Another day, another ice cream purveyor has the scoop on fun flavors to cool down Orange County.
On the heels of Wanderlust Creamery and Filo Dessert Co. — two ice cream shops that recently opened in Costa Mesa and Old Towne Orange, respectively — Australia-based Gelatissimo will launch two of its gelato stores in Orange County as part of its foray into Southern California.
Gelatissimo will open its first O.C. shop on Oct. 19 on Balboa Island, followed by a second location in Irvine’s University Center on Nov. 12.
“Gelatissimo has been eyeing the Orange County area as a dream destination for years,” said CEO Braeden Lord in a written release. “It was a natural choice thanks to its beach culture, warm climate, family demographic, youthful vibrance and domestic and international tourism.”
SEE ALSO: Filo Dessert Co. brings Middle Eastern ice cream and knafeh to Old Towne Orange
Husband-wife team Rey and Sarah Maninang (Sarah’s family owned U.K.-based ice cream outfit Thayers) will own and operate the two O.C.-based franchises.
Orange County residents Rey and Sarah Maninang, pictured here in front of their Balboa Island shop, will own and operate both OC Gelatissimo locations. (Photo courtesy of Gelatissimo)
“There was a lot of synergy: my wife’s family owned the number-one ice cream brand in the UK for years, so she’s an expert in the field of frozen desserts and we were looking for a formula-based business with a proven track record of success, so Gelatissimo fits the bill,” said Rey Maninang in the same release.
Gelato flavors at Gelatissimo include mango sorbet, chunky New York cheesecake, wicked double choc brownie, decadent cookie dough (with hunks of cookie dough and caramel-fudge swirls), choc-honeycomb, a green apple sorbet and more. The gelatos, which come in vibrant hues like blue and magenta, also make decent foodie fodder on social media; more than 51,000 photos are tagged #gelatissimo on Instagram.
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According to the company, the gelatos are made fresh in-store daily.
Gelatissimo, founded by brothers Domenico and Marco Lopresti, opened its first location in 2002 in Sydney, Australia. Since then, the company has grown to more than 65 locations globally. In addition to Houston, Hawaii and the two upcoming Orange County locations, an Arkansas Gelatissimo will open by year’s end.
The gelato company recently swept first-, second- and third-place categories at the World Dairy Championships (i.e., the frozen dessert Olympics) with its chocolate, boysenberry and hazelnut gelatos, correspondingly.
Find them: 304 Marine Ave, Newport Beach; 4237 Campus Dr, Irvine
