Snowice

Wanted to let people know the place is open again!
Have always enjoyed the monstrous shaved ice here, definitely a good dessert.

The order took awhile than expected but overall it was tasty. The portions were big enough for two or three people. Presentation was really clean and precise.

They were closed for renovations last time I came and I was happy to see it open today. We wanted some cool on this hot hot day. Ordered a rosy berry size small 7.99 $. Size small is perfect for two people to enjoy. Waited about 8 minutes and then our buzzard rang. Enjoyed the shaved ice on their couch. Felt like we got a table at a club lol. The ice had was fruity and there was just enough condensed milk. Not too sweet. Great treat on a hot day.

Update! So this store revamped and it taste good again! The snow is powdery again and balanced with sweet and sour! Super fresh fruits too!

Unfortunately I was not impressed at all with this place. Tried the Hawaiian Yum and it came out to $ 9.70 total. That’s the price of a lunch or dinner at most places! For almost 10 bucks it’s a big bowl of lightly flavored taro shaved snow with pieces of fruit like banana, strawberry, pineapple and mango. Had some mochi balls, and supposedly condensed milk but the whole thing was pretty much flavorless. I heard this place changed owner so maybe that is why it isn’t good anymore or so I’ve heard? To be frank, this probably costs them $ 1.50 at most to make. Not worth the money IMO. If the ice here was closer to $ 5, then maybe I’d go back to try other flavors… I guess Sno-​Zen continues to be the South Bay’s best shaved snow spot.

Was just there last weekend and had the most wonderful dessert. It was open and I hope it stays open. I certainly plan on returning.
Went again and unfortunately it was not as good as the first time. But the place is open for business. The first time it was delicious worth 5 stars. My second visit not very good Worth 2 stars at best. I think they need better quality control.

THIS PLACE IS CLOSED.
I love Snow Ice, and I was sad to see it (and Café Milan) covered in blue tarps.
There is no sign indicating whether they are closed temporarily or for good.
The phone number listed on Unilocal is disconnected.
My heart aches.

I came here a while back and haven’t been here since.
It can be tricky to find because it isn’t one of the regular shops on this corner, it’s actually inside the plaza with a bunch of other eateries, like an asian food court.
I ordered the Hawaiian Yum snow ice which comes with a bunch of fruits and taro-​flavored ice (not to be confused with shaved ice– its not shaved, it’s supposed to be a powdery consistency). The ice isn’t snowy enough for my liking and seemed inconsistent; I found a lot of little ice clumps in mine.
I didn’t think the taro flavor was strong enough. I guess you could say it was more on the bland side. Also, at 8 – 9 dollars or so for one order, I think the value is really not the best.
And so, the search for great patbingsoo continues…

I think they changed name to be «café Milan» now. Over price. We ordered «eat your green» and «mocha woof». The eat your green was mocha, melon, and green tea ice cream. Ice cream was artificially sweet, melting and not delicious. The ingredients portion were limited. The mocha is just ice with Oreo. Very disappointed.

It is good, but not as good as a shave ice or a shave snow. The texture is in between the two, which was confusing for me.
The watermelon flavor on the ice was ok but the watermelon balls tasted sour. Maybe the watermelon was not in season, or maybe they scooped the balls near the rind, but the fruit was my least favorite part. For the amount of ice they serve you, I was a little disappointed with the lack of toppings.
Overall, I guess I expected more from this place. I had heard great things about this place so I was a sad that Snowice did not meet my expectations. I might try Snowice again, but I will try another flavor.

This place used to be a solid 4 stars, but when I went a few days ago, they had changed the size of the bowls. Now, instead of a big mound of ice and lots of fruit, the snow ice is in small glass bowls with much less ice and barely any fruit and toppings. I asked why the bowls were so small and the person working there said it was because the owner thought the new bowls were prettier… If the bowls are that much smaller, then lower the price of the ice. It is definitely not worth over 8 dollars for a small bowl of snow ice in a prettier bowl.
As for the snow ice itself, I really like mocha mood and rosy berry! They are must tries if you are looking to spend a lot of money on a small bowl of dessert.

I used to love getting the Rosy Berry here! It’s a bit of a drive, so I was disappointed when I came on a weekday afternoon and they were all out. I ended up getting the green tea ice topped with green tea ice cream instead – not bad, but definitely not what I was hoping for!
While the desserts have always been satisfying here, I’m not really a fan of the vibe. It looks super cute at first, but it takes FOREVER to get served when I only ever see 1 – 2 people working at a time, and it’s usually only one when I go. The desserts have definitely gotten smaller over time, and it’s a bit disappointing to recommend this place and show up to flickering lights, a large chunk of the wall behind the signage painted over, and messy tables and chairs.

