Summer heat beating you down? Get yourself some refreshing cold treats, at least

Summer is in full swing, and hitting dangerous heat levels in fact. So first thing’s first: Stay hydrated.

Water is still the best but refreshing cold treats — ice cream! Halo-halo! Scramble! — can turn this paralyzingly hot season into another, better experience altogether. Below are a few of our exciting finds.

Mixue

The boba sundae does it for us, but Mixue has plenty more interesting offers — like milk teas, fruit teas, and smoothies — in store. The brand from China arrived in Metro Manila in 2023 and quickly opened shops in Subic, Baguio, and Batangas. 

Our boba sundae starts at P65 but at Mixue, there are even more affordable options. Ice cream is at P30, fresh lemonade is at P40, and the two-topping jasmine tea at P45. 

PickUp Coffee

The sensational PickUp Coffee just released its summer-perfect drinks — nine deliciously refreshing drinks that will, well, pick you up! The Watermelon Latte has a splash of espresso and creamy milk, but coffee and watermelon sounds a little too edgy for you, the Watermelon Craze, like the Mango Madness, features a blend of yogurt with fruit over ice.

PickUp Coffee has plenty of locations across Metro Manila but if going on the street and getting under the sun sounds too much of an effort, PickUp coffee is also available on Grab Food and DingDong. 

Bebang’s Halo-Halo

You can’t have a summer coolers list without halo-halo, and what’s a halo-halo conversation these days without mentioning everybody’s favorite halo-halo, Bebang.

The still-viral halo-halo brand will have you transfixed with generous servings of sago, ube, rice crispies, pandas jelly, nata, corn, and banana cinnamon, swirling about shaved frozen milk! And then you get to the bottom and is that a thick slab of leche flan at its base? 

It’s so good that you need to book ahead to get your Bebang halo-halo fix (starts P138). With only one store — on Shaw Boulevard in Mandaluyong — Bebang is consistently sold out.  

By the way, Bebang also has on offer Melon, Mango, Buck Pandan, and Ube variants of its famed halo-halo.

Ember’s Ice Scramble

Iskrambol or Ice Scramble is a staple Filipino street food and dessert made of shaved ice mixed with milk, sugar, sometimes with chocolate syrup, served with various sweet toppings like marshmallows and chocolate sprinkles.

Ember’s has quite the range — from regular to milky to buco-melon — and as though that’s not enough, the shop in Sampaloc, Manila also has a DIY ice scramble set which starts at P229. 

Just so you know: variants come in various sizes — party, family, and friendly. And hey: Ember’s is available on Grab. 

Hobing Korean Dessert Cafe

In this heat, there is also room for Bingsu, the beloved Korean dessert featuring shaved ice topped with sweetened condensed milk, fruit syrups, red bean paste, fruits, and the occasional ice cream or yogurt. 

Hobing at Glorietta 4 and Eastwood Techno Plaza, has an extensive Bingsu menu with classic flavors like Mango, Matcha, and Strawberry, but also like Cheese Injeoime, Black Forest, and Mango Berry Cheese. It starts at around P250.

Tealive 

It won’t be an underrated milk tea store for long, so get to Tealive pronto. 

Milk Tea is the name of their game, but frappes, fruit teas, smoothies and delicious snacks are also on offer at Tealive. 

Before you get lost in the choices, allow us: The Summer Strawberry Pudding Smoothie will definitely quench your thirst in this summer heat. It didn’t become a crowd favorite for nothing. 

— Jade Veronique Yap/LA, GMA Integrated News