Friday, February 27, 2009


Hawaiice Shaved Ice Machine for Home



This electric Hawaiice® Shaver makes mountains of fine powdery shaved ice snow in seconds. Our most popular electric home ice shaver, this shaved ice machine comes with a powerful ice shaving motor and 3 ice molds.

Simply fill the three ice molds with water and place them in your freezer overnight. Then, add one ice block to the machine and press lightly to create you own shaved ice at home. Next, add any of our Premium Shaved Ice Syrups and enjoy your own, unique Hawaiian Treat.

Easy-to-clean, heavy-duty, plastic, the shaved ice shaver will complement any kitchen counter.

It is also available in a Complete Home Package that includes shaved ice syrups and other supplies.

This is an excellent machine for home use. Combined with our award winning flavors, you will be able to create refreshing, popular treats for your kids and their friends. Of course, you'll end up making one for yourself too! Shaved Ice is a great summertime treat!

Thursday, February 26, 2009


Super Syrup Sale!!!




Through Friday 2/27/09 HawaiianShavedIce.com is featuring a syrup blowout sale! For a very limited time, you can order our award winning ready to use syrups for only $5.00 per quart bottle!

With over 75 mouth watering flavors available, now is the time to STOCK UP! Get ready for summer and order today! Don't delay...this sale only runs through tomorrow, Friday 2/27/09!

Click here to order today!


Mobile Vendors...Setting Up Your Calendar for 2009 Yet?



Mobile vendors, are you booking events for your 2009 season? If this is your first season and you don't know where to find good, comprehensive lists of events in your area, I would encourage you to use the following:

1. Your local Chamber of Commerce's website. Generally, they have a good list of events happening in your local area. Many times, they will have the initial contact information listed there too.
2. Festival Network Online. This is a good resource that I have used in the past to find events to fill up my calendar. I no longer do special events, however I know that they are a reliable resource for good, high traffic events.
3. FairsandFestivals.net. We have discussed this website previously here in the blog and recommended it. In addition to the special events listings they carry, their forum area may be useful for you too. It's always nice to have a place where you can ask questions and bounce ideas around with other concessionaires.
4. Festivals.com. This is another site with a good, comprehensive list of nationwide events.
5. Check the Links section here in the blog for other resources (Baseball, Softball, and Soccer Tournament directories). Sporting events draw large crowds and they get hungry and thirsty!

These are a few of the recommended resources we have used in the past to locate, good, high traffic events. I would encourage you to visit them and see if there are events happening near you that work with your schedule for the 2009 season. Whether you are looking at your inaugural season or you've been in mobile concessions for years, these are good sites to visit and find solid events for your concessions business.

Wednesday, February 25, 2009


Complete Shave Ice & Snow Cone Business Packages




So, are you ready to make the jump into owning and operating your own shaved ice or snow cone stand? Congratulations! You are on your way to an enjoyable, profitable business! We have some of the best snow cone and shaved ice business packages available anywhere! Our years of experience in this industry have led to the creation of some very comprehensive and complete packages.

Please visit our website to view the various packages that we have available. If you are unsure about which package will best serve your needs, please feel free to call us at 1-800-Shaved-Ice. We would be more than happy to help you choose a start up package. We are here to serve you!

**Make sure you order your package soon while our pre-season sale is still going!

Tuesday, February 24, 2009


Handy and Indispensable Squeeze Bottles




These squeeze bottles are great for stands that mix their own flavor syrups from our concentrates. The bottles measure one ounce of concentrate each time without spillage or loss of product. Simply loosen the cap from the dispensing chamber, squeeze the bottle to fill the measuring chamber and it will dispense the concentrate in perfect one ounce portions. Buy one for each flavor to have on hand! Get them now while they are still on sale before the busy season starts up again!

Monday, February 23, 2009


Subscribe to Our Newsletter



Interested in receiving the latest news from 1-800-Shaved-Ice? Subscribe to our email newsletter. Periodically, we sent out our newsletter featuring various products and information. It also usually includes discount coupon codes on special products too. So, subscribe today and enjoy! We respect your privacy and will NOT send you multiple emails every week.


