Sydney

It was a hot day in Sydney. After two gruelling days at a conference talk-fest, definitely time for a gelato treat. And my closest option – Gelato Messina at The Star.

The growing empire of Gelato Messina now has 11 stores in Sydney, three in Melbourne, two in Queensland and one in Canberra. Plus there is a dairy farm at Numurkah that produces all the milk used in Messina’s dairy-based gelati, a strawberry farm at Dural and a hazelnut farm at Seymour, which is expected to supply all of Messina’s hazelnut needs within five years. Continue Reading

Sometimes you can be lucky. A couple of years ago, Benny and I spent a few days in Sydney. We stayed in Chippendale, just a block away from Anita – La Mamma del Gelato. Every day we rocked up for our gelato fix. Utter bliss.

At the end of another Sydney visit, with spare time before I needed to catch the airport train (when, oh when, will Melbourne ever get its own airport train?), it was an absolute no-brainer to make a small detour. Anita is just ten minutes’ walk from Central Station. Continue Reading

Two days, one night in Sydney. Could I squeeze in a visit to an artisan gelateria? Absolutely. And I found the ideal place. RivaReno.

Founded in 2004 in Bologna, RivaReno now has gelaterie across Italy, and has expanded to Australia, Malta and Spain. My expectations were high. RivaReno has some prestigious awards, including “Migliore gelateria d’Italia” (best gelateria in Italy) in 2008 from the Golosaria association and “Maestri del Gusto” (Masters of Taste) from the Slow Food organisation.

So how did RivaReno earn such accolades? It starts with the basics – natural ingredients with no artificial flavourings, colourings or preservatives. The ingredients come from top quality sources: hazelnuts and pistachios from Italy, Arabica coffee beans, real vanilla from Madagascar. Continue Reading