An Icy Introduction. Location: NoHo. Lafayette and Bleecker. Treats: Shaved Ice. Sno Cone Stand. Cookies: Dark Chocolate Peanut Butter. Chocolate Chip. Oatmeal Creme Brûlée.
Chek Recs:
- Cake Batter Snoball (yellow flavor above)
- Sugar-Free Strawberry Snoball (red flavor above)
- Chocolate Chip Cookie (above)
- Red Velvet Cookie
An Icy Introduction is a crazy, cool Snocream and Slushie pop-up stand created by Caribbean sweetheart Kafi Dublin. She exited the corporate world to pursue her passion in sweets and desserts by serving “Snoballs” unlike any other shaved ice or sno cone truck in the city. For those of you in ATX, it reminds me exactly of my once beloved college summer treat Sno-Beach. While Kafi does not hand shave the ice each morning like Sno-Beach, she does offer very similar fruity and sweet flavors like Cherry, Tiger’s Blood and Bubble Gum. An Icy Introduction also has some of the most unique such as: Coffee, Peanut Butter, Bahama Mama, Mardi Gras King Cake, Mojito, Nectar, Toasted Coconut, Tutti Frutti, Sugar-Free, etc. In addition, she uses authentic ingredients which include a thicker Barbados sugar and raw sugar – not white sugar. If you need something more decadent, there are Caramel, Chocolate Fudge and Marshmallow Cream toppings. These might be tastier when it gets cooler as most would enjoy the fruity flavors during the heat. However, my favorite flavor was Cake Batter (yellow above) which was sweet, refreshing and gone in 60 seconds.
Surprisingly, the icy dessert is not why I praise An Icy Introduction and not why I have told every single dessert lover to go visit Kafi. Why she is so incredible and memorable is for her new cookie line she just launched to continue through fall when the snoballs are out of season. As a chocolate chip cookie connoisseur, I am always trying to find the gooiest, softest and best no matter how far. While I never thought someone could compete with Levain, I give all of my praises to the woman here behind the sno cone stand. It’s composed absolutely perfectly: flat and crispy on the outside and fluffy and gooey on the inside with chocolate chips melting and crumbling in your mouth (or on your hands) with each bite. I still can’t believe this gem and can’t stop thinking about what could be is one of the best homemade cookies in the world. The Red Velvet cookie explodes with flavor and is laced with a creme cheese icing ribbon. The White Chocolate Ginger Coconut and Dark Chocolate Honey Comed are also creative and fun. While plans for a cookie stand are still in the works, make sure you sprint over to An Icy Introduction now before you miss these explosive dessert bombs. Now I know what crack tastes like… make sure to stop by before Sept. 30 for the ice, too!
