New ice cream shop Dr Gelato opens its doors to the people of Bath

The owner of a new ice cream shop in Bath hopes that the place has something to offer that 'nobody else has'.

Dr Gelato, in Orange Grove, opened its doors to the public this week and it is already attracting rave reviews.

Run by TV producer, Gavin Henderson, Dr Gelato offers 'seriously chilled' and fresh 'artisan ice-cream'.

There are 18 flavours, six of which are vegan.

All of them are freshly made by gelato chef, Irene Pezone, back in a kitchen they own in Bristol and then they are shipped over to the Bath shop.

New ice cream shop Dr Gelato opens its doors to the people of Bath (Image: PAUL GILLIS / paulgillisphoto.com)

Mr Henderson said: "We wanted to start a business that was ice cream but from scratch. Most ice cream places use pastes and essences, but we use fresh ingredients sourced from Italy or Bristol market.

"Our excellent gelato chef then uses these fresh ingredients to make the gelato and it is delicious.

"The most similar ice cream place to us in Bath is Swoon (Kingsmead Square) but we are a bit more playful with the gelato we offer. This is all very exciting.

"When you go to an ice cream shop you arrive in a good mood and leave in an even better one. The idea was to create a business that was fresh and fun."

Dr Gelato is run by Mr Henderson, his wife Sarah and four other staff.

A mixture of mango and strawberry from Dr Gelato (Image: PAUL GILLIS / paulgillisphoto.com)

What is the difference between gelato and ice cream?

According to cooking website, The Kitchn, gelato is the Italian word for ice cream, but the two are very different things.

It starts out with a similar custard base as ice cream but has a higher proportion of milk and a lower proportion of cream and eggs (or no eggs at all).

It is churned at a much slower rate, incorporating less air and leaving the gelato denser than ice cream.

"Gelato tends to be more with raw and fresh ingredients, it has a shorter shelf life, which is why supermarkets may not sell it, there is less air in it, it is stored at -12 to -14C, whereas ice cream is at around -18C," said Mr Henderson.

"The first thing you taste in gelato is the flavour and not the dairy, which is the case with ice cream.

Some of the flavours available at Dr Gelato (Image: PAUL GILLIS / paulgillisphoto.com)

"We have decided to use pozzettis, which is Italian for tubs. Usually, you cannot see into these tubs like you can with ice cream shops where they are on display, but these ones have see-through lids.

"The original plan was to have a kitchen on site here but this place is too small for that so we have a kitchen in Bristol where the chef makes all the gelato.

"Irene is from Rome and she used to work in a top gelateria in Leicester for several years but she has moved with her family to Bath and we are so grateful.

"She comes up with the most incredible recipes. She makes it all from scratch. Most of the time she is making it in Bristol but sometimes she will be in Bath too.

"If you want to create a brilliant business, you need brilliant people and she is just brilliant."

Dr Gelato staff Louis Graham and gelato chef Irene Pezone (Image: PAUL GILLIS / paulgillisphoto.com)

How did this all come together?

Three years ago, Mr Henderson and his wife went on a gelato course in Italy for the day - they then fell in love with all of it.

An opportunity arose when Mosaics of Design, of Orange Grove, closed down and the lease became available in March.

Mr Henderson, who lived in Bath for many years, said this opportunity was too good to turn down.

"It was really now or never. We had talked about doing this for a while so when the space became available we sprang into action," he said.

"The lease is there for the next two years. Fingers crossed it works out."

One of many gelato mixtures you can try at Dr Gelato (Image: PAUL GILLIS / paulgillisphoto.com)

What is on offer?

At present, there are a variety of cones on offer, as well as a tub.

The flavours include French vanilla, chocolate, salted caramel, Tiramisu, hazelnut, pistachio, chocolate brownie, rum and raisin, rhubarb and custard, coffee and mint chocolate.

There are also sorbettos such as strawberry, raspberry, mango, lemon and dark chocolate.