Matsumoto's at 66-087 Kamehameha Highway has been the canonical North Shore shave ice destination since 1951, when Mamoru and Helen Matsumoto opened a general store that evolved into a shave ice institution. The queue snakes out the door most days, but it moves quickly, and the result — a mound of finely shaved ice soaked in flavored syrup, optionally topped with azuki beans and sweetened condensed milk — is worth the wait.
Hawaiian shave ice is a different thing from mainland snow cones: the ice is shaved rather than crushed, producing a texture that absorbs the syrup rather than letting it pool at the bottom, and the combination of flavors is an art form that Matsumoto's has spent seven decades refining. The rainbow combination (three flavors in bands) is the classic order. The store also sells Matsumoto's branded merchandise, which has somehow become a North Shore souvenir staple in its own right.