For anyone who lives on Oahu, Matsumoto’s shave ice is one of the classic “must try” shave ice places since 1951. Featured in many national venues like the Food Network, Matsumoto’s shave ice has become a staple for this local favorite to residents and visitors alike.
Line outside Matsumoto’s
Over the years I have been a customer of Matsumoto many times, and every time I have arrived to the small building in Haleiwa, there has been a huge line of people. Yesterday was no exception! Upon arriving to the parking lot, we found three to four other cars waiting to grab a spot. After about five minutes we gave up trying to fight over a stall, and moved to the street where we were able to park along the stone wall of Liliuokalani church. Finding parking is only the first obstacle! It was about a 20 minute wait to get into Matsumoto’s for our shave ice.
Matsumoto has evolved over time to keep up with shave ice trends. Started with the traditional shave ice flavored with colorful syrups, Matsumoto now offers red azuki beans, ice cream, and even condensed milk and toppings for your frozen treat.
In order to keep things moving smoothly, Matsumoto’s has developed a “How to order shave ice” system. when approaching the counter to place your order, here is how it should be done:
- State how many shave ice you will be ordering
- State how many are small, and how many are large
- State what toppings you’d like (azuki beans, ice cream, condensed milk) on which shave ice
- How many plastic holders would you like? (highly recommended! Keeps things clean!)
- State what flavors you would like after the order taker has marked all other information
Don’t worry if you get the process wrong, unlike Seinfeld’s Soup Nazi, the employees at Matsumoto’s are more than happy to help you through the process!
Matsumoto serves up a wide variety of flavors. You can choose any 3 flavors to make your own shave ice combination, or you can select from one of the pre-arranged combos on the menu.
All told the flavors you have to choose from are: Strawberry, Pineapple, Lemon, Coconut, Banana, Vanilla, Root Beer, Grape, Lime, Lilikoi (passion fruit), Orange, Honeydew, Melon, Mango, Raspberry, Coffee, Watermelon, Bubblegum, Cotton Candy, Pinacolada, Banana Cream, Lihing Mui, Lychee, and Cherry.
For yesterday’s shave ice fix I decided to go with Matsumoto’s classic rainbow combination with azuki beans and condensed milk.
Rainbow shave ice with azuki beans and condensed milk, $3.50
Shave ice is always great on a hot Hawaii day! The sweet flavors of the syrup are finely complemented by the rich taste of the condensed milk, and the azuki beans on the bottom of the cup make for a unique addition of taste as well. You can see my shave ice sitting in a blue plastic holder, which I would recommend anyone buy to keep things clean!
Final thoughts: Matsumoto offers a great local treat, perfect for a sunny Hawaii day! Although the line is a bit long throughout the day, it is certainly a spot worth waiting for. Residents and tourists alike should make it a point to swing by Matsumoto and try their famous shave ice!
| Service: |   |
Above Average |
| Food: | |
Above Average |
| Atmosphere: | |
Above Average |
| Overall Value: | |
Above Average |
*Star ratings are based in comparison to similar establishments
Matsumoto’s Shave Ice
66-087 Kamehameha Hwy. Haleiwa, Hawaii 96712
Phone: 808.637.4827
Tags: Hawaii Food, Hawaii Food Review, Matsumoto shave ice, shave ice, Haleiwa
Other Popular Reviews:
How much was it for that “Supah Deluxe combo” Shave Ice with the Azuki beans and condensed milk Shave Ice? I’m guessing $4? $5?
Someone on HT posted about Miura’s in Haleiwa, which he said was better than Matsumoto’s and no crowd.
I still haven’t even been to the Waiola Shave Ice store on Kapahulu; neither have I been to original one in Moili’ili. I gotta’ check them out.
There’s also a small shave ice stand in Ward Farmer’s Market as well. They feature that, roasted chicken and boiled peanuts. Usually these specialty places are really good at what they do by keeping it simple. I’ll try to get there and blog that place.
I believe the cost of my shave ice was about $3.50. It was $3.00 for a large with azuki beans and $.50 for the condensed milk.
I think this place is highly overrated. There’s so many other places here on the island that offer so much more. Every time I drive by and see that long ass line all that comes to mind is, sheep, every single one of them.
I don’t think “overrated” is quite the term I’d use. Matsumoto is not overpriced compared to its nearby competitors. I think it has just done a much better job early on building reputation, and with that it has done a good job of making its name known.
[...] and I don’t mean that in a bad way. There’s a ton of famous eateries here, like Cholos, Matsumoto Shaved Ice, Haleiwa’s Joes, Rosie’s Cantina, Spagettini, and Haleiwa Eats. Everytime we drive by [...]
I usually go to Waiola because it’s so close to my house and it’s always been very good. But lately it seems like they tend to skimp on the syrups. I get halfway to the bottom of the cup and it’s just plain ice. Then I have to go back to the window and ask for more syrup. Anybody else notice this?