Baladoche
Baladoche specializes in waffles, but not just any waffles—Belgian zucker waffles, about the size of your hand and filled with pearl sugar chips, which look like something a storybook mouse would put in its tea. The pearls melt a bit during cooking, providing little pockets of crunchy sweetness that make syrup superfluous. Toppings include cinnamon sugar, chocolate, jam, Nutella, or the house gelato, though two small scoops of the last made the waffle too soggy for my taste. —Anne Ford
Opening a gelateria was a longtime dream for Bellezza Gelato owners Maria DiNunzio and Tim Ashorian, and it’s safe to say that the couple’s Harlem Avenue shop is a dream come true for us too. When I paid them a visit it was so hot outside that everything was melting, and after a previous customer’s order oozed out of her cone in the heat, the guys behind the counter recommended I stick with a cup. Even half melted, however, my scoop of banana-caramel-praline gelato was one of the best I’ve had outside Italy. My second scoop—butter pecan—was just as good, whole pecans sprinkled liberally throughout. With its wide selection of gelati (for chocolate lovers there are now three different choices, double-Dutch chocolate, dark-chocolate-covered cherry-cognac, and dark chocolate-raspberry tartufo) Bellezza is a go-to spot, and the well-prepared coffee (espresso, cappuccino, latte, and Turkish coffee) and pastries—most under a couple bucks—can’t hurt either. There are also house-made biscotto and custom-made gelato pies. Don’t miss the affogato: gelato with a flavored shot of espresso, topped with whipped cream and an espresso bean. —Sam Kaplan
Onetime Scylla pastry chef Jessie Oloroso’s long awaited fuschia-colored ice cream parlor was preceded by gallons of goodwill engendered by her gelato’s placement on restaurant dessert menus and in select retail freezer cases. Texturally her execution is flawless, and her flavor combinations are for the most part fascinating—avocado-cinnamon, lemon-ginger, goat-cheese-cashew-caramel, and the perpetually out-of-stock sesame-fig-chocolate-chip, to name a few. Occasionally, however, they’re almost too aggressive or unbalanced; my tongue remained shriveled the morning after a few spoons of salted peanut, and rich Mexican chocolate packs enough chile heat to seem like an unfriendly dare. House-made sodas and novelties such as the chocolate-and-bacon-dipped whiskey gelato bar and build-your-own ice cream sandwiches add a minimum of variety. I’m curious to see what might be offered in the winter months. —Mike Sula
Best of Chicago voting is live now. Vote for your favorites »
This sleek family-run Ukrainian Village spot offers 18 seasonally rotated flavors, including bacio (chocolate hazelnut), frutti di bosco (berries), ananas (pineapple), and panna cotta. You can also mix flavors or get your gelato fix in the form of a shake with a shot of espresso. The owner also runs Pilsen’s Ristorante al Teatro (see separate listing). —Susannah J. Felts
Primarily an outlet for the handmade chocolates of Michael Canady, which are wonderfully fresh and delicate, Canady le Chocolatier also sells gelato made in-house. The eight daily flavors change regularly; on a recent visit I tried chocolate, burnt caramel, raspberry, and mascarpone. The creamy textures were right on, and the raspberry had bright fruit flavor, but some of the others stumbled: mascarpone was too yogurty, and I found the chocolate disappointingly average—certainly not what you’d expect. —Peter Margasak
