Hometown Food Heroes: Gelato & Co.
My new fave sweet treat!
The weather has been heating up in Texas. Today, it was even 80 degrees! What better way to beat the heat than to get a cold and creamy treat, like gelato!
An amazing new gelateria recently opened in Katy, called Gelato & Co. Led by Rodrigo Aviles, Javier Farinez and Andrea Tonelli, Gelato & Co. is bringing an authentic taste of gelato from Italy, right to our backyard in Texas. All this and a welcoming, family friendly atmosphere too!
What is Gelato?
Gelato is like the Italian version of ice cream, but, it so much more creamy and rich in flavor than a traditional American ice cream. The way that gelato is made actually incorporates less air, giving the gelato a more rich and creamy texture and flavor.
What makes Gelato & Co so unique is that they make all 24 flavors of their gelatos every morning. This prevents any ice formation which would affect the texture of the gelato. And their flavors are incredible! The Pistachio Gelato tastes like pure pistachio! That is because it is literally made out of pistachios! No added preservatives here! Gelato also uses less cream, which helps reduce the fat content of the dessert.
The gelato from Gelato & Co tastes just like what you would get in Italy! The freshness of the gelato is stunning! Gorgeous, creamy gelato with bold and rich flavors just bursting out!
Gelato & Co believes that making gelato is truly an art. Their gelato chefs attend a gelato university, led by the head gelato masters in the company. At this school, the chefs learn the finer points of making gelato while ensuring Italian authenticity.
The ingredients for the gelato are sourced either locally, like the fresh fruit, or are imported from Italy, like the Sicilian pistachios for the Pistachio Gelato. They try to ensure that their suppliers are sustainable as well as eco-friendly too.
More than Gelato
In addition to gelato, Gelato & Co also serves fresh, hot coffee, espressos and pastries. They even have their own coffee beans that are roasted in Italy. The flavor of the coffee is rich, dark yet still smooth. I love the deep, rich flavor of their coffee. And it has a high caffeine content for that added pep in your step!
The baristas at Gelato & Co undergo in-depth training, similar to that of the Gelato university, to ensure that everything from the espresso machines to the coffee beans to the water temperature are finely tuned and balanced. This makes sure that every cup of coffee is at the highest standard for their customers. Plus, their incredible coffee art is a thing of beauty!
The pastries are baked in house daily so that they are fresh and warm for their customers.
The cookies and muffins are made using Italian recipes which gives them a light and fluffy texture.
Gelato & Co even have a selection of artisanal jams. I tried their version of Nutella, which was divine! I love the combination of chocolate and hazelnut. Their orange and peach jams were so delicious too! The flavors were so intense and vibrant too!
You can even get crepes at Gelato & Co. This is such a fun way to experience a warm crepe with the cold and creamy gelato. The crepe was topped with whipped cream and strawberries. Now that is my idea of a great dessert!
Gelato & Co also has gelato popsicles, cakes and cookies for special occasions. They are even going to have a portable cart that they can take to events, so that everyone can get a taste of their gelato!
A Part of the Family
The part that I really admire about Gelato & Co, other than their incredible gelato, of course, is that they are a family business. The original creator of the first gelato machine, Ezio Augusto Manziono, shared his love of gelato with his daughter, Elena, who now runs UNICO, the European version of Gelato & Co.
In addition, the Gelato & Co stores are so welcoming, bright and open spaces. Great for families to come in and share the joy of gelato! Rodrigo told me that they want their store to be a happy place, where families can go to enjoy their time together and create memories.
We brought our family into Gelato & Co and the kids absolutely loved getting to try a few different flavors of gelato, and then get their own cones to eat. They even asked for more gelato after they finished their first cone!
I absolutely loved getting to know more about Gelato & Co. I felt completely welcomed by Rodrigo, Andrea and Jonathon and truly appreciated them explaining their business and products to me.
You must try their gelato! The flavors are so rich and bold - I love that the gelato is made fresh each day and they use fresh local ingredients, as well as authentic Italian imported ingredients.
Gelato & Co have really captured the essence of an authentic Italian gelateria. By bringing their store to Texas, we are getting a real treat of, not only delectable gelato, but also being able to spend time as a family and create beautiful new memories together around food.
