Kiersten Paterno was one of the many people willing to queue up to an hour to treat herself to some frozen yoghurt.

“It was a 45-minute wait for my turn but the whole experience of choosing your flavours and customising it with different toppings was a big part of the appeal for me,” the 19-year-old student says.

Froyo was a huge trend in the UK in the late 2000s and early 2010s and was most popular in London.

Chains like Snog had 10 stores in the capital at its peak and other brands like AngelBerry had shops in Bristol and Brighton.

And this year it’s made a comeback, driven by nostalgia, social media and its perception as a healthier dessert choice.

Several brands such as Go Greek, Myka and Yo-Chi launched in London, while Frurt, which operates mainly in the north west of England and Yorkshire, has opened new stores, including one in Leicester.

These companies saw hundreds of customers queueing to create their own dessert pot, despite it not being a particularly cheap treat, with tubs costing as much as £12.

Kiersten says she was initially attracted to the dessert as she could manage portion size and sweetness level.

“I could control how sweet I wanted it to be through the toppings. It feels healthier overall as it’s a dessert I can enjoy without feeling like I’ve overindulged.”

She admits it can be pricey but says she doesn’t mind spending a little more as an occasional treat.

Research suggests the froyo market is steadily growing. Market Data Forecast estimates that the European frozen yoghurt market is worth £434m in 2026, up from £419m last year.

Australian brand Yo-Chi opened a Notting Hill branch in August and blew up quickly on social media for its range of toppings and “third space” feel.

“Sweet treat culture is huge. People aren’t spending a fortune on big things, but a little thing like that, they’re happy to,” says Bethan Clarke, Yo-Chi campaign manager.

While Yo-Chi would “never call ourselves healthy” – froyo is usually lower in calories and fat than ice cream, but may also contain more added sugar – Clarke says the fact that it is customisable means that people are in control of their own portion sizes and sugar levels.

Social media trends like “2026 is the new 2016” are helping froyo’s virality.

“People are coming back to re-experience childhood a little bit,” says Clarke.

Ella Light, who also works for Yo-Chi, says she’s been surprised by the mix of people coming into the store.

“I was kind of expecting to see the Gen Z girlies coming in, [but] this morning there was a group of builders!”

But how likely is the current froyo craze to survive? After all, it was huge in the 2010s but by the end of that decade was all but dead.

Vhari Russell, founder of Food Marketing Experts, says: “Market over-saturation played a role in the initial disappearance of froyo, as well as the natural cycle of dying trends.”

Market leader Snog faced increasing competition from the likes of Yog, Yoomoo and Pinkberry, while consumers also realised that the dessert may not have been the healthier option they initially thought it was.

“But now 2010s throwbacks coupled with a modern twist are seeing huge appetite across the market,” says Russell.

Will £12 for a tub eventually start to put people off though?

Russell doesn’t believe so, as she calls it an “affordable luxury”.

Going out for a froyo can be “an experiential moment” as much as anything, she adds.

“For many people, they don’t smoke or have expensive lifestyles, so froyo isn’t viewed as food, it’s viewed as an experience.”

If the price of froyo seems unreasonable or if you can’t justify queueing for hours, BBC Food have five different froyo variations you can make at home.