Everything’s low-fat—110 calories per 4-ounce serving.”

The pair said they were going for a “beachy” theme and adorned the walls with pink, peach, orange and blue paint.

“I wanted everything to be clean and shiny, and the floor glossy,” he said.

Cleanliness is important to the new business owners, so they used dispensers for containing the cereals and certain candies.

“I saw them when I was browsing the Internet,” Brian said. “They’re mainly designed for cereals, but we knew we wanted to offer those so it worked out perfectly. It’s easy and clean—a quarter spin rather than using a spoon.”

Currently, the business is running a coupon in Clipper Magazine and today through Sunday is launching its first promotion—Swirl in the Spring.

Brian said they’ll be taking down names and emails, and generating a fan club list.

“We’ll send text messages and emails,” he said. “And, during the week, we’ll be giving away prizes—mostly gift cards and a grand prize on Sunday.”

Starting next week, the owners plan to list daily flavors on the website. A photo board featuring kids’ yogurt creations is also in the works.

Lastly, the shop has a cooler filled with fro yo popsicles, cakes, pies, and pints and quarts of yogurt to go.

“For frequent 'swirlers,' we’ll be offering punch cards and after the ninth purchased yogurt, they’ll get the tenth free,” Brian said. “We wanted to bring something that was fun and healthy to the area. There is nothing like it here.”

For more information, visit Swirlie Whirlie’s website, add the business as a friend on Facebook and follow its Twitter page, or call 724-260-5553.

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