Giolitti's: Rome, Italy

The place I’ll miss the most in Rome is Giolitti’s…a pastry and gelato shop. It is perhaps the most famous one in town and lucky for me my hotel was practically around the block. Though they serve a large selection of pastries and tarts, what kept me coming back was the oh so yummy gelato. I remember my first week in the program I shied away from the shop since it seemed too intimidating to order gelato. In this shop there is no real concept of a line so you must first pay for your choice of size of cone at the cashier’s then somehow get the attention of one of the scoopers. Luckily AM and SR took me in one time and showed me how it was done. Funny thing…it helps to be a girl and even more to be a girl who speaks Italian or at least enough of it. The Italian men seem to be enchanted with American girls who can carry on a decent convo in Italian. Both AM and SR knew enough to get by so they made friends not only at this shop but also at several shops. At Giolitti’s, Adrienne often got a free cone or upgrade from her friend. For me, I usually got more than the normal serving whenever I smiled and tried but failed miserably at trying to say the flavors in Italian but I was a happy camper with my mela verde(green apple), fragola(strawberry) and melon(melon-cantaloupe) flavor combo so whatever. I had visited other gelato shops or seen some of my classmates come back from others and noticed that Giolitti’s probably gives you the best deal in town. For several places a small cone will get you only 1 flavor, at others perhaps 2 flavors but here they give you 3 choices. Be friendly with your scooper and he will reward you. Gelato here is definitely a different experience from what it is at home. In La Jolla or even one time in Los Gatos I remember getting gelato…it wasn’t spectacular and I remember it being quite pricey( $4-5 for a small cup). Giolitti’s makes it fresh daily to my understanding and I love that you can see and taste little chunks of fruit in the fruit selection plus for a small it’s only 2 euro(~$2.60 USD) and I usually had a tough time finishing the cone. An odd thing at Giolitti’s is that you can’t sit at their tables unless you order a dessert/ drink from their menu. You see them many a times shoo-ing away confused people happily licking away at their cones. I did try a banana split off their menu one time but I must say I’m more satisfied picking flavors from their vast selection and walking around the neighborhood with my cone. I recommend this as a definite must go if you are ever in Rome. I’m sad that it took me 6 weeks to figure out my 3 favorite flavors(the ones mentioned above).

Check out the flavors… and there were oh so many more.

A real strawberry granita!

This was quite a delicious banana split…. this ice cream at the bottom was french vanilla cream and bacchio(inspired by bachi). It was certainly a nice treat.


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Giolitti's
via Uffici del Vicario, 40
Rome, Italy
p: +39-6-6991243
f: +39-6-69941758
open till 2 in the morning though I believe gelato isn’t brought out till 11am-ish
http://www.giolitti.it/home-e.html