This is another reason why I like the Ghetto.
Right across from it is this completely unassuming and easily dismissible gelateria. There are no bright lights. No fancy signage. No modern decor. No fancy packaging. No crew of young servers in uniform. No free wifi. Nothing that shouts 'Original Italian'. No one round the corner handing out flyers. No English. Nothing to encourage a tourist to check it out. And things will not improve much in that department, I suspect. The people who seem to rush in here are the regular customers who are a little old and their pace is more of an amble.
What it does have is a few things that more than makes up for what it doesn't have. Or, depending on how you look at it, are the things that make it into such a gem of a place :
... a history of artisan gelato making tradition
... a silent wall of awards won every year
... a few unusual flavours
... incredible gelato
On my last day in the bakery, the bakers wanted me to try something different and wanted to take me there to taste the very special gelato with riso. Have you tried gelato with riso? It's very good. It's the only one in Rome. We go after we have finished. It's right here, very near the bakery. Not very far. We'll all go. Won't take long. And then we'll go home.
At first, I stupidly thought riso gelato would taste of rice, which of course would mean that it would taste of nothing much. Instead, there are whole grains of rice in the gelato. Quite like eating a risotto, only it's cold and sweet. I tried these flavours and a few more - the rose, the pistachio, the hazelnut and they were all too good.
And this completes the trio of we're-not-flash-and-we-don't-care-places in and around the Ghetto.
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| The bakers Lorenzo and Renato. |
