Despite the name the newly opened Hot Spot specializes in shaved ice.

PLEASE NOTE THIS RESTAURANT IS CLOSED

Come summertime one of my favorite ways to chill out is shaved ice, whether of the Dominican or Taiwanese variety. So I was pleased when Hot Spot, a new Taiwanese shaved iced stand opened on Main Street a few days ago. It’s affiliated with the late Ice Fire Land, hence the name. Situated in front of an apothecary, it’s the only grab-and-go shaved stand in Flushing’s Chinatown.

Toppings lurk beneath the mountain of shaved ice.

Right now Hot Spot’s offering special prices for its grand opening. If my sugar-shocked memory serves I got a bowl of fluffy white ice with four ingredients for less than five bucks.

Peanuts, pudding, and strawberry tapioca pearls make for a psychedelic shaved ice.

Since Hot Spot just opened they don’t yet have my favorite topping, pineapple. So I went with brown sugar syrup, boiled peanuts, blobs of pudding, and red tapioca pearls. The latter was a mistake, had I realized they were strawberry flavored I’d have asked for something else. In any case it was still everything a shaved ice should be: refreshing to the core and packed with sugary goodness. Best of all, it’s available on the street.

Hot Spot, outside N.Y. Tong Ren  Tang, 40-34 Main St., Flushing