Gelato Messina Bondi

Their gelato is worth the hype. It is amazing and I am not sure what they do to it or how they make it but it is markedly better than other gelato that I have had (which is more gelato than I care to admit)

I’m not normally a sweet tooth and never usually «leave room for dessert» but I will always sniff out a Gelato Messina when I’m visiting Sydney. Sure it’s just ‘fancy ice cream’ to the uncultured. But it’s damn tasty, so creamy and flavoursome, yet not overly rich that it makes you full/​sick. Best range of flavours under the Southern Cross with new weekly concoctions that you must try!

I hardly ever say «Yes» to gelato but I always say «Yes» to ice cream. My friends kept telling me to NOT forget to get Gelato Messina when I visit Bondi Beach and I am so glad that, despite the rain, I went for it!
The service was really kind and prompt. The gelato is also to-​die-​for. Yes, I could have died while eating it and whether or not I went to heaven or hell after totally would not have mattered because this was heaven in a cup.
We went to Gelato Messina TWICE on our 5 day trip in Sydney and I’ll just say it… YOLO & No Regrets. For reals.
Amazing. I will miss you, Gelato Messina. The gelato companies in Hawaii or anywhere else in the world I’ve had so far don’t have anything on you!
If you read this and they are still serving, «You Make My Day» then make sure you get it! Apparently this was one of their flavors of the week.

As someone that avoids nightclubs like the plague, waiting for ice-​cream at Messina is about the closest I ever get to that crowded, music pumping queuing experience. It’s crazy, but thankfully in Sydney it’s nothing compared to the chaos of only having one venue in Melbourne.
On a recent visit to Sydney, I wound up staying next door to Messina for three days. Which meant I ate ice cream three times. Ok maybe even more than that, after receiving some wisdom that ordering the $ 3 baby scoop means there’s room for day and night Messina. Genius.
While this store might be smaller than some of the others, the range is definitely not small and I still found myself with total choice anxiety. On all occasions I went for specials of the day and they were just amazing. One was Cereal Milk gelato with Momofuko Crack Pie (incredible, I couldn’t have it just once!) and the last was Red Velvet — cream cheese gelato with red velvet cake. This is not the kind of place that uses crappy flavouring or offers up flavours that vaguely resemble the name. No-​sir-​ee. This is the kind of place that says red velvet cake and means the ice-​cream you wind up with it 90% delicious cake.
I will miss you Messina. Back to Melbourne now where my trips will be less frequent to avoid the nightclub experience. Please open more!

Fantastic Gelato! I got the Chocolate Sorbet and Bounty flavors as well as tried a bunch of others. They were quite busy when I was there, but they were very nice and generous with allowing me to taste so many different flavors. It was hard to decide; all of them were so good, but I was happy with the two I went with. Pricing was fair too.

The only bad thing about Messina is that it always takes years (yes, no exaggeration obviously!) to decide which flavour. Because they are ALL so incredibly delicious!
I have had Messina countless times, and I wish I could describe the rich flavour of each gelato, but it is just. not. possible.
Damn.
But for now, I’ll just mouthwateringly describe the flavours I most recently tried! For one, we have the red velvet flavour. Cake pieces in a creamy red-​white swirl of cake-​batter ice cream, it is absolutely delicious! As for the passionfruit meringue tart, it was a refreshing flavour with a strong sweetness that may or may not have sent me buzzing :)
The lychee sorbet was the most refreshing, even more than mango, and reminded me almost of a slushie in texture, just a little harder. God, I’m dreaming about it now!
My favourite was the Peach Trifle, with jelly, gelato and sponge biscuits all in one scoop of heaven. This concoction was rich, and reminded me of a trifle for sure, what more could one ask for!

Holy Hell — this place is THE BEST for gelato. We discovered Messina during our trip to Sydney and we are excited it’s coming to the US! The BOUNTY and CREMINA flavors both separately and together (yes, try the double scoop version!) are excellent. We really enjoyed eating the gelato at Messina — it was a HUGE TREAT.

What are these other reviewers talking about — no soul crushing line??? If this was once a lesser known Messina then the word is well and truly out now.
We hit up Messina on a Saturday night after dinner and it was flippin’ busy. Loud doof doof pumping out of the shop and a huge crowd. But it was all worth it of course. Caramel yoghurt and another scoop of a delicious coffee based gelato with candied hazelnuts. Mmmm mmm mmmmmmm.
Get it in ya.

