Taipei: Mango Snow Ice at Chunmei Ice Shop (春美冰菓室)

Taipei’s go-to spot for mango shaved ice is definitely Bing Zan (冰讃), and I loved it so much that even when I tried other places, none of them became places I wanted to revisit… until now. I think I’ve finally found a new favorite—Chunmei Ice Shop (春美冰菓室). The nearest station is Nanjing Fuxing. Doesn’t it look a bit like a beauty salon?

The atmosphere inside reminded me a little of GOMAN MANGO, which unfortunately closed quite some time ago. There are five counter seats facing the street and about five two-person tables.

Here’s the menu. I came for mango, but they offer many other kinds of shaved ice. Mango is seasonal (roughly May to October). Outside of mango season, they mainly serve strawberry shaved ice. They also have almond tofu…

They also offer a variety of toppings. You order and pay at the counter. On the left, you can see lots of taro. Their most popular item is the taro-loaded Yútóu Niúnǎi Bīng (125 TWD). Everyone except me was eating this. Everyone had brown-colored shaved ice. It looked delicious, but it also looked super filling—because, well, it’s taro.

I stayed true to my mission and ordered the Mango Milk Snow Ice. Snow ice is definitely my favorite—especially for people with sensitive stomachs. This shop adds cornflakes on top, which is nice. Helps keep you from getting too cold.

The pure white snow ice is topped with mango sauce, condensed milk, and fresh mango. The mango chunks are generously piled on the back half of the plate—huge, juicy pieces.

The mango was fully ripe and naturally sweet. Of course it was delicious. It just melted in my throat. Judging from its texture, I think the mango is pre-cut and stored for a while. But I actually love the soft, slightly melty texture of pre-cut mango.