Pitango Gelato

Last weekend I finally had a chance to travel home.  Although I own a house in New Orleans, Baltimore is my home city and it was nice to finally be back.  I realized during my trip that I had not reviewed any Baltimore frozen dessert shops, so I took the opportunity while enjoying an evening in the city.  After a lovely meal in Canton, my family and I headed to Pitango Gelato.

Located in Fells Point, a cute historic district of the city, this shop exudes freshness.  The decor is light and inviting.  One wall is decorated with frames that describe each carefully thought out flavor.  Ingredients are organic and local when possible, including milk from the grass-fed cows of Spring Wood Organic farms in Lancaster, PA (the eggs come from here too).  No artificial ingredients are used in this gelato.  Handcrafted using a classic gelato construction, Pitango gelato is made with primarily milk (thus containing only five to eight percent milkfat) and gelato machines are used to ensure the final produce contains less air, resulting a dense and creamy consistency.

Several flavors of gelato are available including classics like hazelnut and chocolate.  I enjoyed the combination of a coconut and dark chocolate.  The coconut flavor was subtle and delicate but stood up to the deep dark chocolate flavor of its neighboring scoop.  With each flavorful bite it was obvious that high quality ingredients are used.  Other flavors enjoyed by the family included cardamom gelato, tangerine sorbet, milk chocolate gelato, and chocolate with chocolate chips.

Overall my experience at Pitango was excellent.  The only draw back was the price – $4.78 for a regular (two scoops) and $6.00 for a large (3 scoops).  But I must say that it was worth every penny.

Pitango has a number of locations in the Baltimore-DC-Northern VA area. Pints appear to be available at several local farmers’ markets.  Check out their website for more info.

Pitango Gelato
1451 P Street, NW
Washington, DC 20005
[Coming soon 2nd store: 413 7th Street, NW, between D and E Streets]

Baltimore’s Fells Point
802 South Broadway
Baltimore, MD 21231

Reston Town Center
11942 Democracy Drive,
Reston, VA 20190