Jill & Jen
After our treacherous drive out of Polihale, we decided to get a sweet treat in Waimea Town. Jo Jo’s Shave Ice is a favorite and since most of the people I was with never had shave ice, we had to stop! Happy to report that everyone loved it, but really.. how could they not!? I ordered the “Tropical Rainbow” which is lilikoi, mango and guava. As always I got the macadamia nut ice cream on the bottom. So delicious!
(Photo by Jen)
Tags:amanda·Hawaii·jen·jessica·jill·jo jos·kauai·kristin·richard·shannan·shave ice·stephanie·tien·waimea
The Original Jo Jo’s Anueanue Shave Ice, Waimea, Kauai
Finally, at the end of our day, Aunty Cathy took me to The Original Jo Jo’s Anueanue Shave Ice on Pokole Rd, not to be confused with Jo Jo’s Shave Ice on Kaumualii Highway, which is the one we usually visit, since it’s right at the end of the road to Dallas’s house. Supposedly, the owner of Jo Jo’s on the highway sold her business 7-8 years ago and the new owner kept running the shop with the Jo Jo’s name. Then the original owner opened this new place but called it “The Original.” I don’t know the whole story, but I’m sure it’s full of drama and competition.
Aunty Cathy waving in front of The Original Jo Jo’s Anueanue Shave Ice, Waimea, Kauai
We had shave ice. It was good. We had to wait in line. It was worth the wait. This is the same story at every shave ice place I’ve been: Jo Jo’s, The Original Jo Jo’s, Matsumoto’s, etc.
POG and Lemon Shave Ices :: The Original Jo Jo’s Anueanue Shave Ice, Waimea, Kauai
When we got back to the house Dallas and I took a nap. Then we packed, had leftover Portuegese meat for dinner and flew to Oahu. We stayed overnight at a hotel near the airport and early the next morning flew back to the mainland.
Vacation over. Wah!
After lunch Dallas and I headed over to the beach at Waimea Bay. This is a beach we went to last time we visited Hawaii. Like last time, there was no parking in the parking lot. This time we parked at Pupukea Beach and then just walked for about 10 minutes down the road to Waimea Bay. There was a well worn path all the way, I think a ton of people do this.
Dallas selected a place for us to claim as our own. We hung out at the opposite end of the beach as we did the last time we visited.
Looks good to me.
During the winter months there are crazy waves here, up to 30 feet tall. When we visited, the water at Waimea Bay was so aquamarine and still. You could see clear down to your feed no matter how deep you went it. Great for playing around in the waves like Dallas here-
The Waimea River flows into the ocean at Waimea Bay. Here you can see the cars going over the river. If you follow the river up it goes into Waimea Valley. More on that later.
After playing around on the beach for a while Dallas and I went back to Haleiwa and got some shave ice at Matsumoto’s. I thought it was just as good as last time. Dallas, a far more seasoned shave ice eater, thought they were packing the ice too tight. One of these days I’ll try the azuki beans in my shave ice.
Tags:beach·dallas·haleiwa·Hawaii·matsumotos·north shore·oahu·pupukea beach·shave ice·waimea·waimea river·waimea valley
As far as I can tell, Matsumoto Shave Ice is a North Shore institution. It’s an old family business that’s been open since 1951, anyone and everyone in the general vicinity of Haleiwa, all sorts of famous Japanese and American superstars have been there and their photos are on the wall, etc. Dallas told me they have the best shave ice in Hawaii, and I won’t lie, it was really good, but I think I’ll always have a soft spot for Jo Jo’s in Kaua’i, where I had my first shave ice. Plus, they use Lappert’s mac nut ice cream, which is awesome.
Tags:dallas·haleiwa·Hawaii·jo jos·lapperts·matsumotos·north shore·oahu·shave ice
Dallas :: Jo Jo’s Shave Ice, Waimea, Kaua’i
Dallas :: Jo Jo’s Shave Ice, Waimea, Kaua’i
Jo Jo’s Shave Ice, Waimea, Kaua’i
Jo Jo’s Shave Ice, Waimea, Kaua’i
Jo Jo’s Shave Ice, Waimea, Kaua’i
Jo Jo’s Shave Ice, Waimea, Kaua’i
Susan & Rachelle :: Jo Jo’s Shave Ice, Waimea, Kaua’i
Getting shave ice at Jo Jo’s is always a highlight of visiting Kaua’i for me. I was anxious to have John and Susan try it, since they’d never had a proper shave ice. I’m happy to say that they loved it! Dallas, on the otherhand, could care less. Jo Jo’s is pretty much at the end of the long driveway of the house he grew up in, so it ain’t no thang to him. He didn’t get any. And he’s laughed a little too loud when we told him how some locals were mocking us. After we got our shave ice, Dallas had gone ahead to the car. John and Susan and I stopped outside the shave ice shack (really, it is a shack!) and were taking bites of each others and commenting on them, when from the side of us, inside a patio we heard these locals mocking us and saying over dramatically, “ohhhh, this one is the best ever! mmmmm, I like this one the best!!” Jerks! Don’t make fun of the haoles who only get shave ice once a year, if that!
I love Jo Jo’s, but Dallas told us there was a place called Matsumoto’s on the north shore of Oahu that’s even better. I couldn’t wait!! (More on Matsumoto’s later!)