Shaved ice is a seasonal dessert in Japan which is eaten everywhere in Japan during summer. It can be eaten at cafes, tea houses, restaurants, food courts and shaved ice stands but few places offer during winter.
Shaved ice also can be eaten at home. Many families have their own shaved ice machine at home. These machines can be an electric type or manual type but most families have just the manual one.
There are many flavors for the shaved ice. The popular ones are strawberry, melon, Blue Hawaii and lemon. Also green tea flavor is available together with sweet bean paste. The price can be up to 1000 yen according to the flavors, but basic artificial syrup is cheap, around 300 yen.
When you travel Japan during summer, eating soft ice cream is a good choice but please do not forget to try the shaved ice too. By the way, Japanese style shaved ice is different from Hawaiian shave ice whice comes with fresh fruits.