Gelato Messina is a Sydney-based gelato chain, founded in 2002, with a rotating menu. Multiple locations operate across Australia, offering takeaway gelato, cakes, and specialty desserts.
2015
Salted Coconut and Mango Salsa Sorbet ($4.80, one scoop)
A salted coconut base with ribbons of mango running through. The first contact is soft and lightly creamy, followed by a gentle saline edge that sharpens the sweetness of the mango. The pairing sits in balance rather than contrast; neither element pushes forward aggressively. Coconut reads as restrained and slightly rounded, while the mango provides intermittent bursts of brighter sweetness. The overall effect is stable and easy to return to.
A later visit to the Surry Hills store followed a meeting in the eastern suburbs. The same flavour was repeated, paired with Mandarin Sorbet ($6.80).
The texture is clean and slightly firmer than the coconut base. Flavour sits between sweet and mildly zesty, without the sharper acidity associated with orange. The citrus profile is narrower and more controlled, which keeps it from dominating the palate when paired.
Across visits, fruit-based flavours tend to perform more reliably. Coconut & Lychee Sorbet, however, consistently under-delivers on lychee presence, with coconut dominating the profile. Apple Pie Gelato remains unresolved; an initial attempt was weighted heavily towards cinnamon, though the structure suggests potential if rebalanced.
2017
Passionfruit ($4.80 per scoop)
Immediate tang on contact, followed by a rounded sweetness. Seeds introduce a light crunch, breaking the otherwise smooth texture. The profile tracks closely to fresh passionfruit, particularly in its balance of acidity and sweetness. Functions well in heat due to its clarity and lift.
Yuzu Crazy ($4.80 per scoop)
A green tea base layered with yuzu curd and mandarin cake. Citrus leads from the outset, with the yuzu delivering a sharp, clean acidity. Mandarin cake adds a softer sweetness and a faint density beneath the gelato. Matcha remains in the background, contributing a mild bitterness and vegetal note without asserting itself. The citrus components cut through the creaminess effectively, preventing weight.
Blood Orange ($5.00, one scoop)
A clean, palate-resetting sorbet. The flavour carries the deeper aromatic quality associated with blood orange, alongside a controlled bitterness. Sweetness is present but does not linger.
Bright and direct. Sweetness sits upfront, followed by a light acidity that keeps the profile from flattening. The flavour reads close to fresh fruit rather than confection.
Macadamia Crunch
A denser, cream-based gelato with embedded macadamia pieces. The base is smooth and moderately rich, while the nuts introduce both texture and a roasted, slightly buttery note. The contrast prevents the creaminess from becoming uniform.
Star City (top) and Newtown (bottom).
2019
Oreogasm (top)
Peanut gelato with Oreo custard and crushed Oreo biscuit. The peanut base is smooth and nut-forward, with a steady sweetness. Biscuit pieces provide intermittent crunch. The custard component is less clearly defined within the overall structure.
Golden Nugget (right)
Coffee caramel gelato with nougat. Coffee introduces bitterness and depth, which stabilises the caramel’s sweetness. Nougat contributes both chew and a faint nuttiness, adding variation across each spoonful. The balance sits more evenly than expected given the caramel base.
Chock Chain Technology (not pictured)
Chocolate gelato with chocolate fudge and chocolate nougatine. A layered chocolate profile: smooth base, dense chew from the fudge, and crisp fragments from the nougatine. The structure relies on textural contrast to maintain interest.
Lychee and Coconut (top) / Passionfruit (middle) / Salted Coconut & Mango Salsa (not pictured)
Coconut presence appears more pronounced than in earlier visits, reducing the clarity of lychee and mango components. Passionfruit remains consistent, retaining its sharpness and balance.
Chip To Currency (bottom)
Peanut butter gelato with white chocolate-coated potato chips. The base is dense and nut-heavy. Chips introduce crunch alongside a mix of sweetness and salt, which cuts through the richness and prevents fatigue.
Twixed (top)
Milk chocolate gelato with shortbread and caramel. The flavour alignment with the confectionery reference is clear, though textural contrast is reduced; the biscuit lacks firmness and the caramel lacks chew relative to the original format.
Undercover Almonds
Caramel almond gelato with chocolate-coated almonds. Roasted almond notes lead, supported by caramel sweetness. The chocolate coating adds a slight bitterness, reinforcing the nut profile and adding structure.
2022
This is the Jack of all Fruits ($10.00, three scoops)
A sorbet combining coconut, passionfruit, and jackfruit. Texture carries slight grain from the coconut. Flavour opens with coconut, transitions briefly into jackfruit—marked by soft pineapple and banana notes—then resolves into dominant passionfruit. The jackfruit is identifiable but easily overtaken, contributing more sweetness than distinct flavour. The absence of its typical fibrous texture reduces its impact in this format.
2026
Pistachio Praline (top)
A fior di latte base layered with pistachio fudge and pistachio praline. Texture opened smooth and dense, then broke with the inclusion of whole pistachios. These were honey-roasted, carrying a thin caramelised shell that fractured cleanly before giving way to a firm nut interior. The praline introduced a deeper roasted note, while the pistachio ripple maintained continuity through the base. The flavour stayed warm and sustained, with a consistent nut presence across each spoonful. The quantity of inclusions was notably high, reinforcing both texture and flavour density.
Peanut Butter Florentine (right)
Peanut butter gelato with peanut praline and dark chocolate chips. The base was smooth and cohesive, with a rounded peanut profile that leaned slightly savoury. Praline pieces introduced a sharper crunch and a darker roast character, preventing the base from becoming too uniform. Dark chocolate chips sat intermittently, adding a mild bitterness that cut through the fat content and stabilised the overall profile.
Hazelnut Praline (bottom, not pictured)
A light chocolate gelato combined with hazelnut praline and fudge. The structure paralleled the pistachio version, but shifted towards a gianduja-like profile due to the chocolate base. Hazelnut praline delivered a softer crunch compared to pistachio, with a more rounded and slightly sweeter nut character. Fudge added density and chew, though it integrated more quietly into the base. The overall effect was smoother and less sharply defined in texture.
Messina x Get Baked Bertha Loves Mertha ($8.90 for one sundae scoop, assembled to order)
A collaboration with UK bakery Get Baked, this sundae was assembled to order and combined Bertha choc cake gelato with malt baked cheesecake (Mertha), Milo crumble, chocolate ganache and a piece of Bertha on top.
The gelato delivered a rich chocolate profile with a smooth, gooey texture, providing a cool contrast to the room-temperature cake and thick ganache. Through the mid-palate, the malt character from the cheesecake and crumble developed alongside the chocolate, creating a dense, confectionery profile. The baked cheesecake introduced gentle acidity, which provided some relief from the richness, while the Milo crumble added a drier, powdery texture and further malt character. The combination was highly indulgent, with chocolate remaining dominant throughout but supported by the malt, cheesecake acidity and contrasting temperatures. The room-temperature cake and ganache added density and chew against the cold, smooth gelato, while the crumble interrupted the richness with a lighter, powdery texture. Overall, a particularly rich sundae built around chocolate and malt, with the cheesecake acidity and Milo crumble providing necessary relief from the density.
Nut-based cream gelati perform more reliably here than earlier coconut-driven combinations, with praline acting as the primary stabilising element. Fruit flavours remain more precise, though these variants close the gap through texture and roast complexity.
Gelato Messina is located at numerous locations in Sydney and Australia.