Sydney's Best Ice Cream

While many a gelato bar demands that you take your order and leave, if you'd rather not eat on the run, head here. There's plenty of seating and even an outdoor courtyard … to soak up the sun as you indulge in either tasty gelato or the slightly healthier sorbet. The choices are really creative, with mouthwatering names. [link]

This place creates sundaes the way they were meant to be: for sharing. Waffles, fruit, toffee, chocolate, whipped cream, and all sorts of other surprises come into the … mix, depending on your creative selection -- and you can have as many spoons as you like for all your accomplices. Equally appealing to the lone diner are the regular sundaes made for one, plus mix-and-match ice cream and sorbet flavors, including originals like burnt caramel and green tea. [link]

Fourteen years of European success has come to Australia, and who can pass up a dessert Gelatiamo claims is rich in calcium, protein, and vitamins? Apparently the secret … to their gelato is all-natural ingredients with no artificial colors or flavors, which just means there's even more justification for eating the good stuff. Located in the midst of a major shopping center, it's a cool respite from the toils of window shopping. There's also a store in Darlinghurst for the city-dwellers. [link]

While they supply various restaurants and fill made-to-order requests across Sydney, to get a fix at short notice, you've got to head to the retail premises at … Leichhardt. This locale in the heart of Sydney's Little Italy means it has some stiff competition from nearby gelato bars. While it holds its own, you've got to visit during work hours, as it's really more for bulk orders rather than two scoop cones. [link]

Step 1: select ice cream flavor; step 2: select "mix-ins"; step 3: select topping; step 4: forget the calorie count and indulge in your own fabulous bespoke ice cream … concoction. Mix-ins include all imaginable lollies and chocolate, fruit, and nuts, so no one person's order will be anything like the next. Part of the fun is watching the ice cream artisans whip up your creation behind the glass with the assistance of stainless steel spatula-type appliances. [link]

Colorful tubs piled high with every imaginable gelato delicacy, including the hard-to-beat apple pie flavor, capture the attention of anyone walking Darlinghurst's … well-known Victoria Street. The shopfront is brightly lit and inviting, and while the service is efficient, it often comes minus the niceties -- particularly when you're finding it difficult to settle on a flavor and there's a queue behind you. Still, you're not there for the service, and the spoils are worth the attitude. [link]

If you can't make it to Circular Quay, there are over 10 other suburban locations, including the all-important beachside haunts of Manly and Coogee. These modern stores … strive to emulate the experience of authentic gelato consumption in Florence. As such, it's not really an eat-in thing, but the taste and quality make it worth savoring. [link]