Shave ice: The hot item to cool you off this summer
• Essentials for shave-ice slurping
By Catherine E. Toth
Advertiser Staff Writer
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| The Waiola Store, on a corner in McCully, continues to lure folks with its super-fine shave ice with homemade syrups, especially on hot days.
Gregory Yamamoto • The Honolulu Advertiser |
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| Matsumoto Shave Ice is a legendary spot for shave ice fans of all ages. The Hale'iwa store sells up to 1,000 cones on a hot day.
Advertiser library photo • July 1998 Hottest spots for cold treats Baldwin's Sweet Shop 98-040 Kamehameha Highway, 488-0505 Hours: 10 a.m.-6 p.m. Mondays through Fridays; 10 a.m.-5 p.m. Saturdays; noon-4 p.m. Sundays Ice Gardens 'Aiea Shopping Center, 488-5154 Hours: 10 a.m.-5 p.m. Mondays through Saturdays; noon-5 p.m. Sundays Island Snow Kailua Kailua Beach Center, 263-6339 Hours: 10 a.m.-7 p.m. daily Matsumoto Shave Ice 66-087 Kamehameha Highway, 637-4827 or www.matsumotoshaveice.com Hours: 8:30 a.m.-6 p.m. daily Tropicana Freeze 3036 Wai'alae Ave., 739-2098 Hours: Noon-7 p.m. Mondays, Tuesdays and Thursdays; noon-5 p.m. Wednesdays; noon-8 p.m. Fridays and Saturdays; 1-6 p.m. Sundays Waiola Store 2135 Waiola St., 949-2269 Hours: 7:30 a.m.-6:30 p.m. daily |
Summer is something you can feel. And you can't escape it, a penetrating heat that bores into your skin, warming your body from the inside out.
The only relief: something icy cold, preferably in a cone.
Shave ice is as summer as south swells, as Hawai'i as rubbah slippahs. Nowhere else on the planet is the concept of shave ice as much a part of the culture and identity of its eaters.
People travel miles to eat this year-round treat at their favorite shave-ice stand, no matter how far, no matter how long the lines. Some have hopped on planes to seek out what Hawai'i transplants have been spreading by word of mouth: Brah, you gotta try it.
You don't have to drive to the North Shore to get some. Every neighborhood has its own brand of shave ice, from Kalihi to Kapolei. Crack-seed stores, surf shops, restaurants, lunch wagons, at the beach, in the mall — you can find shave ice just about anywhere.
So what sets them apart?
Some say it's the texture of the ice. Some say it's the syrup. Others say it's in the location, the atmosphere, the ambiance.
But everyone agrees: Eating shave ice is an experience unto itself.
Shannon Oshiro will tough the commute from her home in Kane'ohe to Hale'iwa to eat at Matsumoto Shave Ice.
"I like the drive," said the 33-year-old administrative officer at the University of Hawai'i Natural Sciences Department, on a lunch break at Tropicana Freeze on Wai'alae. "Because there's more to it than just the shave ice."
Sweets to top it all off
Sometimes it really is what's on the inside that counts.
Whether it's vanilla ice cream or azuki beans, what's beneath the mound of flavored ice matters most to hungry customers.
Island Snow Kailua serves up more than just the standard options of ice cream and azuki beans. The shave-ice counter, which shares space with surf shirts, board shorts and baseball caps, offers bubble gum (an additional 10 cents) and sour balls (19 cents) to add a youthful kick to your shave ice. A surprise ending.
But the most popular add-on at this busy Kailua store is its chocolate snowcap, a gooey-sweet topping that matches perfectly the Kona coffee-flavored syrup.
What's in the chocolate snowcap?
"It's a secret," said Eric Korpi, 17, who has been working part time at Island Snow for about four months. "We can't tell you."
Each store has its own personality, mostly depending on location. Being the only shave-ice counter in Kailua and mere steps from the beach, Island Snow corners the market of kayak renters, beach strollers and paddlers who frequent the Kailua fixture. (The store has been open since 1979.)
A freckle-face girl, not more than 6, approached the counter on a hot Thursday afternoon. In blue jelly slippers and a hot pink tankini, she adjusted her glasses, mesmerized by the rows of colorful syrup bottles. Her mom ordered for her: "Regular cone, lemon-lime and lemonade, bubble gum with a snowcap."
