Temperatures are already rising up and up, so what better way to cool off than with the light and refreshing sweetness of snow cones, sno-balls, and shaved ices.
What are the differences between the three? Snow cones are made with granulated crushed ice and flavored syrups. Sno-balls are, texturally speaking, finer versions of snow cones. Then there are shaved ices, which are fluffier than snow cones and fashioned by shearing blocks of ice into thin layers, and then flavored. The Hawaiian version adds ice cream to the bottom. Bingsu is the Korean version with sno-ball-like shave ice and toppings that are mixed up. Halo-halo is the Filipino version, with an emphasis on colorful layers.
In Austin, find Taiwanese snow ice from SnoMo (formerly known as Snow Monster), New Orleans-styled sno-balls from Sweet Caroline’s Snow Shack, classic water ices from Jim-Jim’s Water-Ice, and plenty of others serving up loads of sweet frozen relief from the summer sun. Prime snow cone season lasts until October. This update adds bingsu from Bar Peached, SnoCool SnoBalls, Texas Go Freezee, and Snobowla.
Keep in mind that many of these businesses operate seasonally, which usually means between March through late October.
For more cold treats, look out for Austin's best ice cream shops, ice cream sandwiches, milkshakes, and Thai rolled ice cream.
See a favorite snow cone/shave ice/sno-ball/the like spot missing? Hit the tipline or comment below.
Read More