Paul V.
Yelp
Australia does gelato right, and it doesn't take more than a minute or two to realize that Messina has what is likely the strongest gelato brand in the country. Cheeky marketing and smooth interior aside, Messina delivers on the product front, but they fall just short of my favorite gelato in Australia RivaReno.
Star 1: How were the service and atmosphere?
I'll kick off this review by saying that I strolled into Gelato Messina on a Saturday afternoon exactly a day before the series finale of Game of Thrones aired. With that in mind, imagine my pure glee at seeing that Messina had a whole swath of thrones special flavors ranging from The Red Wedding (Red Velvet) to Dothrocky Road. It was glorious, and the flavors alone were drawing in crowds. From there the interior was genuinely gorgeous, and the service was fast and friendly. Star.
Star 2: How were the portions relative to the cost?
My two quite large scoops of gelato ran me only $6.80 AUD, which, thanks to a very favorable USD exchange rate as of May 2019 was a steal at $4.69 USD. Great value.
Stars 3 and 4: How was the food?
My caramel and cookies and cream flavors were good, with generous chunks of cookie and a smoother caramel consistency that was dense on flavor. Great consistency. Two Stars.
Star 5: Would you be excited to go back?
So here's the thing. I was very impressed by Messina, but having since visited RivaReno, I have to admit that I prefer the latter, and thus can't go five stars here. No Star.