The first time I walked by Messina’s I was an idiot because I didn’t even care to question why there were so many people waiting around for… something. Whatever that thing was.
But after living minutes walk away and remembering that I have eyes on my face, I took a real glance and told myself I had to come try whatever it was that people seriously crowd around for some day.
Let me tell the gelato here is delicious, it will make you come back for more, and I can’t wait to come back to Bondi to eat it again. My personal favorite is salted caramel and white chocolate… but if I am feeling like a second scoop that night you betcha it’s apple pie.

This is hands down, without a doubt, Sydneys most popular gelato; I can’t believe it’s not number 1! Everything is made in house — from the gelato base, to the sauces, the mix ins (baklava, lamington, caramel etc) and everything in between, it’s all made from scratch by Messina.
They have the traditional flavours which are mighty tasty (gianduia is my true love) but they are known for their crazy concoctions! For example ‘Elvis the fat years’ is made of peanut butter gelato, banana jam and brioche fried in butter. That is just one example! Anyway get yourself to Messina (there’s a few locations in Sydney now) and give it a go! Also the prices are really fair.

Best gelato in the world. Love the caramel flavours.

Messina in Bondi has all the magic of the Surry Hills and Darlinghurst stores without the soul crushing line.
In a town full of ice creameries, Messina is totally worth the short walk away from the beach.
I personally am a sucker for any sort of peanut butter/​caramel/​chocolate combination and this week was no exception — TRUE ROMANCE: PB gelato smashed with chocolate brownie and chocolate peanut fudge scattered with candied peanuts. It was a complete gelatogasm.

Had gelato in Italy, US and now Sydney. I must confess this was absolutely the fucking best Gelato I have ever put in my mouth. Period.

Oh my wow. I’ve been here in Bondi three days, and had to exercise great restraint to only have had one scoop a day. It does/doesn’t help that they are right next to the lobby of the hotel I’m staying at, but really, that’s such a first world problem.
The variety is astounding, and it’d be such a nitpicky thing to complain about the varieties of chocolate they have — sorbet, gianduia, fondant?! It could be too many for people like me who won’t get to try them again for a while, and obvious can’t (or shouldn’t) eat them all at once.
I don’t know how they make such brilliant gelato. Smooth, rich, not ice-​chunky… I wish they could open something in Singapore, and show people how gelato really is meant to be — DELICIOUS.
p. s. I did eat all those three flavours of chocolate. And then some.

I mean… it’s Gelato Messina. And while this isn’t my favourite of their now three Sydney locations, when we’re talking about life-​changing gelato, there’s really not much to complain about. Especially not the non-​existent lines.
Call me crazy, but I’m also going to second Ryan F’s expert analysis. I do like my gelato on the lighter icy side vs richer creamy side, but it’s an easy fix at Gelato Messina: stay on the left side of the case and go with one of their many amazing sorbets. My winning combo? One scoop cherry sorbet, one scoop dark chocolate sorbet. Enjoy heaven.

There is no point considering your calorie intake for the day when deciding on whether to go the 1, 2 or 3 scoops here. It’s 2 scoops or it’s nothing.
Like an artist I take my gelato curation very seriously. It is a careful and considered process and those wonderful staff members behind the counter of over 20 gelato on offer will passionately let you taste as many flavours as you like before you put together your masterpiece.
Some helpful hints for the emerging artists out there:
— Don’t do things like getting the salted caramel and the dulce de leche yoghurt
— Their flavours of the week can be hit and miss but they’ll never be bad (this week it was the Campari & Orange Marmalade that had me melting quicker than the gelato)
— This place is pumping like a nightclub from 8pm until close but lines move quickly so be patient and you will be rewarded.

Chances are it’ll take you longer to choose a flavour than it will to eat it. You’ll deliberate over salted caramel, yoghurt caramel or the specials like Dulche and Gabana. And whether it’s the smooth marketing or facts like the apple pie flavour includes real apple pie made by the team that morning — it’s a must stop when in Sydney.
This is it’s newest location and as such it’s not nearly as busy as Darlinghurst can get. Bonus! It’s cash only though but for $ 3 you can rustle up a spare change one scoop to satisfy your cravings.

Connoisseurs of ice cream fight the hoards and have a scoop from this new Bondi location. It’s ice cream made from high amounts of milk fat, so, of course, it tastes good. The flavors are crafted with care and from high quality ingredients. My only gripe is that the ice cream (it seems more like ice cream and less like gelato) is too rich, too thick. It’s a weird complaint, I realize, but I think of Italian gelato to be lighter without sacrificing flavor. Anyway, I recommend the pistachio which packs a nice roasted pistachio flavor paired with coconut. The two together is the meaning of yes.