Beating the Heat at a New Gelateria

When I first entered, I immediately noticed two things.  1. The gelateria was huge.  I have not seen another gelateria in Rome even close to this size.  2. Apparently everyone had the same idea as us to get a gelato to help beat the heat outside because the place was packed.

When I saw how many customers were waiting to get their gelato and how many were already sitting at the tables enjoying their frozen treats, combined with the fact that this gelateria had been in business for well over 100 years, I was expecting magic.  I was expecting to be wowed.  In the end, I was left satisfied, but the satisfaction did not involve a wow factor.  Let me explain.


In my opinion, the ordering process is dysfunctional.  The crowd of people in the photo above never formed an actual line.  You pay at the cassa (register) off to the side, then maneuver your way through the crowd to make it to the counter and flag down a server. With all the people crowded about, it made it very difficult to see the various gelato types offered.  There is a large sign above with pictures of ingredients for you to see the different gelato flavors available.  This just does not work for me.  I am a visual person.  I want to see the actual food options, not just a graphic display of the ingredients.  Once we made it to the front, I was able to see the gelato options directly in front of me, but none of the options in the cases on either side of me.  The ordering process left me feeling a little frustrated.

I ended up with pistachio, chocolate and lemon.  I did a no-no and paired chocolate with a citrus, but that’s just what I was in the mood for.  To me, the chocolate was a little bitter.  I love intense dark chocolate (which is normally a little bitter), but I wasn’t a big fan of this and wouldn’t order it again.  The pistachio was fine.  It was tasty, but not the best I’ve had.  The winner for me was the lemon.  The lemon was great!  It was tart and refreshing.  If we go back to Fassi, I’ll definitely order the lemon again.
  

One good thing about Fassi is the space itself.  There is a lot of space inside and plenty of tables are provided for you to sit and enjoy your gelato.  My theory is that many people frequent Fassi in the summer months because of the air condition (somewhat of a rarity in Italian homes) and plenty of seating with no cover charge (another rarity among Italian restaurants and eating establishments).

Another good thing is the price.  A medium sized cone or cup with three flavors is only €2.

So, to sum up Fassi, I wouldn’t go out of my way to frequent here, but I would return again if I were in the neighborhood.  I would also order the limone (lemon) gelato … it was quite good!  


Gelateria Fassi
Via Principe Eugenio, 65
00185 Rome, Italy
http://www.palazzodelfreddo.it/
Closed Mondays
Open Tues – Sun from 12:00 PM – 10:00 PM, and until midnight on Friday and Saturday