Having been to Taiwan many times (including the infamous Love Boat), I’ve had shaved ice before. Recently though, I tried shaved snow for the first time. A new desserts place opened up in Mountain View near where I lived called Snow-Zen and tried the mango flavored shaved snow and it was tasty!
After a quick Google search, apparently shaved snow is quite the rage in the San Francisco Bay Area for over a year now (or at least according to the San Francisco Chronicle). What is shaved snow? Instead of shaved ice with added flavoring and fruit syrups, toppings or condensed milk, shaved snow is more like ice cream – with flavorings such as mango, green tea, etc.. and is mixed into a base of milk and water, then frozen into blocks that are then shaved into thin slices – thin enough that the shaved snow melts easily (and tastefully) in your mouth.
From reading the Yelp reviews, I guess there is this dessert chain in Southern California called Class 302 (what kind of name is that?) that claims to be the first to ever serve shaved snow in the U.S. since 2006. So I guess I am definitely behind the times, since I’ve visited Taiwan at least twice and LA several times since 2006. Anyways, when you get a chance, definitely try some shaved snow – you’ll be glad you did!
