Gelato with the flavors of carbonara and veal with tuna, not to mention basil, saffron, beer, and cacio e pepe.  

So many forms of what is referred to as gourmet gelato, also known as savory gelato, an ever-expanding universe offered by world-class chefs. 

Something new? Not really, although in recent years it has begun catching the attention of the general public, asserting itself with increasing incisiveness. 

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Gourmet gelato represents a niche that took shape some 40 years ago thanks to a series of experimenters who were able to combine chemistry and imagination in their kitchens.  

Trailblazers who made way for new gourmet dishes that have gradually established themselves to this day and who continue to develop more and more elaborate and original solutions.   

But we need to take a step back, understanding that gelato - especially gourmet or savory gelato - has ancient origins that are common to many cultures. Its early forms were based on the pro cess of freezing or refrigerating fruits, milk, and dairy ingredients.  

From snow storage to cooled drinks to sorbet: centuries of food experimentation with cold element

It is necessary to consider an extremely broad time span, basically from 12,000 B.C. to the 13th century A.D., starting in Mesopotamia, where one traveled as much as a hundred kilometers to procure snow and ice that served to cool drinks consumed during royal banquets and religious ceremonies.  

The ancient Romans used, in the course of their long banquets, so-called golden and silver colj nivarum to filter the snow and enjoy the deliciousness of specially cured cold drinks.   

The Arabs, on the other hand, provided for the creation of shrb (a type of sugar-based cold syrup), while in Palermo 400 different types of flowers were cultivated to make the first docu-mented sorbets in history.  

We can therefore say that many ancient peoples used similar principles to consume cold-processed foods, although they had no occasion for contact.  

To get to real gelato, however, we have to wait until the Italian Renaissance and the ingenious insights that were pioneered at the Medici court in Florence. 

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Modern savory gelato

Modern gourmet gelato took a big step forward thanks to the Longarone International Gelato Exhibition which opened in 1959, an event that gave visibility to the technique and imagination of various gelato masters.  

In the 1970s, Enzo Vannozzi launched the idea of "total gelato," experimenting with vegetables, herbs, and flowers frozen at -18°C. His rose petal and zucchini gelato won many awards and was recognized worldwide.  

Later, during an edition of Sigep in Rimini, a team consisting of two chefs and a pastry chef won a competition by offering a crispy shrimp cone with artichoke gelato, cup with chickpeas, rosemary, and cod gelato combined with a foie gras cookie with onion.

The success of gourmet gelato in today's restaurant industry

Today, gourmet gelato is much more than "just" savory gelato. A specialty that combines the sweetness of classic Italian gelato with the savoriness of gastronomy, fusing the creativity of chefs and gelato artisans.   

For the public, it is often a meeting point between lovers of the sweet and those of the savory, a way to seek out the tradition of food within gastronomic evolution.  

Like any skilled action when it comes to food, this requires study, inventiveness, and the aid of the right tools to find a balance of flavors. 

The real goal of restaurateurs who take on this challenge is to develop a refined dish based on gourmet gelato that is pleasing even to those palates that are not gourmet enthusiasts.