Bacio di Latte

As gelato fans, we were excited to discover Bacio di Latte – an Italian-style gelateria with locations in Brazil and Los Angeles – had opened a location at Newport Beach’s Fashion Island in 2019. Bacio di Latte has a decidedly different energy than most American gelaterias and ice cream shops today: The store is physically small and clearly built with high-class finishes, while selling only 20 flavors, focusing heavily on classics. Originally, their message appeared to be well-tailored to Fashion Island’s demographics: We’re a boutique selling decidedly Italian gelatos at boutique prices, so if you’re looking for confetti cake ice cream, it’s okay to look elsewhere. But over time, that edge appears to have softened a bit: Beyond gelatos, Bacio di Latte now serves cookies in basic American flavors such as Chocolate Chip, Oatmeal Lace, Cinnadoodle, and Brownie Cookie, which along with Pecan Pie Bars are each sold in the $6 range.

Back to the gelatos: Our impression is that Bacio di Latte is probably the best destination in the county to sample multiple chocolate gelatos at once. In one shop, you can compare Belgian chocolate, 70% chocolate, triple-chocolate, chocolate hazelnut, chocolate chip, mint chocolate chip, and chocolate/banana/caramel gelatos all in one place – a very large number of seemingly overlapping options given how few total flavors are being offered. We found the quality of each gelato flavor we tested to be high, though it’s admittedly very hard to screw up any frozen chocolate treat.

If chocolate’s not your thing, other choices include Nutella cream, pure hazelnut, caramel, coffee, pistachio, cream and biscotti, and three fruit sorbets. There’s also a special flavor of the month, which at time of first writing was yet another hazelnut choice – Crema Torino – promising a “full hazelnut experience.” By 2025, Bacio di Latte had added its own spins on trendy Dubai chocolate, including a gelato with pistachio and chocolate, and the option of extra pistachio cream as a topping.