New owner of Ty's Summer Sno peddles 70 flavors of shaved ice

What do bubble gum, cotton candy, dill pickle, peanut butter & jelly, rock 'n' roll and wedding cake all have in common?

Give up?

The answer is they're six of the more than 70 flavors of shaved ice available at the Ty's Summer Sno locations in Cape Girardeau and Jackson.

And with temperatures in the 90s lately, the shaved ice outlets have been popular among those seeking relief from the heat and humidity.

Sometimes known as "snow cones," "snowballs" or "Hawaiian snow," Ty's Summer Sno owner Dawn Kirby said "shaved ice" is the proper name for the frozen products sold at Ty's because it's shaved from solid blocks of ice that gives it a smooth texture "as opposed to 'crunchy' ice."

Kathleen Oliver of Cape Girardeau fixes shaved ice for a customer Thursday at Ty's Summer Sno in Cape Girardeau.Jacob Wiegand

Shaved ice, she said, is a "great summertime treat that's family friendly and affordable for every budget."

Kirby and her husband, Mike, purchased Ty's Summer Sno from Tyson Zahner in April 2018. She said it was an ideal business because it's "seasonal," perfect for her because she home-schools the Kirby children. Two of their four children also work for the family business during the summer.

When they purchased the business, the Cape Girardeau location was along William Street in front of Town Plaza Shopping Center. Construction of Krispy Kreme Doughnuts, however, forced the Kirbys to move the shaved ice hut in October and place it on a new foundation at its current location, 2201 Broadway, in late November.

"It was like moving a small house," Kirby said.

A crane was needed in October to move Ty's Summer Sno from the Town Plaza Shopping Center to its current location on Broadway.Submitted photo

In Jackson, Ty's Summer Sno is at 506 W. Main St.

Both locations opened for the 2019 season in early April. The Jackson location is scheduled to close Sept. 3 while the Cape Girardeau store will stay open through Sept. 23, meaning it will be open the week of the SEMO District Fair.

"This is the perfect location for the fair parade," Kirby said.

Both locations offer dozens of flavors (as well as optional flavor combinations) along with a variety of toppings, milk shakes, smoothies and slushes. The Cape Girardeau location offers a drive-through window and 25 sugar-free flavors, while the Jackson location has four that are sugar free.

As for the most popular flavor, Kirby said it's "Tiger's Blood," a strawberry coconut concoction. Other top flavors are raspberry, wedding cake, banana and cotton candy.

Hours at the Cape Girardeau location are 11 a.m. until 10 p.m. daily through Aug. 18. From Aug. 19 through Sept. 23, it will open at noon on weekends and Labor Day, 2 p.m. Wednesdays and 3 p.m. Mondays, Tuesdays, Thursdays and Fridays, closing at 9 p.m. daily.

In Jackson, the hours are noon until 10 p.m. daily through Aug. 14. Starting Aug. 15, the Jackson location's hours will be noon until 9 p.m. on weekends and Labor Day, and 3:15 until 9 p.m. weekdays.

After closing for the season, both locations will reopen in early April 2020 and by next year the Kirbys plan to add a mobile shaved-ice outlet.

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