Aloha Bubbies
I was never a big fan of mochi ice cream until I discovered Bubbies by accident. I was having one of the most delicious Japanese dinners at Nishino in Seattle with one of my closest friends. Our meal ended with a plate of mochi ice cream and fresh fruit. It appeared anticlimactic until I bit into the mochi. Bubbies mochi ice cream taste a lot different from the Mikawaya brand sold at Trader Joe’s. When I asked the restaurant where the mochi ice cream came from, they said they are shipped in from Bubbies in Hawaii. Bubbies has been on my mind ever since I had that dinner over two years ago.
I began to research Bubbies. There are two stores in Honolulu. I definitely missed it the last time I visited Oahu which was way back in 2005. I could order online, but that seemed a bit over the top to ship ice cream.
Shortly after that dinner, my friend found boxes of Bubbies mochi ice cream for sale at Whole Foods Market in Oakland. I guess it was on her mind as well. If we recall correctly, she bought a box of raspberry white chocolate and a box of strawberry. They were delicious. I was so excited because now I could have Bubbies whenever I wanted, so I thought. On another occasion, I went to Whole Foods and it was no longer in their freezer section. I even posted on their Facebook page, but never heard a response. That was short lived.
My niece informed me about a shop in San Jose called Jimbo’s that carries Bubbies. A couple of months ago, she and I went to Jimbo’s. The shop is cute with Star Trek decor on the walls. It was definitely a mom and pop shop, also selling homemade snacks like caramel puffs, sweet party mix, butter mochi, and cookies. Getting Bubbies at Jimbo’s allowed us to try more flavors. We selected six different flavors and shared them.
My family celebrated my niece’s 16th birthday yesterday with her favorite food, Japanese. I thought it would be nice if I could get Bubbies. Jimbo’s would be too far to go to get them, so I returned to Whole Foods Market in Oakland in hopes they would have them. They did. The flavors were limited so I bought a box of passion fruit and a box of mango.
Why are Bubbies mochi ice cream so special? I think it’s threefold. First, they have much more interesting flavors of ice cream. Second, the quality of the ice cream is very high. Third, the thin covering of mochi complements the ice cream well because the two ingredients don’t ever separate.
While I dream of going to one of the Bubbies Homemade Ice Cream & Desserts shops in Honolulu, I am glad I have access to Bubbies mochi ice cream in the meantime.