Who doesn't love shave ice? The Fresh Shave, a shave ice business on the island of Kaua'i, uses our boards for their shop and we couldn't resist asking them all about their delicious treats.
While we haven’t had a chance to try your delicious looking shave ice, we love your photos! Tell us a little bit about you and The Fresh Shave.
It all began when we met in Spain. We graduated from the University of Oregon (Go Ducks) to become classroom teachers. Then we became parents, moved to beautiful Kaua’i, and eventually transitioned from the classroom to running a business together. Can you tell that we love adventures? At The Fresh Shave we offer a fresh take on Hawaii’s most famous treat. We proudly serve handcrafted shave ice with homemade syrups using real ingredients. Goodbye high fructose corn syrup and artificial coloring, hello organic produce. On top of giving you a good time, we strive to inspire both our keiki and yours to think about the impact of their food choices on their bodies and the future of our planet.
How do you come up with those amazing flavors I see on your menu?
Pregnancy. Just kidding, kind of. Our keiki (children) inspire us to create fun and interesting flavors from in utero and beyond. In addition to seasonal offerings, we have a Secret Menu, and my favorite flavor on there was born from my latest pregnancy. It's called the Dalí, and it's our coconut syrup layered with Ghirardelli chocolate cream and chopped macadamia nuts.
What’s your best seller?
Our best seller is called The Fu Manchu--it's house-made organic strawberry syrup topped with fresh cut bananas and sweet cream.
What’s your favorite part of running a business?
We love standing behind a product that we are proud to serve to our own children. It's a privilege to chat with folks about our sustainable practices--from sourcing locally to eliminating all single use plastics--then watch the magic happen as they take their very first bite of our shave ice.
What’s the hardest part of running a business?
The work never ends. We strive to operate our business with the same mentality we had as classroom teachers, always asking ourselves, "What could we do better today?" With one location in Kaua'i and another in Long Beach, California, we are always on our toes.
What’s on the horizon for you and The Fresh Shave?
Next up, we are looking to expand throughout the Hawaiian islands. We are also wrapping up our franchising paperwork to make shave ice dreams come true all over the world.
And finally, what’s on your letter board right now?
"Blue raspberries aren't real."