Something new: Magnolia Ice Cream & Treats

June 15, 2015

Grant Shindo,

Magnolia, the self-proclaimed “halo-halo place” known for its wealth of Filipino ice cream flavors, grand-opened their very first scoop shop last week in Waipahu’s Seafood City.

With almost two dozen flavors available, Magnolia serves up exotic flavors like buko pandan (coconut with pandan), ube, jackfruit and mais queso (corn and cheese).

Two of the specialties are the mais con hielo (a dessert of sweet corn, shave ice, corn flakes and mais queso ice cream) and Magnolia’s version of the halo-halo, known as the Mahalo-halo. But does the $5.59 halo-halo live up to the hype?

The Mahalo-halo, I mean. “We import our ingredients frozen from the Philippines instead of introducing additives to make it shelf-stable,” Ramar Foods VP PJ Quesada says. “It makes for a much better halo-halo.”

The rainbow jelly, coconut, sweet corn, shaved ice, a specially formulated condensed milk and ube ice cream create a superior halo-halo. The finely shaven ice and lack of syrup help the components mix together evenly for a superior texture, creating a sweet treat that really hits the spot on these hot summer days.

I’m a huge fan of ube ice cream. That plus the fact that Magnolia is only 10 minutes from my house, and it’s hardly surprising that my second visit took place one day after my first, in the company of my lucky parents, who were finally initiated into the world of Filipino ice cream. My mom is still talking about it.

I didn't know what to expect from the maiz con hielo ($4.49) with the two prevailing flavors of corn and cheese. This frozen treat was surprisingly refreshing that I would definitely order again. The sweet corn throughout is a nice, unfamiliar flavor that works well with the shave ice and crispy corn flakes.

I didn’t know what to expect from the maiz con hielo with the two prevailing flavors of corn and cheese. This frozen treat was surprisingly refreshing that I would definitely order again. The sweet corn throughout is a nice, unfamiliar flavor that works well with the shave ice and crispy corn flakes.

Ramar Foods President Primo Quesada with his family and friends celebrating the grand opening of the very first Magnolia scoop shop.

Pan de sal with ube ice cream.

Service with a smile! $2.99 for a single scoop, $4.99 for a double. We got the langka (jackfruit) and buko pandan, a creamy, almost vanilla-like herb with young coconut chunks. I’d definitely order the pandan again for its signature flavor that is hard to find in Hawaii.

Magnolia Ice Cream & Treats
94-050 Farrington Hwy.
808-675-2350
magnoliatreats.com
Monday-Sunday 9 a.m.-9 p.m.