It’s no secret that Dolcetti Espresso Bar in Adelaide’s eastern suburbs has some of the best Italian cakes and gelati in town. This family venture, run by three siblings, celebrates their Italian heritage, with everything made on-site.
It’s a relaxed place, with the friendly servers parcelling up sweet treats for the take-away crowd, while wrangling orders for those eating in.
Dolcetti, or “little sweets”, is well-named. With a huge variety of cakes and biscuits, it would take some time to work through all the options. But we’re totally up for the challenge.
One of my favourites is sfogliatelle – shell-shaped flaky pastries with a gorgeous ricotta filling, available in large or mini sizes. Tip if you are taking some home: before eating, crisp up the pastry with a brief spell under a hot grill.
And we can’t resist picking up packets of Dolcetti’s almond and orange biscuits and the cantucci (twice-baked biscotti).
But Dolcetti has more than just cakes – they also make their own gelati every day. Around two dozen flavours, with both dairy and non-dairy options, including several that won awards at the Royal Adelaide Show. Cones, cups or take-away packs. For extra indulgence, Nutella is on tap.
Lavish gelato cakes can be ordered. It’s fascinating to watch Marisa, the pastrychef, at work on the cakes, making sure everything is perfect. The cakes have three separate gelato layers, each needing to be frozen before the next, otherwise the layers won’t be distinct. So it takes several days to complete a cake, longer in hot or humid weather.
But our aim was for a more modest serving of gelati on a cone. My choice: a classic Italian combination of hazelnut gelato and lemon sorbetto. Outstanding, both texture and flavour, with a very generous serve.
Benny went for a single scoop of an excellent biscottini – Italian cookies and cream.
Fancy something savoury? Dolcetti also has that covered, with quiches, pies, sandwiches and salads. I loved the vegetarian toasted flatbread – filled with artichoke, capsicum, mushrooms, olive paste, basil pesto and stracchino cheese. Yum.
This bright and airy café is a great spot to catch up with friends or family, with the friendly servers making everyone feel welcome. If you can get past the amazing cakes and biscuits, Dolcetti also has outstanding gelato, with everything made in-house.
UPDATE: We were saddened to hear that Dolcetti has closed.
Dolcetti Espresso
7/143 Glynburn Road
Firle SA 5070