Her dad picked her up so she could watch Angie Britten, the store manager, pack the ice and pour the syrup.
"Is that the big cone?" she asked.
"It's the biggest cone you're gonna get here," Britten said with a smile as warm as the afternoon sun, handing her the towering shave ice. "You're gonna need two hands to hold that."
Island Snow won't dish out its recipe for its popular chocolate snowcap. But Britton did explain the science behind its ice.
The blocks of ice are allowed to warm slightly in coolers overnight, so when they are shaved, the ice sticks better.
It must work, since the store sells up to 500 cones on any sweltering summer day.
Lured by the unusual
Sometimes, though, it's the unusual, not the typical, that sells.
Ice Gardens in 'Aiea delivers just that, an offbeat approach to the time-tested favorite that combines trends in Asia (ice desserts and snacks are very popular there) with local tastes.
An okazu-ya of shave ice, the store, open for about 10 years, resembles a sushi counter. And the array of choices is just as unusual, just as distinctive as those in trendy sushi bars: red beans, peanuts, taro milk, tapioca, oatmeal.
"It's unique," said a 27-year-old who wouldn't give his name because he was ditching work — second day in a row — to satisfy a craving for shave ice topped with mochi balls, chocolate syrup and tapioca. "I mix it up. Tastes good."
Alan Sherman has been a regular for seven years. In fact, he doesn't even have to order anymore; as soon as the owners see the 32-year-old from Mililani about to open the door, they put in his order: No. 5, two times.
Sherman, who fixes appliances mostly in the 'Aiea area, indulges at Ice Gardens twice a week, always eating two servings of shave ice topped with pudding, taro milk, tapioca and mochi balls. No azuki beans.
"No place else get 'em," Sherman said, polishing off his second bowl. "What makes this place good? The hands that make 'em."
Regulars at Tropicana Freeze on Wai'alae Avenue feel the same way: the more unusual, the better.
The small window-only shop, which opened about five years ago, specializes in the unusual. Combinations include fresh strawberries and bananas, mochi balls and condensed milk. The Treasure Island ($3.25) features an overflowing bowl of azuki beans, mochi balls, fruit cocktail and condensed milk.
Oshiro, who eats shave ice about once a month, likes Tropicana not just for its proximity to her UH job, but for its "real-fine ice, mochi balls and lots of syrup."
But ultimately — and more for emotional than practical reasons — Oshiro prefers Matsumoto Shave Ice in Hale'iwa. Even if other shops serve more interesting toppings and finer-shaved ice.
"It's the long drive that makes the shave ice a reward," she said.
An island legend
Matsumoto Shave Ice has two things over its competitors: location and history.
A fixture in Hale'iwa, the rustic general store has withstood flat surf and temperamental economies to proudly boast: "Da coolest place."
Mamoru and Helen Matsumoto opened the country grocery store in 1951 on the site of the old Tanaka Store on Kamehameha Highway. Mamoru peddled his wares in the neighborhood as Helen manned the store and continued to sew. The birth of their three children prompted the couple to expand their business. A decade after opening, the Matsumotos began selling shave ice to the hot-and-thirsty tourists and surfers seeking out the sights and swells of the North Shore.
Matsumoto's has reached mythical status.
Even people who prefer the finer texture of Tropicana and the Waiola Store in McCully won't deny the charm and longevity of Matsumoto Shave Ice.
"It's the best shave ice on the island," said Ainoa Castaneda, a 21-year-old engineering major at UH, who was on an around-the-island excursion with his college friends.
The Nishimuras traveled from even farther — Torrence, Calif. — to sample the famed treat.
"Everyone on the Mainland knows about Matsumoto Shave Ice," said Patti Nishimura, 45, mother of two, visiting Hawai'i for the first time since her honeymoon 20 years ago.
Her children, Karissa and Kyle, visiting the Islands for the first time, slurped and sipped their large cones, dripping with strawberry syrup.
Even though they preferred Waiola's version, the Nishimuras just had to drive to the legendary North Shore store.
There seems to always be a line at Matsumoto's, no matter what time of day. On a late afternoon during a summer weekday, the line snaked out of the small general store and around the corner into a gravel parking lot. The distinct smell of sunscreen mingled with the sweet taste of Matsumoto's homemade syrup.
