By DANICA SILAN
Staff Writer
Snow Monster offers ice cream desserts, teas, lemonade and shaved snow, all made fresh daily. Two options on the menu include the macaroon ice cream sandwiches (French cookies, split in half with a scoop of ice cream inside) and freshly brewed jasmine milk tea. The prices for the desserts range from $4 to $7 and the drinks from $3 to $4, a lower price than Cha for Tea offers.
To set it apart from other confections stores, Snow Monster has a lot of unique features which encourage customers to return. Snow Monster is known for valuing sustainability as a key feature of the restaurant. Customers can purchase drinks in take home glass jars with black bows around them and the Snow Monster logo prominently displayed on the glass; these jars cost an extra $2. Customers can then take home the jars and come back to the restaurant to purchase refills for a discount. In addition, the store also provides plastic spoons that turn blue with cold temperatures. Snow Monster also provides fun games like UNO, poker cards and Jenga to play while customers wait for their food or while they eat there.
Snow Monster does have its flaws. The store only offers one size for drinks, so customers cannot choose smaller beverages for a lower price. Though the employees create the drinks and desserts relatively quickly, the lines have been long due to its popularity with students both at University High School (UHS) and University of California, Irvine (UCI). Some orders take longer than others to place, as there are only a couple of employees at each shift. In addition, while some rave about the tea, others believe it is overly sweet and difficult to finish. For those who do not have a sweet tooth, Snow Monster’s milk tea may not be the right drink.
The ice cream macaroon has been especially popular with students, as it combines two of the most delicious desserts that students crave. For some, the ice cream macaroons were perfect; the ice cream was soft and delicious and the cookie had the perfect texture. For others, however, the cookie was almost stale and therefore difficult to cut or bite into. Though Snow Monster say its cookies are baked fresh daily, the texture of their cookies may depend on when exactly the cookie was baked.
Josie Bachman (So.) tried out Snow Monster with her friends and enjoyed her experience. She said, “The outrageous prices and long line was worth it in the end.  I absolutely love the engraved Mason jar they gave me. It was so cute and what is even better is that I can bring it back to get refills next time I go. I ordered the Thai tea with a dollop of whipped cream on the top and I highly recommend it for tea lovers. It was such a fun place to go to with my close friends, drinking our amazing drinks and playing UNO.”
Snow Monster is the perfect place to hang out with friends and get a quick bite to eat. The food and drinks were served a short time after ordering, so it is a very quick and practical option for anyone in a rush. The staff was very friendly and I highly recommend Snow Monster to any customers who want to quench their craving for something sweet.
4255 Campus Drive California 92612
714-582-6023
11 am-12 am Daily