CHILLATO CUTS THE RIBBON BUT NOT BEFORE THE CROWD POURS IN

You couldn’t ask for better weather on Saturday, May 18, the day that Chillato gelateria chose to celebrate its ribbon cutting Grand Opening.   The only “pouring” was those people that couldn’t wait for the actual celebration.  Owners Maria Chee, John Zefi, Tony Lui and Linda Lui open the doors too soon, customers ignoring the celebratory balloons. 

The counters began to fill with friends, family and those who got the message about being able to sample the gelato, a 10% weekend discount and free raffle tickets that would win a free pint of anyone of the freshly made gelatos or sorbets.  There were certainly enough to choose from including a few new creations.  

In addition sample cups were being passed out by their friendly staff.  In Italy one might have a breakfast treat of a brioche with gelato sandwiched in.  Maria and Tony decided to acquaint the public to the same.  Why not? If it were coffee gelato, you would be having an equivalent of iced coffee and cake…so to speak. 

Photo op as the invited attendees made their way to the bottom of the entrance steps to pose and snip.  Aside from the four owners, Assemblymember Edward Braunstein, Senator John Lui, Greater Flushing Executive Director John Cloe, and Whitestone Merchants Association board members, Blanca Rodriguez, Nicholas Aragonesi and George Isaakidis filled the lower steps while members of the owners’ family filled the top ones.  

After the ribbon was cut, the speeches erupted. John Lui said, “What a great business Chillato is! It’s about making people happy.  I think there’s going to be a lot of happiness emanating from this corner of 154^th and 17^th Avenue.  I intend to be a regular customer. This is certainly something we need in the neighborhood.”

“Thank you for inviting me today,” said Braunstein. “This is a great occasion. It’s good to see small businesses opening in our community as well as the Whitestone Merchants Association.  The small business is the backbone of our community.”

Next up was Aragonesi.  “We want to congratulate you on your Grand Opening. Thank you for becoming a member of the association. If you need us we’re always here for you.”

Maria made the last speech thanking everyone for their support.  “We could not have found a better neighborhood to open a gelateria. I plan to stay here forever!”  Marie promised to keep surprising customers with new flavors.

Back inside more tasting of donuts and brioche with gelato.  Aside from the owners, four other employees were needed to happily please the party.  Constant purchasing kept Chillato quite busy finding out that S’mores, Deep Dark Chocolate and Sugar Rush were even more popular than the Almond Roca, Ferraro Rocher and Nocciola (Hazelnut). 

 

A few hours later, the horde thinned out.  But alas, apparently someone let the cat out of the bag and the members of Christy’s Gymnastic Team stormed in with their coaches.  Who spilled the beans? Is it a coincidence that Maria’s daughters 10 year old Madelyn Chee-Zefi and 13-year-old Chloe are members of the team?

Just in case you didn’t get the info, Chillato is located at 17-16 154^th Street.  Phone number: 718-489-1750.

YOU DON’T HAVE TO BE ITALIAN TO OPEN A GELATERIA

One would think that hearing the owners’ names of Maria and Tony a Gelateria would not expect the full names of Maria Chee and Tony Liu.  Maria and Tony partnered up to open Chillato, a strict Gelateria located at 17-16 154 Street in Whitestone.  No, you won’t find ice cream here.

 

How did this scrumptious endeavor come to pass?  Maria and her husband John  Zefi are world travelers, having taken in the Rome area of Italy as well as Spain’s Seville, an area also noted for gelato.   Impressed with the difference between ice cream and gelato, they spoke with several gelato makers about their base line recipes and flavor recipes. Here, in the US, they worked with several gelato manufacturers learning how to produce this elegant dessert. 

Maria said that she and Tony have known each other for several years due to their children going to school together.  They were looking to open a store in the neighborhood that would be more of a family hangout in the community and decided on gelato because, “Who doesn’t love gelato”, said Maria. John, by the way, is also a partner as well as Tony’s wife, Linda. 

Chillato proved to have a colorful and welcoming environment as experienced seeing the faces of the customers, not to mention the glow when they taste it.   Most of the staff was present including Christine Jean, who, due to her career, was being gelato trained in the kitchen.  Up front were Marilyn Carpio and Billy Plantin.   

Let’s get to the basic info.  Gelato, is the Italian word for “ice cream” and there is a big difference between the contents and consistency of ice cream vs. gelato. Two of the main ingredients in both ice cream and gelato are milk and cream. However, it is the amount of each that changes the desserts. As the name implies, "ice cream" contains more cream than milk vs gelato, which is made with a greater proportion of whole milk to cream and in some cases, no cream at all.  Gelato is also free of egg yolks, of which ice cream tends to include.

