Icy-snow delight

Black sesame ice with cookies & cream

 Ohmigod! So delicious!

This is a treat called Snow Cream, served at Blockheads Shavery on Sawtelle Blvd. in West Los Angeles.

Green tea ice with red beans and rice balls

It's like shaved ice cream - creamy, milky frozen goodness put through a shaver so that it's icy and full of air and textured to melt in the mouth.

Black sesame ice

The shaving process creates a unique texture. The Black sesame ice was like little spiky splinters.

The green tea ice was more like thin flakes, similar to pastry. Both were amazing.

Is it a Hawaiian tradition? A Japanese tradition? A blend of the two? Five flavors - "original," green tea, strawberry, black sesame and sweet red bean - are on offer. You choose toppings from a list that includes fruit, nuts, chocolate chips, crumbled cookies or candies (butterfingers!), and Asian sweet treats like boba, rice cakes, mochi, sweet red bean, and something intriguingly called "grass jelly". Then you drizzle a flavored syrup on top.

Even the "regular" size appears too huge to eat when it arrives, but this icy sweet treat melts away in the mouth and doesn't leave you feeling stuffed.

Try some!