Given how muggy the weather has been as of late, now seems as good of a time as any to finally finish my review for Snowice. I mean, if I can’t eat it right now, I might as well write about it!
Located inside the Lawrence Plaza Food Court, the counter to order from Snowice is actually underneath the sign for Café Milan. However, given how they share the same space, I think they’re essentially one in the same. There about fifteen delicious sounding varieties on the menu (including the Titanic, which serves seven), and I’ve been fortunate enough to try three over my two trips here.
– MONKEY LOVER — Banana Ice, Bananas, Fresh Fruit, Mochi…$ 10.99 lg
(
)
Bananas and chocolate always make for a tasty combination, but admittedly, it was a bit much after a while. Talk about a banana overload, though it probably didn’t help any that my friend and I were sharing a large order. Still, it was pretty good overall!
– EAT YOUR GREEN — Green Tea Ice, Mochi, Fresh Honeydew, Green Tea Ice Cream…$ 7.99 sm
(
)
I had never had honeydew and green tea ice cream together, but they tasted great! I really liked how the tea’s strong flavors and the dish’s overall sweetness offset each other. Too bad all green tea ice creams don’t taste as good as this one!
– MOCHA MOOD — Coffee Ice, Mochi, Oreo, Fresh Fruits…$ 7.99 sm
(
)
To be clear, I thought this one was pretty good. It’s just that the flavor isn’t as unique as others on the menu, like the Eat Your Green. For better or worse, it tastes just like a mocha, though I thought the grounded up oreos were a nice touch.
While Snowice is an awesome spot in its own right and a solid way to keep cool on a warm day, I have to say it still doesn’t surpass my all-​time favorite, the now-​closed Chasaengwon Tea House (I miss that place so much). That being said, I’m still pretty happy being «stuck» with Snowice as my second favorite. Plus, they make for a perfect dessert spot for a date!

Snowice kinda does a brick toast version of shaved snow by adding ice cream and fruit and other toppings conveniently prearranged into combos. They have a good variety of sweet flavors and fruit flavors and most come in a small or large. They also have a pre-​made one that serves 6 and 12!
The dessert is overall pretty satisfying, it’s just a little expensive. Whereas a small in most places would cost less than $ 5, I think I paid over $ 9 for the taro one. It was good and came with strawberries and pineapples and bananas and condensed milk but just too expensive. I’ve also tried the green tea and a small is better to share but still overpriced. The snow is a little too tough and the other toppings overwhelm what is supposed to be the star of the dish. It’s not bad to try a few flavors if you’re nearby maybe after eating at the food court or Korean food.

I mean, this place is good, but certainly not the best. If you look harder you’ll find better places. But honestly, I’m not sure why I keep coming back. This place is getting some crap reviews and harsh criticism, but my purpose here is to negate all of that. This place isn’t even all that terrible.
Now I had to look up the different between shaved ICE and shaved SNOW. Apparently, shaved ice is just the crushing of regular, standard ice into a powdery consistancy, topped with flavoring syrup. However, shaved snow, the one that everyone is expecting (for some reason), is made from freezing a flavored block of ice and shaving off thin slices to make a «tissue-​papery» type consistancy. Come on, guys. They both taste the same, the only difference, to me, is texture.
Just look at the pictures if you don’t want to read. They basically summarize what I’m going to say next. :)
Whenever I go here with friends, we usually go and get BBQ Town and then proceed to stuff our faces with shaved ice for dessert. And honestly, even if you’re full, do yourself a favor and just try some — it’s basically flavored water and fruit; it’s not all that heavy. Anyways, my friends and I ordered an «Eat Your Greens,» a matcha-​flavored shaved ice, drizzled with chocolate, sprinkled with melon balls, and topped with amazing green tea ice cream and mochi. Holy crap the mochi is good. They used to serve this in small bowl, but now they have some tall inverted cones that give you more for your money. We ordered a «Falling Fruits» the second time around and wow it was delicious. Same deal, a flavored shaved ice with condensed milk, balls of fruit, banana, strawberry, and delicious mochi.
The staff was very friendly to us, offering us free mochi (hehehe) and taking part in conversation. There is obviously an abundance of seating, as the whole plaza is shared between all the different shops. Although this shaved ice isn’t the best, you certainly get more than what you pay for and is definitely worth it if you’re in the area. I’ll be coming back for more for sure!