The ingredients are not the only aspect that separates the two as it is also the way that each is made. Both Ice cream and gelato must be churned to create that creaminess.  The speed is important as it results in the amount of air that is incorporated. Thus gelato is churned at a slower speed creating a denser consistency.  To give you an idea about the ice cream that you purchase gelato may contain about 25 to 30 percent air, while ice cream can have as much as 50 percent air. One thing that is not noticeable is that with ice cream the container’s contents information is not really consistent to the actual weight.  

Tony said that due to the storage of ice cream, it has to be at a lower temperature than gelato and thus needing more sugar. “When it’s much colder you get a quick numbness on your tongue requiring it to have even more flavor.”  John said that the core base product is imported from Italy. “We then add our fresh recipes.  In fact, the gelatos that are displayed have most likely come out of the kitchen only an hour ago and then have to be replenished.”

The base of gelato is called sweet milk, not to be confused with what might appear to be vanilla. Hearing about my favorite dessert, I scooted over there to find that they allow you to taste as many flavors as you want.  I tasted every one of them and put my seal of approval on the authenticity having sampled gelato at several places yet only totally pleased with a few.  

I first met Maria and then Tony, who although we did have time to talk, was mostly in the kitchen creating the various flavors as they were running out as well as training Christine Jean in the art of gelato making.   He later told me that when time is not of the essence, he loved working up front and speaking with the customers.  

Hazelnut, known as Nocciola, is my favorite flavor of which I saved for my last tasting.  Chocolate is my second favorite.  One of my least favorites is coconut.  They had just made a batch and had not placed it out yet.  My first flavor taste had me totally surprised at how much I did enjoy the coconut gelato.  

My tendency on both ice cream and gelato is to choose bare flavors vs. ones such as “s’mores,” “raspberry cheese cake,” “lemon butter cookies and cream,”  “oreo cookies and cream”, and “salted caramel” although I did have an appreciation for the palate of each.    
Tiramisu, Pistachio, and Coffee were some examples of the use of the true ingredients vs flavorings.  Stracciatella is basically chocolate swirled into the sweet milk, the core of gelato.   The chocolate hardens like the coating on an ice cream pop.  

I continued putting off the last one, to taste two chocolates.  One was a milk chocolate gelato that was not overly sweet.  I tend to shy away from milk chocolate for that reason.  However, this had to be the best I have had.  A second one was a deep dark chocolate that was made with water and skim milk powder.  Although I relished its sorbet consistency, the powder gave it the classification of being a gelato. It tasted like having a European version of hot chocolate, which contains much more water than milk.  Kind of like when you put a small amount of milk into coffee. 
 
Next, I meandered to the sorbet area to sample: mango; raspberry lychee; passionfruit; strawberry; and lemon, all of which had the true taste of the fruit and less sweet then I expected, which makes the fruit stand out even more.  Excellent palate cleansers as well.  I found the raspberry lychee to be quite creative in the combination.  

Now it was time for the hazelnut and well worth the waiting.  Maria said that this was the most popular flavor and had to be made often as it quickly ran out.  Beyond this is their signature, “Ferraro Roche,” a hazelnut gelato with chocolate swirled into it (which was not available at this time).   

Chillato also offers these small gelato pops.  Maria said that being a new place (having opened about a month ago) they were experimenting since they create their own recipes.  Pops flavors this day were: lemon cookies and cream, salted caramel, biscotti, chocolate, and sweet milk.  I suggested dipping the coconut gelato in chocolate to call it a “mounds pop.”   

“Rather than mass produce, we are trying to create unique flavor profiles with each gelato that we serve,” said John. “For instance we made a ‘peanut butter and jelly’ and our much requested ‘raspberry cheesecake.’”

Chillato will be one of the featured restaurants at the upcoming Taste of Whitestone, on Thursday May 2.  You should expect two gelatos and one sorbet.  For further information call: (718) 489-1750 or www.chillatoshop.com 

SWEET AND SOFT SIDE OF RED HOOK

Dolce is an Italian word meaning “sweet and soft,” a perfect description of gelato made in Red Hook.  Dolce Brooklyn is an artisanal gelato and sorbetto café located at 305 Van Brunt St.  I am a gelato fanatic and love it more than ice cream…both for less fat and more taste.  Pierre Alexandre does the actual preparation and runs the café while his wife Kristina Frantz Alexandre is the obviously brilliant chef who creates the recipes.  Kristina purposely took a trip to Bologna in order to make sure that these cool desserts are made the old-fashion Italian way, totally from scratch without powders or any other artificial ingredients. 

 

“Gelato is lot of chemistry and I learned mostly about how to balance the ingredients, how to use different sugars, how to use alcohol, etc”, Kristina said. “The education was more about tools and less about recipes. Like infusion, adjusting the sugars for consistency based upon their freezing power, and so on. That being said - we did of course make recipes while I was there but after white base, chocolate and salted caramel (making my own caramel) - the rest were learning exercises. But even these have since been adjusted to my personal versions.”

