It's gelato and more, my dear

MANILA, Philippines – If there’s one thing I love more than ice cream, it’s gelato. I prefer the creamier and softer texture of the Italian dolci and, not to put down ice cream fans (because I am one, too), gelato somehow just tastes more natural, as if you just dumped in a whole lot of fruits into rich, creamy milk, froze the entire tub for a few hours before spooning a dollop into a cone.

I’ve always been partial to the gelato in Amici, the cafeteria-style Italian bistro in Don Bosco that used to be owned and run by the Bosconian priests but is now owned by Danny Moran, formerly of Red Ribbon. My partiality to Amici’s gelato didn’t just run to price issues; at P30 per scoop, I got dessert that was satisfying and filling — immensely. When the Morans took over Amici operations, they jazzed up Amici’s décor, solidified the menu and — I didn’t think it was possible — they even improved the gelato.

“We still use the gelato recipe of the priests but we’ve improved on the chocolates, added more fruits and tweaked the balance of milk and sugar,” relates Danny, president of Amici Foodservice Ventures, Inc. They’ve also introduced newer flavors: mango jubilee, sans rival (which has become a fast favorite), and, recently, banana and pineapple. The prices have increased a bit, but only a pittance really; I am actually outraged at how cheap their gelato goes for — I feel I am shortchanging them.

If Amici’s new management hasn’t done enough for gelato lovers, they just recently opened Cara Mia, a shop dedicated mostly to gelato. With the first branch located at the corner of Missouri and Connecticut streets in Greenhills, Cara Mia is pegged as the “sweeter part” of the Amici enterprise. While Amici’s large tables, hefty servings and name (the word means “friend” in Italian) invites sharing and all-encompassing meals with friends and family, Cara Mia (“my dear,” also in Italian) suggests something more intimate: first (or second or third) dates, bonding moments, an after-school rendezvous, a weekend hangout with close pals (the gelateria’s tagline is actually “Love to Chill”). If you really think about it, is there anything cozier than spooning gelato from the same waffle bowl?

And to cherry-top everything, Cara Mia has come up with something absolutely brilliant: gelato cakes! Because, you know, they just had to make their gelato better. Gelato cakes are a new concept in the local dessert industry, and is basically gelato fashioned into a cake, combined with other elements, such as graham crackers, sponge cakes, meringue wafers and a drizzle of fresh fruits and nuts.

Cara Mia takes the most popular flavors from Amici’s gelato set and creates them into scrumptious serves that exemplify the gelato experience even more. There’s mango sans rival, which layers mango and sans rival gelato onto light meringue wafers; fresh mango slices and chocolate curls top the slice. Another gelato cake, the spumoni surprise, is Cara Mia’s version of the molded Italian ice cream dessert spumoni (from which the three-favored Neapolitan ice cream evolved from). It takes the popular pistachio, vanilla and strawberry supreme gelato and combines these with crushed graham crackers and rice krispies. Toppings include pistachio nuts and strawberry slices. There are four other gelato cakes, all as luscious and as inviting as the first two: banana blast, choco sans rival, merry berries and choco tartufo.

“Even our boxes for the gelato cakes are made of a special material that keeps it frozen a little bit longer,” explains Philip Moran, Cara Mia’s operations manager. You know, just in case you would want to take home an entire cake, which, upon sampling a slice, you will definitely be tempted to. Now that they’ve perfected their gelato cakes, these will also be included in the menu of other Amici branches, which will all soon boast a Cara Mia counter.

Another Cara Mia specialty is the affogato, essentially gelato served with a shot of espresso. This is more for caffeine lovers or for those who want to tame down the sweetness of their gelato. There are also six different affogato creations: black forest spell, berries delight, nocciola blend, tropical mix, choco banana and tiramisu twist, which we chose to try.

Here, Cara Mia takes a turn with the popular Italian cake by combining vanilla and espresso gelato with a chocolate wafer stick. All flavors are scooped on a bed of ladyfingers (broas) already soaked in espresso. Although it’s traditional to pour the espresso into the gelato, some, explains Philip, prefer to spoon a bit of gelato and dunk this into the espresso, just to maximize the taste of each.

And just because Cara Mia is a new brand with spanking new colors and impressive freezer displays, it doesn’t mean that the gelato, gelato cakes, affogato and the gelato shakes (yes, gelato shakes!) also come with brand new prices. Each of these desserts comes cheap. Like, ridiculously cheap. Especially if you count in quality. “Cara Mia follows Amici’s standards,” affirms Philip. “We will always have premium quality at affordable prices.” Trust us when we say, however, that it won’t be affordability that will bring you to Cara Mia.

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Cara Mia is located at 101 Missouri Square, Missouri corner Connecticut Sts., Greenhills, San Juan.