Gelato Messina

March 14, 2015

True to our 12-hour tour update, we stopped by Melbourne's Gelato Messina while collecting new street art photos in Fitzroy and Collingwood. This outlet is notably larger than its Sydney siblings and at least as popular. The standard menu crosses state boundaries too, running to 35 flavours, 11 of them vegan and 32 of them nominally gluten-free (GM won't guarantee that any of their products are completely allergen-free). 

I trialled one of the specials (pictured front), a peanut butter gelato smashed with pretzel brownies ($4) - it was a little light on the salty crunch but well endowed with dense cakey chunks. Meanwhile Michael sampled the coconut & lychee and poached figs in Marsala standards (pictured back, $6) - all the fruit flavours were bold, fresh and startlingly true to their sources. You'd be hard pressed to find a smoother, more satisfying scoop around Melbourne.

We're several years late to the church of Messina, but now have the fervor of the freshly converted.

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Gelato Messina has won fans in vegan bloggers The Good Hearted, as well as many omni bloggers: see Let Me Nom, pistachiodreams, Simply 2 Fine, Occupie Fitzroy, The Glutton's Diet, Curiously Celeste, Ministry of Gluttony, ohdenny, A Chronicle of Gastronomy, The Juliet Report, Miss Sage Sugar, msihua.com, A Food Story, What Would Martha Do?, thehangrybitch, New International Students, Mango Macarons, Eat. Play. Shop., Dave Plus Food, Sweet & Sour Fork, amy's town (freebie), Yellow Eggs, Good Food Good Mood, Gastrology (freebie), confessions of a little piggy, Gourmet Chick, grazing panda, MEL: HOT OR NOT, Adventures of a Melbourne Girl and cheapie shopie. I only eat desserts and Let's Get Fat Together don't believe the hype.

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Gelato Messina
237 Smith St, Fitzroy
1800 435 286
prices, standard flavours, special flavours
facebook page

Accessibility: Gelato Messina has a wide entrance involving one step up. Inside is quite spacious (although it's often crowded with people) - we've seen a couple of prams in there. We ordered and paid at a high counter, and didn't visit the toilets.