Vampire Penguin

OMGOSH! i love this place and i have only been here once! The place is walking distance from my place and im not so sure if its such a good thing. I never thought i would be excited about shaved ice but what I had was so good! Soon after my visit, I was browsing on groupon one day and saw that there was a deal! I bought the groupon and will be visiting again. Even without the groupon, this is definitely where I would go to get my craving fixed

I LOVEEE this place. I dig it. I’ve been looking forward to a shaved ice shop for months, or years actually, and they finally made it in san mateo! Sadly it’s a little far from downtown, but I’d still go and get it. Just to get this bomb dessert!
The first time I came here, I got the Tuxedo. Damn. It’s on point. Not to sweet, not watery, and it’s just perfect!
The second time I came here, they were running out on a lot of the shaved ice itself — a little frown there. But still on point. Got to try their strawberry shaved ice! — Damnnn that was good!
I’m definitely down to try more of their flavors!

Our first time here. We ordered the dulce de leche and the halo halo. We ordered both small sizes and they were huge! Love the atmosphere. Music wasn’t loud or obnoxious. Employees were friendly and helpful. They gave our kids stickers. We came in close to closing (30 mins) and they were still friendly to help us. Nothing was sold out. Will definitely return.

OMG! My wife found this place, and I thought how excited can you be about shaved ice? I recall shaved ice as being hard and only as good as the flavoring you add while waiting for it to melt a little so I can taste something. NOT THIS PLACE! We shared the Halo Halo, and I immediately thought, «I HAVE TO GET MY OWN!» The texture of the dessert is surprisingly velvety. I thought, «How are they making this? It’s as pure as fresh snow!» Not surprisingly, they make it behind closed doors to keep their secret a secret! They take your order then 8 to 10 minutes later BOOM! Out comes your heavenly delight! There were folks who opted to take it home. We immediately thought, «Why wait to indulge, and won’t it melt by the time you get home?» Enjoy it at the location if there is room to sit that is.
We learned there are only two locations in the Bay Area — San Mateo (closer to Burlingame) and Berkeley. We are definitely fans. We will try the Dulce de Leche next time!

This place is so good! I bought the groupon and it’s really worth it. I got the deluxe strawberry cheesecake and the shaved ice was light and fluffy and the combination with the toppings were great. It’s a really cute place too and it’s in a plaza next to a Safeway so it’s easy to find and there’s plenty of parking.
The only cons I would say is that the lady who was at the register took forever to take my order because she was helping make the orders. There were other people working so I thought it was weird because she let a huge line build up behind me and made me wait quite a while. The shaved ice was great though so I would come back for that. The service could be improved though.

Halo halo is so delicious! We also got the Thai tea one which was a bit too sweet for my taste.
Interior design is so cute and this place is def somewhere I will frequent more when the weather gets warmer. I seriously can’t wait to try ALL their flavors!

My first run in with Vampire Penguin was after going river rafting with some friends and my cousin suggested this place after. This location is DEFINITELY nicer than the one that we went to in Sacramento. There’s paintings on the wall and a giant sticker of their vampire penguin mascot which I thought was pretty cool. (Disclaimer: they also sell their mascot as stickers.)
Vampire Penguin is located in a plaza that was actually not on my radar at all until this place popped up. Since it’s inside a plaza, there is plenty of parking available as long as you’re not focused on parking right in front then you should be okay.
The inside is a good size with a good amount of tables and chairs to sit at. And there’s a bathroom as well so don’t fret. The menu is a decent size, one screen mainly focusing on their snow ices and the other one focusing on their macaron ice cream sandwiches and milk teas.
I usually come here and get Snow Tiger which should be a blend of regular milk tea and Thai tea but just know that the small size for that is ONLY the Thai tea flavor. You’ll need to order the large for both. I’ve also tried their Mexican Candy and that one was surprisingly good as well.
Only downside to this place is that they close early making it hard for you and your friends to come here after you eat a late dinner. They usually close around 8−9pm every night so that’s lame.
Overall, I’ll come back. They got good flavor combos and when those aren’t to your liking then you can create your own so there’s no way you can leave unhappy.

Finally had a chance to try this place out with the family, clean spot and good service. Came a little late, about 40 minutes til closing so I want able to try their macaroons. Bit of a bummer since after seeing the pics I was very interested in trying them. I was however into trying their nice assortment of snow shave treats. We ordered the strawberry cheesecake and halo halo, lived the texture and the toppings were on point with both servings. Felt like really having a halo halo with the coconut pieces and red bean around the sides. The strawberry cheesecake was a big hit with my 4 year old, let’s just say that dessert didn’t last long and was swallowed up within minutes. Overall great experience, and will gladly come back and hopefully get a chance to try the macaroons.