Despite a commercialized feel — with Matsumoto T-shirts hanging from the rafters and a souvenir-penny machine outside — the store retains rural charm. You can buy rubber slippers, shrimp chips, li hing mui and island maps here.
But shave ice will always be the store's signature product, selling, on a warm summer day, up to 1,000 cones. Strawberry and rainbow, of course, are its best sellers.
Enjoyment now and later
Those are the most popular flavors at Baldwin's Sweet Shop in Waimalu, too.
Tucked away in the Waimalu Shopping Center among barbershops, restaurants and jewelry stores, Baldwin's is a neighborhood secret.
About 3:45 p.m. one Thursday, a line of about 20 people flowed out its doors and into the drizzle. The shop, open for 24 years (six years at this location), also sells packages of arare, cookies, candies and crack seed. But most people come for the shave ice, served in disposable cups with lids. (They've been selling their shave ice this way for about 10 years.)
"This tastes better than anyone else, (better) than Matsumoto's," raved Josephine Dudoit, 38-year-old courtesy driver for Alamo Rent A Car, who eats Baldwin's product every day.
"The 'ohana is here," added her friend Ruby Shimaoka, a 60-year-old bus driver. "That's what makes the thing so good."
The twosome brought 10 shave ices — strawberry with vanilla ice cream — to take home, which isn't unusual at Baldwin's. A lot of people buy in bulk and freeze them for later.
Family tradition at Waiola
If Matsumoto is legendary, then the Waiola Store in McCully is on the brink of epic greatness.
Over the years, its brand of super-fine shave ice and homemade syrup has made the tiny corner store, open since 1940, a household name.
Waiola boasts 35 flavors of syrup, from chocolate to blueberry to sour apple to green tea. The Lee family has even perfected cream versions of local favorites, such as strawberry and vanilla, in an attempt to satisfy the changing tastes of customers.
Take the recent li hing craze. Nearly every shave-ice stand serves li hing flavors. But Waiola takes it a step further. It offers a li hing combination that brings together li hing-flavored shave ice topped with powder, sauce and crack seed.
The most expensive combination, however, fits in a take-out container. For about $10, one regular customer orders haupia shave ice with ice cream, custard, azuki beans, condensed milk and mochi balls — times eight.
"Can you imagine that?" said owner Jerry Lee, amazed each time this order comes in, every two weeks. "That's a meal."
The secret to Waiola's shave ice is in its tradition. Lee hasn't changed the method of shaving the ice or making the syrup in decades. Even the temperature of the ice is critical.
"You can't imagine how much work goes into making shave ice," said Lee, who has worked in his parents' store for almost 20 years. "This is hard labor. A lot of work goes on behind the scenes."
Despite an increase in demand, they continue to cook four to five batches of syrup daily, in the same pot they've been using for years.
"We're a family, it's tradition," said Lee, who also manages the Kapahulu store, which opened three years ago.
Shave ice is more than just frozen water, shaved down and dumped into a paper cone.
It's Hawai'i. It's summer.
"And," Lee added, "it's tradition."
• • •
Essentials for shave-ice slurping:
Do:
- Eat slowly, or you'll get one of those icy headaches.
- Balance your attack with your spoon; start at the top, then work downward, always trying to maintain a methodical shave-down, or the whole shebang will topple.
- Slurp the syrup with your straw; sipping from the paper cup may weaken it and cause your precious ice to tumble.
- Forget calories, and occasionally "do" the add-ons: azuki beans or vanilla ice cream, or, yes, a combination of both.
- Bend forward, while eating, to avoid spilling on your clothing. Or feet, for that matter.
Don't:
- Call it ice shave (that's a Hilo thing).
- Wear white while eating, for obvious reasons.
- Squeeze your paper cup, or the cone will crumble and tumble.
- Stick your tongue out after you're pau; your tongue will be red (if strawberry was your choice) or — horrors! — blue.
- Order a rainbow shave ice; it's mostly a kiddie thing.
- Buy shave ice from a place that calls it snow cones, sno-cones, or anything remotely similar.
— Wayne Harada
• • •
Correction: Because of a reporter's error, an earlier version of this story incorrectly spelled Angie Britton's name.
