Our story
The man behind every scoop
My journey began in the south of Italy, near the coast. I fondly remember my summers at the beach with a gelato in hand. After visiting Perth in 1984, I loved it so much that I decided to stay; the family joke is that I'm still on holiday. I wanted to share my favourite childhood treat with Australia, and so in 1999 I opened the first Il Gelato scoop shop in Leederville, near the Perth CBD. My favourite flavour is nocciola', what's yours?
Giovanni
The Il Gelato experience
Gelato is different to ice cream. It is churned slowly, which gives it a smooth, silky texture. It is creamy, yet we use fresh milk and much less cream. It is all in the craft, and it means the flavour is more intense; a flavour explosion from the first spoonful, with a whole lot less fat. It is our mission to let everyone in on the secret.
A brand you can rely on
As a first-generation family business, we live and breathe gelato. Our commitment from day one was to make the best gelato, and we stand by our promise. We source the best local ingredients; our milk comes from the fertile WA southwest. We make one exception, our pastes, which come from an Italian family that has made premium gelato pastes for over 70 years.
We are never content to sit back, and we are always on the lookout for new flavours. Whether you are the classic type who loves pistachio or the more adventurous sort who delights in a scoop of Argentinian Salted Caramel, we have you covered. Alongside the gelato we make sorbets, frozen Greek yoghurts, mini desserts and cakes, all hand-made fresh daily.
Giovanni & Lisa, co-creators
Twenty-seven years
One family, one craft, from a single store in Leederville to a factory in Bayswater and a wall of medals.
1999 · Humble beginnings
Missing a taste of home, we brought a little piece of Italy to Perth and opened our first store in Leederville.
2000 · Our second store
Perth loved our gelato, so we opened in Subiaco.
2001 · A store by the shore
Then Cottesloe. Any excuse to knock off early and go to the beach.
2005 · Even more stores
Seven stores after adding Northbridge and Rockingham (2003), the City (2004) and Fremantle (2005), and Scarborough the next year made eight.
2006 · Il Gelato at home
Tubs arrived at your local IGA, and we moved into a bigger facility.
2011 · Awards
Gold at the DIAA Australia National Awards for our Semi-Freddo Dessert, plus Most Innovative Product in the show.
2012 · Fish, chips and more awards
We made a world-first Fish & Chip flavour gelato with Kailis Fremantle, and won more gold at the Perth Royal Show.
2013 · Il Gelato takes on the world
We attended the Gelato World Tour with our Mascarpone and Fig gelato, inspired by Giovanni's love for the figs of his native Calabria. It won Gold at the 2013 Sydney Royal Show.
2015 · The mini cone
Our choc-top mini cones launched and were crowned WA DIAA Champion Dairy Dessert in their first year.
2017 · OMG Gelato
We launched the OMG range, including Choc Chip Cookie Dough and Salted Caramel, which went on to win Gold at the Perth Royal Show.
2018 · Always innovating
More DIAA WA Dairy Awards as Dessert Champions, and a fried-gelato collaboration with Fry'd.
2019 · Twenty years
We celebrated our 20th year by joining our first Telethon and giving out free gelato at community events.
2020 · Growing bigger
We turned 21, made our Gelato Cakes available in stores and expanded the Bayswater factory.
Today
Still a family, still small-batch, still handmade fresh every day in Bayswater.
Taste twenty-seven years of practice
Browse every flavour we make, or find your nearest stockist.