Southern Style Snowballs: Father-son shaved ice operation brings a taste of New Orleans to Spokane
Snowballs in the summer? It sounded like a hot mess.
Still, my curiosity was peaked after I stumbled upon Jarrett Smith’s Southern Style Snowballs Facebook page which boasted: “The finest shaved ice in the Inland Northwest.” Up for a cool adventure after weeks of sizzling Spokane heat, I decided to check out this frosty delicacy with deep New Orleans roots. I reached out to Smith online. He quickly linked me up with a YouTube video which featured an ice master named, Bubby, who cranked out pristine packed snowballs faster than a group of school-aged sledders at Manito Park.
Similar to a snow cone, but minus those icy chips, according to the website neworleans.com, the history of snowballs (or sno-balls) in New Orleans dates back to the early 1930s. A vibrant part of the local street food culture, key to their appeal is a finely-shaved ice reminiscent of fresh snow which attracts sugary syrups like a magnet, ensuring a blast of succulent flavor in each chilly nibble.
Born and raised in the South, Smith can still recall the sweet satisfaction of a savory snowball on hot Louisiana days.
“When you bite into it, it’s just smooth and just melts in your mouth,” he said. “It was just like a summer treat that I grew up on. As a kid, there were snowballs everywhere. Snowball stands. Snowball shops. It’s like Baptist churches in the South, they’re on every corner.”
And now they have arrived in Spokane.
A single dad who operates heavy construction equipment by trade, Smith lives in the Spokane Valley. He is between jobs and opened his Southern Style Snowballs business as a side gig last summer.
“I’ve always wanted to start a snowball stand,” he said. “It went pretty well for being so late in the season … this year, it’s just full-on.”
Making the local rounds with Smith on this Arctic expedition is his 8-year-old son, Jaden, who takes orders and assists behind the scenes. I recently caught up with them at the Spokane Valley Farmers Market.
Talk about Southern hospitality!
As I rattled off a blizzard of questions, Smith responded to each inquiry with a polite, “yes ma’am” or “no ma’am” in true Louisiana fashion. Suffice to say, he has nailed this entire polar process down to an exact science and even uses the same type of Southern Snow shaved ice machine as Bubby.
“It’s got three blades and it just grinds so smooth. You want it fluffy, because when you put the syrup on the fluff, you want it to just absorb,” he said.
In order to attain a fresh powder that would satisfy the pickiest of Mount Spokane skiers, Smith freezes his ice to about zero degrees.
“If it’s colder, it’s fluffier. Don’t ever drop it on your toe,” he warned as he juggled the huge block of ice into his shaving machine.
These days, some vendors offer a scoop of ice cream or splash of sweetened condensed milk with snowballs, but Smith prefers to focus on dishing up that nostalgic version he remembers from childhood. Particular about his syrups, he has sampled with other brands, but now sticks firmly to Southern Snow products.
“It’s just thicker. People love them. You can just smell the difference. It makes your mouth water.”
Jaden said popular snowball flavors include bubble gum and birthday cake. After sculpting an exquisite mound of snow for my sample, Smith doused the creation with a smorgasbord of colorful hues.
“I have to give you a proper snowball. This is a Southern-style rainbow,” he said. More like a slushy than a shaved ice, it indeed tickled my tastebuds.
For a kid, this is one cool summer job.
Jaden said he has enjoyed exploring the local region with his dad and making new friends. The pair recently returned from a snowball stint in Chewelah. They are already attracting repeat customers.
“I have a guy that every time I set up, he comes all the way from the South Hill,” Smith said. “There (are) a lot of snow cone places, but nothing like Southern Style Snowballs.”
Cynthia Reugh can be reached at cynthia13048@gmail.com.