An automotive manager, his business partner wife, a BBC journalist and an ice-cream maker-slash-lawyer walk into a bar.

Actually we’re not sure where they met exactly, but here’s the punch line: They now make the best Italian ice cream in Bologna.

If you’re serious about frozen desserts you’ve probably heard of RivaReno. And if you haven’t salivated over its ranking as the #2 attraction in Milan — trumped only by 10 Corso Como — just know that this is gelato so good it should be illegal. And that it’s opening its doors today (31 January) in Sydney.

Forget everything you thought you knew about gelatinous treats and approach this place like a wide-eyed tourist on your first after-dinner passagiata. Actually you don’t really need your eyes at all: All the gelato is hidden in pozzetti to keep it extra-fresh, and since it’s 100% natural it all looks kinda the same anyway.

But that’s where uniformity ends. Fior di panna with a touch of bourbon vanilla is poles apart from Sicilian blood orange, and deciding between crushed amaretti and caramelised almonds on your Contessa or lashings of gianduja sauce on your Alice is life-changing. 

Change your life as frequently as desired. 

RivaReno
280 Crown Street, Darlinghurst, Sydney, NSW 2010
Mon – Sun 12pm – 12am
Opens January 2013