It was our Italian intern who first told us about Lingxia Gelato Lab. After tasting the gelato at an Italian Embassy event, Edoardo said it was the “real deal.” This was the only endorsement we needed to hear.
Thankfully, we didn’t have to resort to loitering around Italian Embassy events – though admittedly that does like a good time – to get a taste of Lingxia for ourselves. Its new permanent space recently opened in Chunxiu Lu’s food mecca, The Crib, complete with a raucous opening party.
Lingxia (or ‘below zero’) was born out of Italian founder Nicola Saladino’s craving for the traditional flavors of his hometown. An architect by trade, Saladino studied the art of gelato for over a year before opening his own spot in Beijing.
Image via Lingxia Gelato Lab
Upon visiting Lingxia, it’s clear that Saladino’s diligence has paid off, with attention given to aesthetics, experience and taste. The space is small at a few meters squared, but beautifully designed with a minimalist blue-and-white color scheme. All the basics are covered, plus more: there is a menu, a freezer and even a constantlyflowing chocolate ‘tap’ for people to hold their dessert under for as long as they wish.
Order one scoop (RMB20), two (RMB30) or even three (RMB40) like us. Order your dessert in a cup, a waffle cone, or a waffle cup. Sprinkle your dessert with candy – or don’t. Variety is key here.
Image via Lingxia Gelato Lab
We genuinely love every flavor we try, which is pretty much all of them, though particular favorites include the banana sorbet and hazelnut gelato. Lingxia prides itself on its use of natural ingredients – real bananas, lemons and high-quality chocolate – and this authenticity really shows. There are no artificial flavors here. And despite what we said above, we highly recommend ordering your gelato in a waffle cone for its moreish cookie taste. But if you don’t the first time, it’s OK, because you will be back.
The difference between gelato and ice cream is that gelato typically contains a lower proportion of eggs and cream and is churned at a lower rate, resulting in less air. This makes it denser and richer, yet lower in fat, than ice cream.
So, there you have it – gelato is better than ice cream. At least that's how we feel after our trip to Lingxia.
[Cover image via Lingxia Gelato Lab]
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