Daisy & Kamryn
Flip through for reviews, poems, a recipe, and the small joys that led us here. Thanks for reading— savor loudly.
Hi, welcome to Being Alive is the Special Occasion, a DIY mini zine made by two BFFs of almost 20 years. Equal parts memoir and love letter, this zine collects the small, fierce moments of joy that keep us alive in a world that can feel bleak. Yes, we are deadass serious about our joy.
For us, joy is not trivial. It is survival. Building community and tending to the bonds that hold us up is how we make it through. We, Daisy Salinas and Kamryn Warren, met in high school in 2006, and after years of long distance, now we both live in San Antonio. Being neighbors has turned everyday routines into tiny acts of resistance against isolation. Our friendship is proof that life is still worth savoring, even when so much tries to make it feel otherwise.
So instead of waiting for reasons to celebrate, we make being alive the occasion: planning trips on a whim, belting karaoke on a Tuesday, playing video games, and hunting down every mangonada in town.
Our debut issue “Mangonada Mavens” is a love letter to the mangonada—cold, sweet-tangy-spicy mango slushes made with chamoy, lime, and Tajín. We review and reminisce, but mostly we celebrate how this messy, joyful treat connects memory, culture, and friendship one shared sip at a time.
A Mangonada is a frozen mango Mexican drink made with sweet mango + lime, swirled with chamoy, Tajin, and finished with a tamarindo straw.
Daisy likes sweet a little more
Kamryn likes savory a little more
GIRLS JUST WANNA HAVE MANGONADAS, NOT MACHISMO GIRLS JUST WANNA HAVE MANGONADAS, NOT MACHISMO
Address: 923 N Loop 1604 E #109, San Antonio, TX 78232
Daisy: As the one with a sweeter tooth, I enjoyed this one more than Kamryn. It was nearly perfect! The fresh mango paired beautifully with mango ice, and the chamoy added just the right amount of sweetness. My only wish was for a tastier tamarind straw. Final score: 4/5
Kamryn: This was a sweet one! I loved the fresh mango on top and the way it was evenly distributed throughout. The ice texture was primo, a little creamy, had great consistency, and had a nice band of frozen chamoy distributed in layers. I found this chamoy more sweet than spicy. Coming in with a 3 outta 5, but really because I love the spice and salt, and these were sweeter. Bonus points for maybe the best built mangonada on the list! 5
BY DAISY SALINAS DAISY SALINAS
We toast to life with two mangonadas at the corner stand –one for you, one for me. The machine wants to grind us down, but we sip slow and give no fucks, turning every bitter note into something sweeter.
Making one is ritual: mango crushed, chamoy threaded through, Tajín rimmed like a crown made for us queens.
This is revolutionary sweetness – each stir a vow, each drip a quiet uprising. Every step holds both labor and tenderness: cultivating love, weaving netsworks of care from recipes, memory, and patience.
We gather in this small cathedral of flavor – chosen family, sisterhood, friends – refusing to let oppression be our only story.
Like Toni Morrison said, “You have to have the love, you have to have the magic, that’s also life.”
Like the fruit in our hands, we squeeze every sweetness from living, and with each burst of taste, make room for something better.
Address: 6322 Farm-To-Market
Daisy: My favorite was the chamoy sauce – the balance of spice and lime tartness was incredible. There was no Tajín but the chamoy was spicy enough for me though I would have liked a touch. My least favorite was the tamarind straw (yes, I know I’m picky about those!) Final score: 3.5/5
Kamryn: I really liked the ice texture on this one; it was almost like ice cream the way it scooped. It could have definitely had more fresh mango and Tajin. I found the tamarind straw a little too chewy, but I got into it. The tartness took it up a few stars for me, with an overall 4/5.
BY DAISY SALINAS
My great tío Ramero, a vendor from the village of General Treviño, Nuevo León, where my family is from, taught me that Mexican food is more than flavor. It is family, resilience, and invention. As a kid visiting Mexico, he would give me free raspas, slushy fruit treats sold at his shop overlooking the plaza. One of my favorite parts of making the long drive from Tennessee, where I grew up, to Mexico was knowing I’d get my hands on tío Ramero’s raspas. My favorite was limón y chile, lime with Tajín. Sharing those cold treats with my brother and prim@s is a vivid childhood memory I have carried with me ever since.