The wifey and I came to Snowice with Super Elite Denise L in search of some good snow. Despite the name, Snowice hasn’t caught onto the shaved snow craze. Rather, they do shaved ice.
Shaved ice and shaved snow? Aren’t they the same? I initially thought so, but it turns out that the texture and method of preparation is very different. Shaved ice is just that — plain ice shaved into a powder form, then drizzled with flavoring. Shaved snow, on the other hand, involves mixing flavoring with a base, freezing it into large blocks, and then shaving off thin slices with a large blade. The result is that shaved snow has a layered texture and a more consistent flavor.
So… back to shaved ice. We were trying to decide between the Strawberry, Lychee and Green Tea flavors. The friendly cashier told us that Green Tea (aka Eat Your Green) was the best choice, so we went with that. The green tea portion was a small scoop of ice cream on top of chocolate-​drizzled shaved ice. Honeydew melon balls and mochi balls adorned the edges. A work of art in itself! At $ 8 for a small size, the portion was quite reasonable and enough for the three of us to share.
The ice cream was good, and I’m a sucker for chocolate, so I enjoyed the outside of the shaved ice. The inside, however, was somewhat plain with little chocolate and more ice. Who wants a mouthful of plain ice? Heh.
Super friendly service, and they didn’t mind us staying past closing time as they were cleaning up. I wouldn’t mind coming back, but if given the choice, it’s shaved snow for me any day.

Snowice is located in the Korean mall plaza. I love that although they’re in the mall, they have their own small seating area with the cutest array of chairs!
Their menu is various with drinks, ice cream, and their famous snow ice of course. I’ve tried a few different snow ice plates and I have to say, they LOOK better than they taste unfortunately. Even with all the condensed milk it’s still very bland. The fruit on the dishes are never sweet sadly and doesn’t add anything to the ice. It’s pretty pricey but at least it feeds a group of people.
It’s a decent dessert place for the area but I wouldn’t go out of my way for it.

I’ve come here twice, both times following dinner at Orenchi.
It’s located in a food court, so there are lots of things to do and eat (Paris Baguette, Face Shop, Korean food for dinner #2).
I’ve had the Rich Lychee and Falling Fruits, both of which are appropriate for ~4 people to share. They each come out to ~$ 12. The Rich Lychee was more enjoyable as the ice is actually lychee flavored, and the fruits were more plentiful. The Falling Fruits ice seems like a misnomer as there were scarcely any fruits, and was for the most part red bean and peanut toppings.
It’s a decent place to hang out after dinner, but I wouldn’t come expressly for the ice.

If you’re looking for some shaved ice that is actually the type of ice that melts in your mouth and is soft and fluffy, this is the place to go.
Before going to Snowice I had gone to Paris Baguette because of the infamous patbingsoo. I was really looking forward to the quality of the patbingsoo at Paris Baguette since I’ve had it in Korea so many times. Paris Baguette left me disappointed since the consistency of the ice was a bit rock hard. It didn’t melt in my mouth and I had to wait a while until the ice would actually dissolve.
However, Snowice left my tastebuds ringing. The ice just melts in your mouth so fast. We went during the winter so the fruit isn’t the freshest, but it was still a tasty treat. We got the Falling Fruit snowice and it was fantastic. Lots of fruits on the side, lots of red bean, and a squirt of strawberry syrup and sweetened condensed milk. I don’t think that the strawberry syrup was necessary since it tastes more on the artificial side. However, I was still pleased since it was better than what I’ve tasted elsewhere.
It wasn’t the most exceptional shaved ice ever, but it was still good enough to want to come back if I ever have a shaved ice craving.

Need a good shaved ice fix? Or maybe you’re waiting for Orenchi Ramen to open like we were? Come here and order the Hawaiian Yum. I’ve had a lot of good shaved ice in my life but the yam flavored ice was different and too good.
This place is ran by people in high school and most of the customers are in high school too so expect lots of visibly low self esteem and awkward opposite sex interactions.
I like how Snowice uses a lot of random furniture for sitting – it’s like you’re eating at your grandparents house on old chairs/​tables.
Again, a great place to get dessert before or after eating at Orenchi Ramen down the street.