Gelateria No. 2 Vivoli

I’d be lying if I told you I haven’t eaten gelato since my last blog entry regarding the gelaterie but sometimes you have to put the camera down and just enjoy the gelato if you know what I am saying.

Vivoli is a Florentine favourite and it was the last stop on my birthday afternoon to complete a wonderful day. I had never been here before and yet it is said by many Florentines to be the BEST gelato in the city! A big call and so I was glad Nic had this in mind for our dessert destination. The boys couldn’t get in the door fast enough…..

to choose from the many flavours that were on offer. Before you can order you must pay in advance at Vivoli. Every gelato is served in cups (a big disappointment for the boys). The service was very fast, friendly and on a cold winters afternoon the shop was warm and cozy to sit and eat cold gelato in complete comfort.

The boys both had their regular lemon flavour and then strawberry as the second. I have to say it was one of the best strawberry flavours I have tasted. It had real fruit pieces flaked through it and the strawberry was jam packed with flavour, Max wasn’t too keen on sharing his that’s for sure!

I of course had pistachio (the colour was a deep army green that really grabbed my attention) and the depth of flavour was fantastic I have to be honest, however, the body was too creamy for my taste. I paired the pistachio with a meringue flavour (new to me) and it was a great match. It had bits of crunch, a little sticky wet meringue texture and then creamy gelato. Of course I ate every last scoop and then tasted Nic’s coffee and marscapone gelato for the sake of my dear readers!! Again beautiful deep, rich flavours with a creamy texture. 

 

I can understand why a lot of Florentines love Vivoli and I wouldn’t say no to a return trip ,however, I felt it was a very rich gelato and one I could have on very special occasions where guilt wasn’t allowed to crawl into the back of your mind. 

With the afternoon coming to an end, our tummies topped up with gelato and our warm house waiting for us at the top of the hill, we all ventured outside into the cold and walked among the Christmas lights on the way to our bus stop.

Christmas is coming, the cold weather is staying and it is time to put the birthday celebrations to rest for another year. 

Vivoli ranked high on my gelato recommendations, however, you do feel the rich layer of cream on the back of your throat which makes you stop and think maybe you should wait a few more weeks until having another……..or perhaps I should just eat it in summer?