One of the dessert shops that I visited last month in San Francisco was Powder Shaved Snow – San Francisco’s first shop dedicated to Taiwanese shaved snow. The shop was founded by David Chung and Mimi Hanley, two former tech workers, who saw an opportunity when they noticed a lack of shaved snow shops in the city. While I have had quite a bit of shaved snow like at Snowy Village, ZenQ and IcePik in Vancouver, I was intrigued by some of the flavours and options available at Powder Shaved Show.
Note: None of the food in this review was complimentary. This review was done anonymously.
Powder Shaved Snow Menu
Shaved snow is sort of a hybrid of shaved ice and ice cream. At Powder Shaved Snow, the snow is created by mixing local organic dairy with flavoured filter water like Matcha and Black Sesame. The mixtures are frozen into ice blocks which are then shaved-to-order into ribbons by machines.
The build-your-own options start at $4.50 for regular or $5.50 for large. Available flavours include Mango, Horchata, Vietnamese Coffee and so forth. The shaved snow also come with a waffle cookie. What I like is that they have some toppings to go with the shaved snow like Fruity Pebbles, Oreos, Sliced Almonds and more. Regular toppings are $0.50 or $0.75 for premium. If you’re feeling up to creating your own, there are two signature options: Valencia and Cereal Killer.
What I Tried
I went with a regular size Ube shaved snow with mochi toppings ($5.25) and regular size Matcha Green Tea shaved snow with sliced almonds ($5.25). The shaved snow had very nice light, fluffy textures and they tasted like their flavours with a bit of milkiness. Refreshing and not too sweet. The toppings were pretty good as well.
Divisadero Location
Located at Divisadero and Haight, Powder Shaved Snow is a really small shop with just one bench for seating inside. However, they have some tables outside. A nice place to enjoy these treats under the sunshine!
Overall Impression of Powder Shaved Show
The flavours, toppings, quality, and portions of the desserts were on point. I find their flavours and toppings more unique and interesting. I’d love to revisit them again sometime and try other flavours. Rating: 4/5
Powder Shaved Snow
Address: 260 Divisadero St, San Francisco, CA
Website: www.powdershavedsnow.com/