I feel, more often than ever, like words are escaping me. I can sit and concentrate and claw around my foggy mental state, but I cannot easily summon the vocabulary that I had at my fingertips before the baby. I blame the cumulative effects of long-term sleep deprivation, but I love this kid and so I soldier on, often attempting to shock myself back to normal cognitive functioning with an exceptional hit of gelato.
Which is what brings me here today: we need to talk about Gelateria dei Gracchi.
“But why,” the well-dressed Italian man asked me “have you not included Gracchi on your map of the best gelato in Rome?”
An excellent question that is easily answered – I rarely find the motivation to explore Prati. Is that fair? No. Of course not. Life rarely is.
So when Gelateria dei Gracchi opened a new location a few steps from Piazza Navona, my ice cream loving heart gave a little leap.
I sauntered into the tiny shop, trying to act cool while rapidly scanning the flavors of honeyed creams and chocolate that looks like velvet.
The nut flavors at Gelateria dei Gracchi are all exceptional. Not only pistachio, but also toasted almonds, hazelnut, and pine nut.
With this opening, there are now four locations in Rome: Prati, Parioli and Centro Storico (Via di Ripetta and Via di San Pantaleo). The gelateria takes its name from the original shop location on Via dei Gracchi.
So the trick is no longer about finding a Gelateria dei Gracchi shop, but deciding on the flavors and numbers of scoops once you get there.
Toasted almond with candied oranges and ricotta-pear for me, thanks.
The sugar and cream rush coating every synapse is enough to jolt my mind back to a functional level and happily keep me going through another sleepless night.
Gelateria dei Gracchi
Piazza Navona location:
Via di S. Pantaleo 61
00186 Roma (Centro Storico)
Open everyday from 10:30 am until midnight
Yes-s-s! Gelateria dei Gracchi is the best! My Roman Italian teacher-become-friend (as you can tell, she is a really good friend!) introduced me to this gelato. Their fruit flavors sing: they taste just like fresh, very cold fruit, as do the fruit flavors at Gelateria del Checco, attached to Bar Checco, on Via Benedetta in Trastevere. Essence of fruit.
Yay! So glad you are also a fan!