Rhino’s Frozen Yogurt & Soft Serve 

If you are driving down Kenwood Road in Blue Ash you pass a Shell station not much different than a thousand others you might see. But this particular station has a catchy rhinoceros sign outside, Rhino’s Frozen Yogurt & Soft Serve. Inside, you find a clean, well organized, self-serve frozen yogurt shop with eye-catching displays of variegated toppings.

Years ago in 2014, when owner Rob Miller added this feature to his gas station, it grew slowly and he felt good about the addition to his business. But as the frozen yogurt became more popular, Miller encountered an unexpected problem. Some children in the neighborhood could not eat his frozen yogurt because it was not kosher. Rather than shrug off the issue as many people would have done, Miller was disturbed. He hated the idea that kids nearby could not enjoy his store. After all, if you open a frozen yogurt shop, you do not want to hear about unhappy children who cannot enjoy it. So three years ago, Miller took on the challenge of making his frozen yogurt truly kosher. With help from people in the area, Miller soon turned his offerings into officially certified kosher frozen yogurt and soft serve, complete with certifications to prove it.

Two wide displays of toppings demonstrate the point. Along one wall there are too many toppings to count, with one larger section with strictly kosher toppings and the other not. Additionally, a refrigerated counter holds chilled toppings from fresh fruit to chocolate chip cookie dough to whipped cream. Here the owners clearly mark the cold kosher items with a bright red spot, so customers need not wonder.

Most of the flavors are dairy, so two machines were added that have non-dairy, fruit-based confectionaries available. When I tried the pineapple, I was impressed with the authentic fruit flavor.

And speaking of yogurt and soft serve flavors, on any given day, Rhino’s offers six different dairy-based flavors, and two non-dairy. And if that’s not enough, they rotate the flavors regularly with over 100 different selections.

So what was the result of converting the shop to kosher? Well, right off buses of elementary students on field trips began stopping there. Soon, more and more youth, especially teens with their own transportation, started coming by Rhino’s in the evening. Eventually, the Millers purchased the lot next door so they could have more parking. Now, Rhino’s busiest times? From mid evening until 3 a.m. Yes, frozen yogurt fans, Rhino’s is open 24/7 to make sure you can always give in to your cravings no matter the hour.

What an exciting neighborhood business success story. Rob Miller, along with his wife Lori have run the business for many years. In 2014, Rob added the frozen yogurt machines and named the shop after his young son Ryan, whose nickname was Rhino. The rest, as they say, is history, because Ryan now helps his mom and dad and it’s a true locally owned and operated neighborhood business. 

Although I visited Rhino’s in the afternoon, I could see how — despite this place being a corner gas station — teens would enjoy hanging around with friends. They even have Rhino’s “merch” available.

Who would guess that a gas station owner who wanted to expand his business by adding an enticing feature would end up creating a popular teen confectionary shop reminiscent of days when every neighborhood had places like this? Well, I certainly would not, but I am now, like you will be if you visit, a true convert. So go try some Rhino’s frozen yogurt…where the last taste lingers, long after it’s gone.