(Video) Sweet Crush Opens Its Ice Castle Gates

Sweet Crush has been open for about a week and business has been a bit tough, said owner Yael Lustmann.

First, the shaved ice bar's July opening was delayed when it hit a few snags, including the hiring and training of employees.  The shop features several wall-mounted iPads in the back of the store that don't work because an electrician still needs to run power to them. Tables line a large bench which is fixed to the east wall and will soon be flanked by chairs when the chair designer finishes them. The display menu hangs above the service counter and lists the shop's offerings, but is missing the image decals that should accompany them.

"It's a work in progress," said Lustmann.

Critics online have also chided Sweet Crush for not serving samples, something Lustmann's machines are not set up for.

But it's all a work in progress and Lustmann is confident that these are small hurdles that a first-time business owner like herself can overcome, she said.

Lustmann has practiced law and real estate in Los Angeles in the past and decided to do something different.

"My mother said I turned 40 and went crazy," Lustmann said.

The shop took about nine months to open, which is why Lustmann calls it her fourth child. She also calls Sweet Crush her ice castle, to which she is the self-professed ice queen. The initial idea, said Lustmann, was to create something like Superman's icy Fortress of Solitude, but also make it warm and welcoming. She wanted colorful, indirect lighting that enhanced the arctic feel.

A white faux wall does just that. Ice crystal-shaped holes in the walls reveal a colorful, ambient lighting system that is prevalent throughout Sweet Crush and the color can be controlled from the front of the store. 

Brentwood resident Samantha Ball brought her husband and infant to try out the new shaved ice joint.

"It's so neat," said Brentwood resident Samantha Ball after trying a shaved ice, fruit confection. "It's like yummy air. It's super light and fluffy."