Years later, I tried a mangonada, but my sweet tooth had already been shaped by other Mexican treats: paletas, churros, and pan dulce, especially conchas. Over time, I began to see how these foods are more than something sweet. They are ways people survive, adapt, and express pride through hands-on creativity. The DIY nature of mangonadas and other treats, built cup by cup with whatever the vendor has on hand, shows how Mexican food culture values improvisation, care, and invention.
Many vendors are pushed into vending by racism, classism, and migration barriers that limit other opportunities, but that reality does not lessen the skill, dignity, or beauty of what they make. The mangonada itself carries folk memory and culinary evolution. It was likely born in Tijuana as a Tajín-rimmed mango sorbet, then evolved into the chamango or chamoyada when vendors added chamoy, a tangy-spicy condiment adapted from Japanese umeboshi, introduced by Teikichi Iwadare in the 1920s and made local with chiles. Today, mangonadas can be found across Mexico and the U.S., especially in Texas.
These treats carry cultural memory, with recipes, techniques, and stories passed mouth to mouth and cart to cart. Supporting local vendors and small shops does more than preserve flavor. It sustains the livelihoods of Mexican, Indigenous, and other people of color, and honors a living heritage. I miss tío Ramero, and I know he would be proud to see a zine celebrating mangonadas. If he were still here, I’d sit him down, listen to his stories, and beg him for that raspa recipe.
The outdoor patio is great for airflow and relaxed catch-ups with a friend.
Address: 1118 W Hildebrand Ave, San Antonio, TX 78201
Daisy: From one of my favorite spots, this mangonada has excellent ice, chamoy, and tajin. It would have been nearly perfect with more fresh mango and a tamarind stick. Final score: 4/5
Kamryn: I love this one for the ice texture! The chamoy is also amazing, but there’s not nearly enough throughout. Adequate fresh mango, but could use some more. Missing the straw bit, but overall a great mangonada and cool ambiance at the spot. Overall 3.5 stars.
Address: 4929 Walzem Rd, San Antonio, TX 78218
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Daisy: This mangonada was amazing – the chamoy sauce was the best I’ve ever had (the owner said it’s homemade), and every other element was chef’s kiss. I would’ve loved a few fresh mango chunks mixed in, but it was still incredibly delicious. Final score: 4.5/5
Kamryn: This was the best chamoy I’ve ever had, hands down. Their homemade recipe was so good, we got a cup to go! I loved the texture of the ice and the layering of Tajin, chamoy, and mango. One of my favorites for sure 5/5.
Address: 603 N Zarzamora St, San Antonio, TX 78207
This is the first Mangonada joint we ever hit up together! 16
Daisy: Absolutely the best mangonada I’ve EVER had. Perfect balance of fresh mango and mango ice, topped with tangy chamoy and a generous dusting of tajin. The tamarind stick added the ideal sweet-tart finish. Refreshing, authentic, and unforgettable, a must-try if you’re in San Antonio! Final score: 5/5
Kamryn: The mangonada that started it all!! This was my very first, and it will forever be hard to top. The ice texture is a unique crushed ice feel but still has bits of mango and chamoy mixed in. Sitting on the curb eating this mangonada healed something in me! 5/5 for all the flavor elements and the historical place it holds on our mangonada maven journey.
Daisy Salinas is a Xicana feminist zinester, fest curator, punk performer, activist, and rabble-rouser based in Yanaguana (San Antonio, TX). As the founder of Muchacha Fanzine and Xingonas in the Pit, she uses art, music, and community building to uplift artists of color and fight for collective liberation. Off the clock, Daisy can usually be found sipping mangonadas with her best friend Kamryn, traveling, watching horror movies, exploring tasty local food, singing karaoke, rollerskating, dancing at shows, swimming, or cuddled up with her husband and their two chihuahuas and three grey tabby cats. Follow @muchachafanzine and @xingonasinthepit, or support her work at patreon.com/muchachafanzine.
Kamryn is a learner, a carer, a listener, and an adventurer navigating life’s peaks and valleys with a beautiful chosen family and tiny pup by her side. Currently in one of life’s valleys, she finds solace and comfort in creating art and sipping mangonadas with her best friend of 20 years Daisy. Also, an adorable armadillo wandered into one of her campsites recently, and now she's obsessed!
