Islands-inspired treat
Wright brings Kiki’s Hawaiian Shave Ice to Town
Christy Johnson Wright fell in love with Hawaiian shave ice on a trip to the islands in 2014, and her passion has brought the sweet treat to the Knoxville area.
The transplanted Farragut resident — who moved to the Fort West neighborhood with her husband, Jonathon Wright, and children, Macy and Luke, just last year from Kansas City — operates “Kiki’s Hawaiian Shave Ice,” a business she perfected in the years since that fateful trip.
“We had 12 days set aside to visit three of the islands, and I tried the shave ice on Oahu, the first one we went to,” she recalled. “I had never had anything so soft and fluffy, and I wanted to visit every shaved ice shop we could find.”
That determination to sample the treat continued every time she and her husband, and ultimately their children, visited the islands. But the idea to own her own business took time.
“I had the idea to have some kind of a food truck,” said Wright, who acknowledges a “passion” for making desserts. “I first thought of cupcakes, but I just wasn’t sure about that. Then, in 2017, we went back to the islands, and I took pictures of how they did things there. I was trying to figure out if it was something I could do.
“By 2018, I realized if I didn’t go ahead and do it, I never would; and since my children were older I wanted them to be able to see me fulfill my dream and show them that I was willing to follow through with it.”
Wright settled on the name, which was a nickname given to her by a former charge when she worked as a nanny during college, and she set up shop in Kansas City on June 1, 2018.
“As soon as I decided to do it, everything fell into place,” she said, including the procurement of a food truck and a semi-permanent location.
She did a lot of research, too, to find the right equipment and to settle on the perfect ingredients, all of which come from Hawaii.
“I wanted it to be as authentic as possible,” Wright said. “I love the people and their culture so much that I want to honor them in what I do.”
Significantly, she notes the name itself.
“It’s just ‘shave ice.’ I have had people try to correct me to ‘shaved ice,’ but if that ‘d’ is there, you know it is not authentic.”
The equipment had to be exact, too.
“I use a Japanese machine that makes the texture soft, like snow, but there is no crunch to it,” she added.
It is traditional to put ice cream on top, or a “snow cap,” which is a sweetened condensed milk mixture. Kiki’s offers a wide variety of more than 30 flavorings, spices and toppings, including pineapple, banana, lemon, coconut, papaya, peach and bubblegum, along with some unusual Hawaii-centric ones, such as Adzuki Beans and Li Hing Mui powder.
When Jonathon’s job brought the family to Knox County, Wright was eager to bring her shave ice business right along.
Her sister-in-law, who works in Halls for the Knox County Teachers Federal Credit Union, helped secure space in its parking lot, 6821 Maynardville Pike, earlier this summer.
Wright also has picked up steady work at Ijams Nature Center, 2915 Island Home Ave., at least one or two days a week (her updated weekly itinerary can be found on Kiki’s Facebook page), and she has been in heavy rotation for private parties and special events.
Wright plans to be at Farragut’s Dog Daze competition, set to take place in Village Green Shopping Center parking lot Aug. 14-16, and had planned to be at the July 19 Lawn Chair Series event — but it has been cancelled.
While she no longer works six days a week as she did in Kansas City, she is glad to be back in the groove.
“It is the hardest job I’ve ever had, but the most satisfying one, too,” Wright said, noting her daughter has been working right along side her this summer.
“My favorite part is watching someone try shave ice for the first time,” she added.
“The key to all of it is love.”
