MoMo & Coco

HK’s Best Shaved Ice, Bingsu and Kakigori

Introduction

One of our most popular NYC dessert reviews is our guide to NYC’s best shaved ice. From ice kacang, to halo-halo, kakigori to bingsu to bingfen, the countless variations of sweet ice were the perfect escape from NYC’s humid summer days. On the other side of the world, summer in Hong Kong is about x1000 worse than NYC in terms of humidity, and as a consequence, we desperately made it our mission to track down the best of the best of Hong Kong’s shaved ice. Check out our guide below, and let us know if we have missed any of your favourites. 

HK’s best Japanese shaved ice 

  • ☑ Dessert destination: Shari Shari, various locations in Central, Causeway Bay, TST, Mong Kok.
  • ☑ Must eat flavour: Matcha, and seasonal specials such as sakura and guava.
  • ☑ Budget: $$ 
  • ☑ Short and sweet story:  With several locations scattered throughout the city, Shari Shari is perhaps the most well-known shaved ice spot in HK. The shaved ice here is very generously scooped, albeit just slightly smaller than the shaved ice at Lab Zero (see further below). Due to its size, Shari Shari’s shaved ice is not suitable for the solo dessert adventurer. Rather, Shari Shari is a group dessert spot. Texture wise, the shaved ice is crystalline and light. The available flavours lean towards Japan, and matcha lovers in particular should not miss the strong earthy tones of Shari Shari’s “Matcha” kakigori. The seasonal flavours make repeat visits to Shari Shari a necessity — the delicate “Sakura” and tangy “Guava” all provided wonderful relief from HK’s intense summer humidity. 
 

HK’s best Taiwanese shaved ice

  • ☑ Dessert destination: Pah Shih, various locations in Central, Causeway Bay, TST.
  • ☑ Must eat flavour: Any of the grass jelly-based shaved ice.
  • ☑ Budget: $$
  • ☑ Short and sweet story: At Pah Shih, the shaved ice is a doable solo-person size. Just very slightly sweet, it sits on a bed of slippery bouncy grass jelly and comes accompanied with a small bowl of taro mochi and red bean paste. Of the more than half a dozen variations available at Pah Shih, we have had the joy of the scaling small mountains of shaved ice covered in a plop of mango and also splattered with matcha and hojicha cream. Pah Shih’s extensive grass jelly-infused drinks menu are well worth the liquid sugar accompaniment as well. 

HK’s best Korean shaved ice

  • ☑ Dessert destination: Nun Dessert Cafe, Mong Kok, Kowloon.
  • ☑ Must eat flavour: Melon, White Peach.
  • ☑ Budget: $$
  • ☑ Short and sweet story: Nun is such a tiny spot in the middle of chaotic Mong Kok — if we hadn’t had our Google map on, we would have totally missed it. Stepping inside, its walls are lined with large portrait photos of various Korean idols and celebrities, and the space itself is as crammed with as many people as there might be at a K-pop concert. The shaved ice here skews towards milky and creamy, rather than icy in texture. Nun’s bingsu is also probably the smallest in size compared to the others on this list. The fruit flavours are the highlights at Nun; we loved the “Melon” and “White Peach.” The “Hojicha Pistachio” will make the ideal proposition for those without a sweet tooth.

HK’s largest shaved ice

  • ☑ Dessert destination: Lab Zero, TST, Kowloon.
  • ☑ Must eat flavour: Mango, Dubai Chocolate.
  • ☑ Budget: $$
  • ☑ Short and sweet story: Lab Zero offers the most extravagant serving of shaved ice in the city — they are literally the size of a soccer ball. Bring 3-4 friends to maximize the dessert adventure. 😛 While the base is more Japanese kakigori in texture (i.e. icy rather than creamy), the flavour offerings at Lab Zero skew towards pan-Asian and also fusion sensibilities. They are also especially exuberant and unrestrained in terms of flavour punch. We recommend two flavours in particular: (i) the “Mango,” which resembled a sunset-orange volcano, with mango syrup and coconut milk cascading down the giant white ice globe; and (ii) the “Dubai Chocolate,” an unexpectedly not-saccharine shaved ice, where nutty pistachio acted as a counterbalance to the Milo-accented chocolate tones. Expect to wait for a while for seats, even if therer are many empty tables inside.

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