Ive been to the Berkeley location and this San Mateo location is no different — two thumbs up! Only big complaint is how early they close — on a Friday they close at 9!!! That’s so early! You would think at least until 10pm.
Our group arrived Friday night at 845pm and ordered: strawberry cheesecake deluxe, halo halo, green tea, and some Oreo one. These were all awesome however since we ordered at 845pm they said they can only serve us in a togo cup. Uhh weird?! At 9pm they turned their open sign to close and we were able to finish our dessert while they cleaned up. My favorites of the night were the strawberry and the Oreo — eating the other two after that there was just no flavor because these were so sweet (good for me I love sweet!).
Worth a visit and beware this is not in the downtown area it’s about a 5 min drive away. VP you need to stay open later on the weekends!

I’ve been wanting to try this place out for a long time! I went on a holiday thinking there wouldn’t be much of a wait. I was wrong!
I couldn’t decide what to get, but had plenty of time because if the line. I settled on Smoreos (small). It was delicious! I was afraid that the ice flavor would be watered down and barely have any flavor. I was horribly mistaken. The Smoreos was definitely sweet, but it had the perfect balance of all ingredients.
If you’re with a group and are already in line, I would have someone in your party grab a table. For as crowded as this place was when we went, there definitely was not enough seating. I got mine to go. It isn’t as pretty, but the portions all looked and tasted great.
The staff is all really friendly and will answer any question you might have! Parking is in a lot with a Safeway and is super easy!

If you are into shaved ice or other Asian desserts, this place is for you. You definitely need to share because the serving size isn’t meant for one person. Luckily, they serve macaroon ice cream sandwiches, which are really good so if you’re not into shaved ice, they have other alternates.
Unfortunately, this location is not close to 3^rd Avenue (where all the good restaurants are clustered) so you can’t just walk here after having lunch or dinner. The good news is this place is in a shopping plaza so at least parking is always free.

One word that describes Vampire Penguin — WOW! I bookmarked this place months ago and I was overly impressed with my first experience here. Walking into Vampire Penguin, it has a very modern feel with its decorative wall decals. My friend and I were drawn towards this dessert place because we both love taking photography of #foodporn, heh. And c’mon, you have to agree that the shaved ice is definitely Instagram-​worthy and is what drove you to this place (or at least to this page) as well!
We were definitely eyeing the Smoreos shaved ice, but the employee actually recommended us to order the Strawberry Cheesecake shaved ice because of both its taste and appearance. He explained that the Strawberry Cheesecake option just happened to look better in pictures and that it is HIGHLY recommended out of all of their shaved ice.
Taking a bite into it was like entering shaved ice food heaven. Personally, I do not really enjoy shaved ice because it literally tastes like sweetened ice to me. However, Vampire Penguin carries the BEST shaved ice I have ever eaten! Each bite was packed with a slightly sweet cheesecake flavor that fueled my addiction for more and before we knew it, we cleaned our plate FAST. I definitely enjoyed the little cheesecake bites on the side as well.
I would definitely recommend this place to my friends and family and will return if I’m ever in the area craving a beautiful and colorful sculpture of shaved ice :)

Not bad at all! Finally a shaved ice place in the South Bay Area. Even though it was raining, I was surprised that it was colder in vampire penguin than outside, I should definitely dress warmer coming in next time.
I decided to customize my order: green tea snow with lychee and strawberry pieces, chocolate picky sticks and chocolate wafer sticks. Can’t wait to try other flavors when the warm weather comes back.

Sadly, the hype is not real. Well not for my husband and I, anyway…
There has been such a large hype surrounding Vampire Penguin and I bought a groupon, so we decided to check it out and very excited in doing so.
First the positives:
Yes, the snow is so deliciously fragile it is like freshly fallen powder amongst the Reno mountaintops.
Yes, the presentation on the plate is elegant and beautiful.
Yes, the portion sizes are generous and prices are definitely justifiable and reasonable. It seemed like we sat there for half an hour sharing that Large strawberry cheesecake that never seemed to end… however…
I didn’t find it as flavor packed as other reviewers claimed. I found the toppings a bit skimpy for a «large» and lacked strawberry sauce as well because once the outside was eaten, there was really no flavor on the inside. Maybe the girl who plated our order didn’t do a good job as ours lacked flavor and we found ourselves sitting there eating basically the snow without many toppings saying to each other «the hype is not real»… still gave 3 stars for the things they did well. Minus 2 stars for the things they did not.
I really wanted to like this place as so many others had but ended up sad and disappointed that I didn’t have the same experience. *sad face*

