After Equipment Woes, Dolcezza has Big Soft Serve Plans

Offering soft serve has been easier said than done for gelato masters Dolcezza. The restaurant was supposed to start serving the ice cream July 1 at the mini-chain's Dupont Circle location. But the equipment they ordered didn't exactly work out, according to co-owner Robb Duncan.

"It was just massively intrusive," said Duncan. Apparently the equipment was loud enough to turn off customers even in the testing phase. Luckily, the company hadn't yet committed to the machine, so was able to return it without a financial hit. They've now found a smaller, quieter machine that gets the job done, and are in the process of testing flavors and creating a debut soft serve. Expect the product to appear around the first week of August.

And it could be quite an interesting flavor. Duncan is hoping to partner with 3 Stars Brewing Company to create a saison beer gelato, topped with savory beer nuts.

The company is still debating whether they will roll out soft serve to other Dolcezza stores. Duncan would ideally like to open a stand-alone location only serving soft serve, and is looking around at potential locations for it. He'd like to do a "whole Willy Wonka-type thing" where the company would experiment with wacky flavors, and even partner with local pastry chefs on its concoctions. "That would be our place to be flamboyant," he said.
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