John Lennon once sang, "Life is what happens to you while you're busy making other plans," and the lyrics couldn't be truer for Burnaby couple Sandy and Jasen Hamilton.
The two first met back in high school in Calgary. They dated for a while and then went their separate ways after graduation.
Years later, they both found themselves living in the Lower Mainland. The couple reconnected in Burnaby, fell in love - again - and married.
Like many newlyweds, Sandy and Jasen spent their honeymoon lounging on the beaches of Maui, Hawaii.
They were instantly smitten with the tropical paradise and everything that came with it, including shave ice, a tasty local treat that mixes shaved ice with syrup flavours.
At the time, they were both working for a sound company in the film industry. They enjoyed working together and soon began putting together an idea for a fun side business that would allow them to continue to work in each other's company.
"We thought, 'Hey, why don't we make shave ice?' because there's nothing Hawaiian here . so we started out a couple of years ago working out of a tent," Sandy said.
Kani-Kei Shave Ice began three years ago, with Sandy and Jasen serving the frozen Hawaiian treat from a tent they would set up around the city and at private events.
Last year, the couple decided that setting up and taking down their station was too much work, so they converted the truck they were using to carry their equipment into a food truck, the Kani-Kei Shave Ice truck.
It's easy to see why the couple needs a truck to carry around all their equipment. Sandy and Jasen make their own ice blocks using bottled water, which makes for a more consistent flavour, they said.
They also make their own syrup just like the Hawaiians do, using cane sugar they buy from a distributor in the Lower Mainland.
"We're able to get our hands on some premium cane sugar, which is nice," Jasen added. "Our flavours are all sort of authentic flavours that you would get in Hawaii; the tiger's blood, the blue Hawaiian, all that good stuff."
But these "shavers" don't stop there. In an attempt to be as authentic as they can, Sandy and Jasen offer customers an option to add vanilla ice cream and/or gummy bears to their shave ice at no extra cost.
"You get three layers of texture; you get the soft, fluffy ice, and then you get the creamy, smooth vanilla ice cream mixing with your flavour, and then, at the very bottom, you have these little frozen, gummy treats, that are a little hard, but still sweet," Jasen said.
And they're open to combining flavours, up to a maximum of three.
The only thing the owners of Kani-Kei Shave Ice ask is not to come by looking for a sno-cone, but if you do, they'll be more than happy to explain the difference.
"For us, it's a huge education thing," she said. "The difference is the block. . Our machine has a razor on the bottom, and when we turn it on, it shaves (the block of ice) just like snow."
This technique helps hold in the flavours, instead of them pooling at the bottom of the cup, like a sno-cone or slushie, she said.
"When we pour the syrup on (the ice), the syrup sticks right to it, just like fresh fallen snow. Unlike a sno-cone, which is just little balls of ice," she added.
Sandy and Jasen's Kani-Kei Shave Ice truck celebrated its inaugural year on the streets last summer and it's back for another season this summer.
Already, Sandy and Jasen have been out and about serving up fresh, homemade shave ice at various locations and events around the city, including Hats Off Day in The Heights, which was a huge success.
"We had to turn people away because we had to pack up and close down," Jasen said.
Despite the popularity of the Kani-Kei Shave Ice truck, the couple has run into some challenges with trying to operate the food truck in Burnaby.
Most of the challenges are caused by the city's business licence bylaw from the '50s, which is still referred to as a peddlers' bylaw.
Some of the restrictions, including the limited time a mobile business can operate at one location, have forced Sandy and Jasen to get creative with their service.
When they aren't working at private events, the couple drives around the city making numerous stops throughout the day to serve customers.
They use social media, including Twitter to get the word out on their locations each day.
And luckily, at Hats Off Day, the Royal Bank branch at Hastings Street and Rosser Avenue was kind enough to let Kani-Kei set up its truck on the bank's property so it could serve customers without having to leave right away.
But no matter the challenges, Sandy and Jasen love Burnaby and have no intention of leaving the city for other food truck friendly areas, especially with a "little shaver" on the way.
"We found out we were pregnant in January of this year," Sandy said.
The pregnancy hasn't slowed either of them down and they'll once again operate until October, just like past years, they said.
For more information on Kani-Kei Shave Ice, visit www.kanikeishaveice. com or check them out on Twitter @ KaniKeiShaveIce. [email protected]