Cotton Candy & Medical Science...Strange Bedfellows

Cotton candy is a treat enjoyed all over the world by folks young and old. But now, cotton candy has taken on a new role by contributing to developments in medical science. Who would have ever thought that the simple little sugary treat would ever be capable of something so significant? Well, it's true:

The flossy stuff may be just right for creating networks of blood vessels within laboratory-grown bone, skin, muscle or fat for breast reconstruction, researchers suggest.

Dr. Jason Spector of NewYork-Presbyterian Hospital/Weill Cornell Medical Center in New York and Leon Bellan of Cornell University present their preliminary research in a paper published online this week by the journal Soft Matter.

Here's how their technique would work:

First, you pour a thick liquid chemical over a wad of cotton candy. Let the liquid solidify into a chunk, and put that in warm water to dissolve the candy. That leaves tiny channels where the strands of candy used to be. So you have a chunk of material with a network of fine channels within.

Next, line these channels with cells to create artificial blood vessels. And seed the solid chunk with immature cells of whatever tissue you're trying to make. The block is biodegradable, and as it disappears, it will gradually be replaced by growing tissue. In the end, you get a piece of tissue permeated with tiny blood vessels.

So far, the researchers have made these blocks of material and run rat blood through the channels within. While they may eventually switch to something other than cotton candy as the research proceeds, Bellan said he hopes to stick with the inexpensive stuff as long as possible.

Spector, who keeps a jar of jelly beans on his desk, said he enjoys cotton candy and that with this project, "it's taken on a whole new meaning." Source: Fox News

Tuesday, February 17, 2009


Chilly Dilly’s – Ice Cream & Hawaiian Shaved Ice in York, PA



If you’re from the York, PA area, then there’s a strong possibility that you are already familiar with Chilly Dilly’s. Their popular, recognizable fleet of five trucks has faithfully been serving up tasty ice cream treats and Hawaiian Shaved Ice in neighborhoods and special events for five seasons now. Recently, I had a chance to ask Dylan Bauer, owner of Chilly Dilly’s, some questions about his business. For anyone who is thinking of starting their own concessions business, we hope you will glean some helpful information from Dylan’s experience.

What is the length of your season?

Dylan: We usually begin our season near the end of March, first part of April. We run until Halloween. Our final run is in the York Halloween Parade.

Why did you decide to incorporate Hawaiian shaved ice into your ice cream trucks?

Dylan: Simply put…profit. Shaved Ice has a huge profit margin. For example, on my trucks I sell a small cup of shaved ice for $2.00. The cost of making that cup of shaved ice runs me around $0.15 to $0.20. A large cup sells for $3.00, with a total cost of approximately $0.25. People love our shaved ice. It’s fresh and made to order just for them. People like that personal touch. I’m not a fan of snow cones. I think they are boring, cheap, wet, and watery. Shaved ice on the other hand is refreshing and a much better, tastier product.

What type of shaved ice machines do you use on your trucks?

Dylan: All 5 of my trucks use the Hatsuyuki 12 volt cube ice shavers. Since my trucks all use cold plate freezers for their ice cream products, the 12 volt ice shavers work very well for us. We use deep cycle marine batteries which allow our trucks to sit at a special event all day long serving ice cream and making shaved ice without any power issues at all. I also went with cubed ice shavers simply because cube ice is readily available. If, for some reason, one of my drivers runs out of ice on his route, it’s easy to find a convenience store or grocery store where cubed ice may be purchased.

How do you like the Hatsuyuki ice shavers?

Dylan: They’re great. I’ve had one of the machines for 5 years now and it’s seen a lot of use. But, it still is doing a great job. One tip that I would like to make people aware of is this: very cold ice can cause the machine to lock up. It will freeze up, requiring you to take it apart and clean it out. It’s okay to have your ice cold…just not really, really cold!

