For those who’ve been to Taiwan, you know how hot the weather can get, sweltering hot especially. It doesn’t matter if you’re naked or half-naked, you’re gonna be sweating bullets no matter how short the time you’re outside for. I literally walked half a block from where I was staying, and my armpits were already pumping out salty body water. It’s not really as bad as I’m making it out to be because Taiwanese shaved ice is my saving grace. Unlike those basic snow cones with artifically-flavored syrups drizzled on to them, Taiwanese shaved ice is icy, flaky, and the perfect treat to help you turn down the heat during those hot days. Cue The Best Mango Shaved Ice in Taipei.
What do you do when the weather is more than 70 degrees?
A. Hide in your room with the AC
B. Time to go out and play!
C. Buy mango shaved ice
Yongkang street is like a little foodie village with a hybrid of street food carts and long-established mom and pop eateries and shops, and where one can find the best mango shaved ice @ Smoothie House. According to their website, it’s called Smoothie House because the founder was studying abroad and came across a mango smoothie which really reminded him of the taste from his hometown, hence Smoothie House was born.
Normally, pre-covid, this shaved ice shop is so packed that it’s nearly impossible to get a seat by the patio. Anyhow, Smoothie House did a buy 1 get 1 promotion with the download of their food delivery partner app, which my boyfriend and I happily took advantage of.
There’s so many options on the menu: shaved ice, smoothies, and panna cottas. Of course we tried the Super Mango Snowflake Ice with Sorbet, in addition to Heart Of the Ocean Snowflake Ice, Mango Snowflake Ice with Taro Balls, and Lichi Snowflake Ice with Strawberry and Raspberry.
The ranking of the aforementioned is as follows:
Super Mango Snowflake Ice with Sorbet > Heart Of the Ocean Snowflake Ice > Mango Snowflake Ice with Taro Balls > Lichi Snowflake Ice w/ Strawberry and Raspberry
The best was the Super Mango Snowflake ice because each bite is full of mango-ful goodness, and the tartness of the mango sorbet went really well with the sweetness of the freshly diced mangos. The tartness and sweetness were balanced by the fluffy texture of the snowy mango milk flavored shaved ice.
The least favorite was the Lichi Snowflake Ice with Strawberry and Raspberry because the Strawberries were too tart, and wasn’t really sweet. The presentation was luxurious(it was topped with gold leaf).
Heart Of the Ocean Snowflake Ice: I loved the chewiness of the pearls(similar to boba), which is basically the Super Mango Snowflake Ice but with pearls for texture.
Mango Snowflake Ice with Taro Balls: I loved the chewiness of the taro ball and sweet potato ball. It’s similar to a glutinous rice ball, but is not as soft. Also similar to boba, but chewier than boba.
Some of the shaved ice comes with a jelly or a panna cotta. I tried the oolong tea jelly and the panna cotta.
The oolong tea jelly was light on the palate and calming on the mind.
The panna cotta was tasty and jiggly. It was almost like eating a sweet milk pudding.
