MELBOURNE | You’re in Melbourne, it’s hot, and you want ice-cream/gelato. We’ve all been there. With so much choice, it can be hard to know where to find the best gelato/ice-cream in Melbourne. We’re here to help you sort out the best from the rest.
But first, what’s the difference between gelato and ice-cream? If you go to Italy, gelato is all you’ll find, as gelato is simply the Italian word for ice-cream. In Australia we tend to use the terms interchangeably but down here they actually refer to two slightly different things. Ice-cream is a frozen dairy dessert made of milk, cream, sugar, and (typically) egg yolks. The ingredients are cooked together into a custard then cooled and fast churned, resulting in a smooth, creamy, light treat. Gelato has more milk and less cream and eggs, and is churned at a slower speed than ice-cream, resulting in an end product that’s denser and softer than ice-cream.
Enough of definitions and technicalities though. All you want is a tasty frozen treat, so here’s our pick of where to find the best gelato/ice-cream in Melbourne.
Gelateria Primavera
This gelataria is part of Spring Street Grocer and, like the main store, focuses on getting the authentic Italian classics right with a few twists and turns. In the stainless steel pozzeti (used to ensure a constant temperature and texture is maintained) you’ll find a range of 10 milk-based gelato flavours and six sorbets, including our favourites gelato flavour pistachio, and our favourite summer sorbet flavour, peach and basil.
Gelateria Primavera
157 Spring Street
Melbourne
Victoria 3000
Australia
Gelato Messina
After taking Sydney by storm, Gelato Messina opened in Melboure and has since expanded to three locations across the city. Whether it’s the Collingwood, Richmond or Windsor store you visit you’ll be sure to be greeted with a dazzling array of gelto to satisfy your cravings. There’s the classic of course, but what’s made Messina famous are the unique creations that are always being thought up. Some of our favourites include the pear with spiced rhubarb, and the coconut milk gelato with lychee fruit.
The gelato cakes at Messina very tasty and impressive and are a great idea if you’re looking for something different for a birthday party or event.
Gelato Messina
Fitzroy
237 Smith Street
Fitzroy
Victoria 3065
Australia
Richmond
164 Swan Street
Richmond
Victoria 3121
Australia
Windsor
171 Chapel Street
Windsor
Victoria 3181
Australia
Miinot Gelato
This small gelato shop (there’s only one bench with seating) is attached to the house of owners Emma and Gary Nicholas-Jennings and is a favourite with locals. Miinot Gelato is about good quality, locally sourced ingredients and smooth, tasty gelato here – all of the things that matter across 18 flavours.
Try the lamington flavour for a tasty Aussie/Italian fusion delight and if you’re vegan (or not), the Poison Apple is a winner.
Miinot Gelato
71 Melville Road
Pascoe Vale South
Victoria 3044
Australia
Zero Gradi
Situated just a few doors down from the fabled 400 Gradi pizza restaurant in Brunswick East, Zero Gradi comes from the mind of the Johnny Di Francesco, winner of the world’s best pizza. Inspired by the chef’s own visits to Naples, Zero Gradi aims to bring the very best of Naples gelato to Melburnians.
Alongside a lot of the usual gelato flavours, the range also boasts a Margherita gelato, a flavour inspired by Di Francesco’s award-winning pizza. It’s a little different, with flavours similar to that of a cassata, but it certainly makes Zero Gradi more than worth a visit. Make sure you try the Nutella and Peanut Butter flavour – it’s the one we keep coming back to.
Zero Gradi
93-97 Lygon Street
Brunswick East
Melbourne 3057
Australia
Il Melograno
If you want gelato that tastes like the flavours it’s supposed to, Northcote’s Il Melograno is one of the best places in town to visit. Third generation gelato maker Marco Enea carefully sources all of his ingredients (the wall lists where all of the ingredients are from) and even adjusts the base of each flavour to match the ingredients. The results speak for themselves.
Back in 2015 we ran an ice-cream filled donughnut pop-up in Melbourne’s CBD so we can very much appreciate the joys of such a creation. Il Melograno offer a similar, more Italian riff on this – gelato filled brioche, which is fantastic.
