Any reader of past blogs will know that I have a fondness for the shaved ice that you can get in Taiwan. If done correctly it really tastes like you are eating soft flaky snow.
Near my house was a night market, but the government shut it down about a year ago, since then I had never been to that area again to see what is still there. Apparently shut down just meant that all the vendors that were using mobile stalls or booths, had to go, but if you still had an actual store, you could stay.
On my walk to see what survived, I came across three stores which sell the shaved ice. It was clear what I had to do, I had to try all three of them to find out which is the best.
Pictured above is the first one I went to. Because it's strawberry season my friend got the fresh strawberries. I on the other hand got the canned strawberries. This is because I always do my testing with a basic standard that can be obtained at each place at any time of the year. Just like when I first go to a burger place or pizza place, I always get a pepperoni pizza and a cheese burger, to judge their quality, and if they pass, I'll go back to get something more advanced.
This first place had it's good and bad points. The good points were that it was very cheap, and the quality of the toppings was very high. The bad point was the shaved ice itself was a bit crunchy, meaning it was too much like ice and less like powdery snow.
The second place's shaved ice quality was great, but the topping's quality wasn't as good. they also get a demerit for having a tv in their shop that was blasting the news. You might think this is a good way to practice my Chinese, but in Taiwan newscasters are taught to speak in a cute voice as if mimicking a six year old child. It's not the kind of sound you want to hear when it's the end of a long day and you just want to enjoy a nice cool dessert.
The final place wasn't so great. Their ice quality was ok, but their toppings seem to have been spoiled. Yuck.
So which place wins? Which is the one I will go back to when i want some shaved ice? Well I have no idea. Since doing this research, I have gone back one time to both the first and second place (this time getting the fresh strawberries). So i guess next time I have to go back to the third place, and just go round and round completing the circle every time.
