It sounds like alchemy: Water ice should be both water (albeit highly sugary, fruit-flavored water) and ice. Too little water, and you’ve got classic Italian ice; too much, and it’s a 7-11 slurpy. Just right is the eat-with-a-spoon-and-a-straw water ice at Fairmount’s Philly Flavors. All the classic colors are here, created from real fruit, like the from-the-tree cherry pieces — not maraschino — dotting the deep-red ice.

Philly Flavors | 2004 Fairmount Avenue, Philadelphia, PA | 215-232-7748