Il Melograno
76 High Street
Northcote
Victoria 3070
Australia
Pidapipo Gelataria
A few years ago, Lisa Valmorbida gave up her day job to travel around Italy learning about gelato, including spending time at the famed Carpigiani gelato university. Cue 2017 and Lisa owns two Pidapipo Gealtaria stores that seem to have constant lines whenever we go past. The reason that Pidapipo has become of of the best gelato spots in Melbourne is obvious – fantastic gelato made using the best ingredients around.
The classic flavours always hit the spot, and we’re particularly fond of the fruit flavours, which remind us of the best gelato we tried in Rome that actually tastes like the fruit it’s supposed to taste like. Keep an eye out for the rotating selection of special flavours – we loved the Egg Nog flavour that came out over Christmas.
Pidapipo Gelataria
Carlton
299 Lygon Street
Carlton
Victoria 3057
Australia
Windsor
85 Chapel Street
Windsor
Victoria 3181
Australia
N2 Extreme Gelato
N2 Extreme Gelato opened up a few years ago in Sydney then Melbourne when the “nitro ice-cream” trend first hit Australia. If you don’t know what this is, it’s where the custard base is frozen very quickly by being churned with liquid nitrogen. The theory is that because there’s no time for ice crystals to form, the ice-cream is smoother than that which is churned traditionally.
To be honest, we’ve never had an issue with any of the gelato on this list not being smooth enough, but regardless, the gelato at N2 is smooth and tasty. They’re probably the most experimental of the bunch when it comes to flavours which, more often than not, hit the spot and use locally sourced ingredients where possible. Think anything from SPAM to pavlova filled with raspberry gel and mango coulis.
N2 Extreme Gelato
Fitzroy
329 Brunswick Street
Fitzroy
Victoria 3065
Australia
Melbourne CBD
18 Sutherland Street
Melbourne
Victoria 3000
Australia
Billy Van Creamy
Brothers Alex and Mitch Wells ran Billy Van Creamy out of a food van for a few years before finding a permanent location in Fitzroy North (the van still operates too). What’s notable about this place is that, where possible, all of the ingredients are organic and the end result is some really tasty gelato with flavours that taste like they’re supposed to. The classic are all here and there are always a few specials and season flavours on offer – the apple pie flavour (when it’s available) is one of our favourites.
There’s also filter coffee on offer, and naturally, the option to make it an affogato with a scoop of ice-cream is also available.
Billy Van Creamy
27 Best Street
Fitzroy North
Victoria 3068
Australia
Joylati
Owners Cristino Vedovato and Fabrizio Locatelli hail from Piedemont in Italy and ran a gelato shop there for 15 years before moving to Australia and opening Joylati. Inspired by the flavours of their hometown and youth, the 26 flavours of gelato at Joylati range from the traditional to the more modern, and use local, fresh, seasonal ingredients where possible and organic milk and eggs.
Pidemont is famous for its hazelnuts, so it should come as no surprise that the nocciola (hazelnut) is one of the best classic flavours on offer. We also love the pumpkin flavours. Add some liquid chocolate from the taps to your ice-cream and you can’t go wrong.
Joylati
Shop G07
325 Chapel Street
Prahran
Victoria 3181
Australia
Gelobar
Gelobar is about as old school a gelato shop as you can get in Melbourne. It’s located on Lygon Street in Brunswick East and is almost always full of people from all walks of life, young and old, enjoying some gelato or Italian cakes and sweets.
While the gelato and cakes might not be the best on this list, the traditional flavours are mighty tasty, the atmosphere is fantastic, and the prices are lower than the rest. The chocolate based flavours are our favourite here – Chocolate, Nutella, Baci. Grab a canoli and a scoop of gelato on the side and you’re sorted.
Gelobar
74 Lygon Street
Brunswick East
Victoria 3057
Australia
Jock’s Ice Cream and Sorbets
Jock Main opened Jock’s Ice Cream and Sorbets in 2001 and has built a reputation for unique flavours that accurately capture the essence of what they claim to be. Fresh, high quality ingredients are use to create favorites like Chocolate, Hokey Pokey, and Salted Caramel & Date Sandwiches. Oh yes, there are home-made ice cream sandwiches.
Jock’s Ice Cream and Sorbets
83 Victoria Avenue
Albert Park
Victoria 3206
Australia