Years after it was first planned, Italian native Domenico Perre’s gelato dream has finally landed on King William Road.
Mambo Gelato, now open near the Women’s and Children’s Hospital and the Anglican Cathedral, is the sweet finale of a stop-start journey that began well before the pandemic.
Born in Calabria and arriving in Australia at 16, Domenico grew up with gelato as part of everyday life. While his working years here took him in another direction, retirement gave him the chance to return to it properly. He travelled back to Italy to source gelato machinery in 2019, with plans to open soon after. Then COVID hit.
“Opening a gelato shop has always been a dream of mine,” Domenico tells us. “By the time I came back from Italy, everything stopped. It took another four or five years before we could finally get everything back on track,” he says. “Finding the right spot was very hard.”
But persistence paid off. As of last week, Mambo is impressing the gelato crowds.
There’s a certain trust that comes with a thick Italian accent talking about gelato, and at Mambo, that trust seems to be well placed. Domenico makes the gelato himself on site, using Italian recipes sourced from the Veneto region. He stays in regular contact with gelato professionals in Italy, including producers supplying multiple outlets (and over 15,000 kilograms of gelato daily) in Venice.
“It’s straight from the source,” Dominico says. “That connection is really important to us. Real gelato should always be creamy. If it’s too icy or too hard, something’s wrong. It all comes down to balance. The base, the ingredients, and adjusting each flavour individually.”
They say if it ain’t broke, don’t fix it, and when it comes to gelato flavours, that rule is practically gospel for anyone with an Italian bloodline. That’s why there’s a certain comfort and excitement in seeing the Mambo cabinet lined with lemon, watermelon, blood orange, black cherry and pistachio. That said, the Zuppa Inglese – a textural blend of fluffy sponge cake and syrupy liqueur- is the kind of decadent deviance our palate welcomes.
“A lot of people have never tasted it before,” Domenico says. “Once they do, they usually come back for it.”
When the conversation turns to coffee, Fabiana – the barista and resident coffee authority – steps in. Like any classic Italian family operation, everyone has their role, and coffee is very much hers.
Mambo’s coffee beans are a speciality blend of origins from across the globe, which act as a base for the signature Mambo Coffee, served with ice cream, and the Mambaffogato, a playful spin on the classic affogato. Alongside espresso and affogatos, the menu rounds out with the classics, plus matcha, spiced chai, milkshakes and iced coffees.
The name Mambo was a fun choice. “I discovered there’s actually a song that mentions ‘Mambo Gelato’,” Domenico says. “It already felt like a jingle, so we went with it.”
Mambo Gelato is a lifelong dream, one that now belongs to the neighbourhood just as much as it does to Domenico. And with Zuppa Inglese and true pistachio flavours, North Adelaide locals just scored an irresistibly sweet treat.
Mambo Gelato
When 8am-9pm daily
Where: 35 King William Road, North Adelaide
@mambo_gelato
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