Snowberry Dessert Cafe

Tumon
210 Pale San Vitores Rd, Tamuning, 96912, Guam

Agana Shopping Center
302 South Route 4 #100, Hagåtña, 96910, Guam

By Morgan Legel

Hur

Steven Hur, owner and founder of Snowberry Dessert Café, runs two different locations providing fun, frozen treats to the people of Guam.

Originally from South Korea, Hur moved to the island in May 2016 from California, where he had been living for 15 years. He got the idea to move here after visiting his sister who lives here, and once he set foot on the island’s soil, he did not want to leave.

His first Snowberry location — in Tumon across from the Pacific Islands Club and near Jamaican Grill and an ABC Store — opened in November 2017, with the Agana Shopping Center location following suit on the same day the following year.

Having lived in numerous places, Hur has learned five languages — Korean, Chinese, Japanese, Russian and English — and wanted to bring those different cultures to his frozen treat shop on island.

Snowberry has a large menu, with a big portion of items containing bingsu, a Korean shaved ice dish that is a sort of a mix between sorbet and ice cream.

With two locations under his belt, he is still hungry for more.

“The more I open businesses, the more I want to do something more,” he says. “I couldn’t stop. I manage my health, exercise, everything. I want to stay energetic and be able to do something. If my health allows me to do this, I will. Guam is the perfect place to do business.”

He takes great pride in Snowberry being the first dessert café of its kind on island, he says. “There’s nowhere like this.”

He also boasts that the dessert is all-encompassing and a family favorite.

“This place meets the demand — from kids to seniors, grandson to grandfather,” he says. “It’s a very family-friendly place, and I enjoy running this business. This business is making everybody happy — when the customers are happy, I am happy.”

What do you think makes Snowberry unique from other dessert options on island?
Hur: I created everything. The main idea is from Korea, but I developed it further. For example, mochi and red bean are originally from Korea, but then I added more flavors and made items into drinks. We have bingsu snow combined with things to make smoothies; we have the snow combined with boba milk tea, which we call snowyoca. I tried to bring other cultures in as well. This is a unique idea in the world.

Why did you decide to move and set up shop here?
Hur: My sister lives here. I came and visited her and stayed here a week and thought this was a great place to live. The people are nice. I’m getting old (55 years of age), so I just want to enjoy the rest of my life here. I lived in California for 15 years, and I just wanted to change my career and my life. Guam was my retirement plan, but I had to do something when I got here. With the hot weather, I thought, let’s do some kind of frozen treat.

Tell us a little bit about your menu options — what is the most popular and what is new?
Hur: Snow bingsu is the most popular. For flavors, mochi, taro, mango, strawberry, coconut.

How has business changed since you’ve been operating two locations?
Hur: I spend almost every day in the Agana Shopping Center (location.) The Tumon location is very stable; I just go there to check on things.

Do you plan any further expansion in the future?
Hur: So far, I have two stores, but a lot of people like these items and this idea. I am more comfortable to make more stores. I was about to sign a lease agreement with Micronesia Mall, but it was right before COVID-19, so we couldn’t do it. Maybe later. I’m also looking for a place in Hawaii, and hopefully [will] open in January. I want to focus on making a franchise; this is my wish. When I do have more locations, Guam will be base camp. All the material supplies I will store here and send to other places.

I also have plans of getting into the education industry. Guam is the perfect place for education. I used to work at a university in California, and I want to change Guam to an education island. There are a lot of resources for education. We’re close to Asia, Korea, Japan, Taiwan, China, whatever. It’s a good place for English education, to have a learning center.

What does the largest portion of your customer base consist of?
Hur: Locals, locals, locals. We don’t get a lot of tourists — they’re busy, no time.