What a cute little dessert shop! It’s a little difficult to spot in the plaza, but I was definitely thankful for the parking lot — given that I’d just driven from downtown San Mateo where I had to pay for street parking.
We’d just finished lunch, so we got two small shaved snows to share amongst the three of us. Smalls are the way to go if you’ve never been and want to try more than just one flavor. We got the VP Green Tea and the Snow Tiger, both of which were beautifully presented.
The Snow Tiger was my favorite of the two. The crushed oreos went surprisingly well with the thai tea/​milk tea shaved snow. I think it was the contrast of the slight saltiness as well as the difference in texture of the cookies that really added to the dessert, and I only wish there’d been enough to go with every single bite!
The VP Green Tea came with red bean, sliced almonds, and strawberries. The red bean/​strawberry/​green tea combination is quite common for shaved snow, and I didn’t find anything particularly special about this one.
Their shaved snow is more icy than creamy. I liked it because I’d just eaten and it seemed like a nice pallet cleanser, but otherwise I might have enjoyed a creamier dessert.
A nice novelty to try if you are in the mood, but not something I would crave very often.

The one with oreo and graham cracker crumbs is THE ONE. I want to go back to try the Thai tea one too. I was so happy when I found out they opened a Vampire Penguin in San Mateo. I don’t know if it’s because I came on a cold night, but the place was empty. It’s also in a plaza that not many people go to, so that could have been a factor as well.
We shared a large size and that was plenty for two people. The shaved ice tasted like cookies and cream, the graham cracker and oreo crumbs and syrup were the perfect toppings.

If you’re a milk tea connoisseur then I have two words for you: Snow Tiger.
It is a combination of Thai Tea shaved snow and Milk Tea shaved snow. If you’re familiar with SnoCrave, you’re in for a sweet surprise. Not only is the quality and flavor of the snow so much better here, the texture is different too. It’s not ribbon-​like like the typical shaved snow, but it’s not shaved ice either – it’s the perfect blend of both. But what I loved most was how much flavor the snow had without being overly sweet.
We got the Snow Tiger, VP Green Tea, and Mexican Candy and Snow Tiger was my favorite, by far. However, all were very good. I even enjoyed the Mexican Candy even though I don’t typically like Mexican candy.
Plenty of seating where you can enjoy your dessert without feeling stuffy or rushed. I can’t wait to come again!

Yum! Love the shaved ice here. The flavors are a little less traditional then you’ll see at other shaved ice places as they have flavors like strawberry cheesecake and dulce de leche instead of green tea and red bean. They’ll also serve boba which doesnt seem too popular. Word of advice, stick to their shaved ice bc their macarons are really not good.
Friendly service but I dont understand why they’d ask for 15%-20% tip when they’re not serving you and everything including clean up is self service.

I had been wanting to go to vampire penguin forever, since I found it on Unilocal and read all the glowing reviews. My mom and I had spent the day at Hillsdale mall, just about a 10 minute drive from VP. I was especially excited to try three flavors: strawberry cheesecake, dulce de leche and halo-​halo. Since it was just my mom and I, we went and ordered the deluxe strawberry cheesecake snow shaved ice ($ 7 for a large and an extra $ 2 for cheesecake bites) = $ 9 for the entire thing (picture down below).
It was delicious! The shaved ice was dense and didn’t melt too quickly — it did take us some time to finish (barely) the entire thing. The condensed milk was drizzled over the entire dessert but it wasn’t overbearing and sweet. The cheesecake bites and fresh strawberries were plentiful and fresh.
I especially enjoyed the music they were playing that day, throwback r&b, and the artwork on the walls! Definitely a place for families and friends alike to hang out at and enjoy yummy desserts.
My only gripe is that for a dessert, $ 9 is a little on the higher end for me, but i’ll definitely be back to try the rest of the flavors.

Who invents this stuff? Cuz’ I want to personally thanks them :)
I wasn’t exactly sure what kind of dessert my friend was talking about when she took us here. I had ice cream stuffed in macarons but it was their shaved ice treats that I wanted to try. It’s nothing like a snow cone. The ice is smoothly shaved, feels like cold cotton in your mouth.
They have specials or make your own choices. I have tried 3 of the specials, green tea, tuxedo and Mexican candy. They mimic flavors very well and ingredients decorate your plate. Yummy!
Pretty cheap at $ 5 for small and $ 7 for large.