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<\/a>In a land of mostly ice cream and frozen yogurt spots, Long Beach now has Fluffy’s Sno-Balls, a New Orleans-style shaved ice shop on Long Beach Boulevard near the corner of Anaheim Street. The shop had a soft opening last month and will celebrate its grand opening on June 11.<\/p>\n
New Orleans sno-balls date back to the 1930s when they were made with the\u00a0first ice-shaving machines. Unlike a typical snow cone, the ice is\u00a0fine and\u00a0fluffy\u00a0with a snow-like texture. It’s topped with sweet syrups and condensed milk.<\/p>\n
They’re especially popular in the summertime when temperatures top 100 degrees and the air is thick with humidity.<\/p>\n
Lee said he learned the importance of quality and authenticity while working at his grandmother’s sno-ball stand as a kid.<\/p>\n
For his shop, he\u00a0imported a\u00a0special shaved ice machine called “Southern Snow” from Louisiana and\u00a0shaves from a block of ice to get the finest powder. He then layers a fresh ice ball with rich syrup made from cane sugar.<\/p>\n Fluffy’s features 41 flavors, ranging from the classic strawberry and watermelon, to pralines, sangria and candy apple. Those looking for a boost can fill their sno-ball with graham cracker-crusted cheesecake or French vanilla ice cream.<\/p>\n The shop has a Big Easy ambiance with jazz music, colorful Mardi Gras beads and a sweet, powdered sugar smell.<\/p>\n “I wanted it to appeal to all the senses, to be the touch, taste, sound of New Orleans,” Lee said.<\/p>\n Lee, a 41-year-old Palmdale resident,\u00a0said he chose the Long Beach Boulevard location because of its diversity.<\/p>\n “I wanted to be closer to the beach and be in an area that was very eclectic, vibrant and diverse,” he said.<\/p>\n Born in New Orleans, Lee was the first in his family to graduate from college and always wanted to be an entrepreneur.<\/p>\n “Growing up in New Orleans is a very interesting experience, especially for a young Black boy living in poverty,” he said. “You wish, you dream and you strive to work hard.”<\/p>\n After his family was displaced in Hurricane Katrina, he moved to Los Angeles with help from the Red Cross. He used his first check from the Red Cross to buy a suit so he could go on job interviews.<\/p>\n Lee started working for the Boy Scouts of America and then as a vice president for US Foods in Utah and for a cannabis company in Los Angeles. He wrote a book called, “The Young Black Man’s Definitive Guide to Getting the Job,” building on his success in the corporate world.<\/p>\n It was last year during the pandemic lockdown that he decided it was time to start his own business. Lee said he knew opening a business on the tail end of a pandemic would be tough, but he’s hopeful customers will come flocking when the weather warms up and more people venture out.<\/p>\n Lee said he’s invested most of his life’s savings in the business.<\/p>\n “It took a\u00a0lot of\u00a0courage not knowing what the\u00a0state\u00a0of the\u00a0world\u00a0was going to be, but I had to have faith in\u00a0myself,” he said.<\/p>\n Lee plans to eventually hire kids from the neighborhood to help in the shop, but for now, his fianc\u00e9 Darren Castillo helps out on weekends. Castillo, a native of Belize, is working on his doctorate in epidemiology with the goal of eventually helping to improve the healthcare system in his home country.<\/p>\n Lee dubbed the shop “Fluffy’s” after the couple’s two, fluffy standard poodles, named Lord Kensington and Duke Herrington.<\/p>\n Lee said business has so far been good, with customers ranging from those who have never tried a sno-ball to die-hard Louisiana natives with high expectations. Lee said a family who owns one of the oldest sno-ball shops in New Orleans even came for a taste test.<\/p>\n “They gave me the seal of approval,” he said.<\/p>\n<\/a><\/a><\/a>