I know that you sell from trucks on neighborhood routes. But, tell us what else you do in addition to your regular, established routes?

Dylan: Our routes make up the bulk of our sales. But, we also spend about 30% of our time catering special events. We will do business events, parties, and other local, special events. For some of our business parties, we will charge a per-person rate for a two hour block of time. We also have our own website, www.ChillyDillys.com, where people can contact us for special events. We also have a “neighborhood request” form on our site which allows people to request a truck for their neighborhood.



What advice would you give to someone interested in starting their own shaved ice/ice cream business?

Dylan: If they’re going to use a truck…drive slowly! Really, I’d say to focus on the profitable items. Shaved ice is our biggest money maker. It’s popular and cheap to produce.

Typically, how many servings do you sell in a day on a truck?

Dylan: We average about 400 sales per day per truck. Out of that number, around 150 sales per day are shaved ice orders on each truck.

How has 1-800-Shaved-Ice helped you and your business?

Dylan: I have used them since day one. My very first purchase was through them. It’s a great company. When I call in to order, they know who I am and I appreciate that. I prefer to call in my orders rather than use the website. I like the personal interaction. They always ship my items out to me as soon as possible. I’ve never really had any problems. I did have one issue once with bottle pourers…the manufacturer had changed them and I didn’t like them at all. I called up and they took care of the problem immediately. Great customer service!



Since you run dedicated routes, are there any funny moments with customers or employees?

Dylan: Nothing specific comes to mind. I do know that it’s great to roll up to a routine stop and see a line of kids (and parents) already there waiting for you. For us, maintaining a consistent routine is vital for our success. People expect us to be at a particular place at a certain time.

What is your favorite shaved ice flavor?

Dylan: Tiger’s blood. I love it! I think we have the best flavors out there. My customers love our flavors too. We make our own simple syrup and use the flavor concentrates from 1-800-Shaved-Ice.

Thanks for taking the time to discuss your business with us Dylan. I know that people will appreciate your input and suggestions for them. From everyone at 1-800-Shaved-Ice, we thank you for your business and hope that your upcoming season will be a busy and very profitable one!

Thursday, February 12, 2009


New Flavors for 2009!



HawaiianShavedIce.com and 1-800-Shaved-Ice.comk have announced the newest flavors to be offered for 2009.

Blueberry Muffin: Fresh from the oven, homemade blueberry muffin taste!
Buttered Popcorn: Tastes just like the popcorn at the movies!
Clear Cherry: Same great, award winning cherry taste…just clear.
Mudslide: Chocolate, Irish cream, and a little bit of coffee and you’ve got one great tasting flavor!
Strawberry Cupcake: Fresh Strawberry Cupcakes always tasted great…YUM!
Yellow Cake Batter: Bring back childhood memories with our Yellow Cake Batter shaved ice syrup. Tastes just like what Grandma used to make! In our opinion, it will soon be on our top ten flavor list!

All of our award winning flavors are made with top quality ingredients. You can taste the difference! Your customers will taste the difference too!

Wednesday, February 4, 2009

Snow Cones in Superbowl XLIII

Snow cone vendors everywhere should be proud! Snow cones were featured in a prime time commercial during this year's Superbowl.



2009...I sense it's going to be a good year for the snow cone (and shaved ice).

Flavor of the Week Special: Fuzzy Navel




Did you know that HawaiianShavedIce.com offers a special "Flavor of the Week" - deeply discounting our already low prices? Well...WE DO!

If you are a shave ice or snow cone connoisseur, you will want to check HawaiianShavedIce.com frequently to take advantage of our Flavor of the Week Specials!

This week, in observance of Valentine's Day, our special Flavor of the Week is Fuzzy Navel. This smooth tasting balance of orange and peach flavors has a reddish-orange color to it (get the Valentine's Day reference?) and tastes great! Every quart of our ready to use shaved ice/snow cone syrup is made with the finest ingredients in order to provide you the truest, most mouth-watering flavors available. Order today and enjoy!