How about the recipes?  “All of my recipes are mine.  I started with a few recipes like Fior di Latte and Chocolate and adjusted them for the milk I used (different fat content) and my choice of chocolates. I use Battenkill from Salem, NY and the fat content is higher so everything had to be adjusted to maintain the 7% that I like to keep our gelati at.”

There are two ways to make gelato, one is done by a hot process and the other a cold one.  Kristina said that the hot process has a far better consistency and allows the full flavor to come through.  “It also allows for more flexibility in flavors.  Cold process requires a powder base with more ingredients allowing for less flexibility and poorer flavor and consistency.”

Ferrying from Rockaway to Sunset Park to Red Hook, my friend Nancy and I were up for a tasting and I believe we tasted all 5 sorbettos, 8 gelatos on hand and an Affogato as well.  

Miguel was at the counter as I waited for Pierre to arrive.  He had stepped out to get a bottle of bourbon from a local distillery called Van Brunt Stillhouse.  I’ll get to that later.   Sorbettos do not contain milk and when made properly taste quite “creamy.” Miguel invited us to try the sorbettos beginning with Mango.  It was like having a soft but frozen mango puree.  Only fresh fruit is used for any of the products.  Berry sorbetto, a mix of raspberry, strawberry and blueberry, is a great way to have a portion of your daily fruit.   Coconut sorbetto was pretty good and would have been even better for me if combined with their chocolate gelato.  

There were two sorbettos that were less common and expertly devised.  One was Pink Grapefruit Lavender.  I expected the lavender to be overpowering the way I find it in desserts or as an herb in cooking.  Kristina figured out just the right amount to use in order to taste the lavender while enjoying the full flavor of the sweet but acidic pink grapefruit.  

I wish I could have taken home a gallon of mint cucumber lemon sorbetto.   Think about these cool and most refreshing of combinations for a summer treat….although I could handle it in the winter.  In fact any restaurant that serves a “palate cleanser” should take heed to this one. 

Pierre is back and suggested the gelato tasting be conducted just the way you would if you were at a winery starting with the “whites.”  The first one, Fior di latte is a gelato made of milk, a bit of cream and sugar used as a base for the other gelatos.  It tasted just fine, alone.  They have a drink called Affogato, a scoop of Fior di latte with a shot of espresso poured over it.   Espresso is from Italy.  Best sipped after gelato melts somewhat.  

Onto the next group of gelatos.  Blueberry was full flavor without being overly sweet.  Cookies and cream…although I enjoyed it, isn’t one of my things.  With Amarena sour black cherry Kristina has taken the basic Fior di latte and added these delectable jarred cherries from Italy.  

Hazelnut does not have the “Nutella” taste.  Rather than the hazelnuts being made into a paste it is very finely chopped.   Soul Fuel Formula E Racing Flavor is dedicated to an actual car race that took place in Brooklyn.  Fior di Latte is infused with real Italian espresso beans completed with a Michel Cluizel cafe noir chocolate stracciatella (aka - chip).

These last two were as if you went to tasting the “red wines.” Van Brunt Stillhouse Bourbon Chocolate – There is a local distillery in Red Hook.  Pierre was buying the bourbon there.  What I enjoyed about it was that there was just enough bourbon without giving that overpowering alcohol sting.   Pierre believes in going “local” on resources whenever possible. 

Serious chocolate.   This one is for chocoholics like me and had to be nursed.  They are quite picky on the chocolate that they use.  It  is also used for the bourbon chocolate.  

Please keep in mind that since the gelatos and sorbettos are made in small batches, the flavor may change daily, or even while you are there. 

Here are other flavors that you may find: Gianduja, Pistachio, Mint Stracciatella, Strawberry, Banana, Fresh Ginger, Earl Grey, Spiced Pumpkin Pie, Olive Oil, Salted Caramel, Tahitian Vanilla (she literally have a friend from Tahiti who barters beans for gelato), Maple Pecan (Fior di Latte with real maple syrup swirled in with candied pecans - Pierre made), Peppermint Stick.

Sorbettos: Lemon, Ginger Pineapple, Raspberry Mint (Pierre made), Strawberry Basil, Gingered Peach, White Peach, Forrest Berry, Orange Cardamon.

“Last year for Thanksgiving I made Spiced Pumpkin Gelato Pies :)  They were a hit! Handcrafted chocolate (or graham) crust, spiced pumpkin gelato topped with fior di latte gelato and sprinkled with cinnamon.  No ‘pumpkin pie spice’ in this one!! Only my spice mix and real pumpkin.”

I’m certainly not going to wait until Thanksgiving to go back there.