First, I noticed the Space Age-like decor inside and then I noticed the signs on the window that said things like “I got your Atkins right here” and “Lifetime addiction starts here”. After that, I couldn’t help but wonder what exactly this place was selling. Did they have miracle weight-loss food? Or, was it the millionth Pinkberry impersonator? I wasn’t the only person wondering because two other people did the exact same thing and followed me inside.
What is this?
It was neither miracle weight-loss food nor Pinkberry; it was rice pudding. That was a relief because although I do love frozen yogurt, I think the last thing New York (or LA) needs is another trendy frozen yogurt joint. Rice to Riches is an institution dedicated entirely to selling rice pudding. To be honest, I have never had rice pudding in my whole life and I wasn’t sure I was about to start. The texture of rice pudding looks far from appetizing and yet I was still intrigued.
They have dozens of flavors, from basic vanilla rice pudding to creative flavors like “Sex Drugs and Rocky Road”, “Take Me to Tiramisu” and “Fluent in French Toast”. Well, if nothing else, they sure put some time into the naming of this pudding. They also have toppings like toasted pound cake, caramel vanilla sauce, and oatmeal coconut crumble. At that point, I felt I had to at least sample it.
The cinnamon flavored rice pudding was not too bad. In fact, it was pretty delicious once you get past the fact that you are eating pudding with sushi sticky rice. The salesperson behind the counter would not release the nutrition info or calorie content to me. She just said, “We don’t know, we just know it’s lower in calories than ice cream.” Well, great, I am glad it has less than hundreds of calories. Someone must really, really like this stuff because you can get an 80 ounce order for $40.
As I sat there thinking this could be the next “big thing” in food, the saleswoman told me that Rice to Riches has been around for 6 years. Well, it doesn’t look like I am going from rags, or Rice to Riches anytime soon but I commend them for a creative business concept. If rice pudding is your thing, head over to their store on Spring Street. They also ship overnight to anywhere in the country. (Do people in the middle of Alabama get rice pudding cravings so badly they need it shipped overnight? I wonder…)
Is rice pudding the new frozen yogurt? I am not so sure...
Limit: 500 rice puddings per customer. No joke.
-KTS
