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Categories: Coffee & Tea, Ice Cream & Frozen Yogurt [Edit]
Neighborhood: Mission Hills
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blackberry = GOOD
And I went upstairs...its ok, but at least there is extra seating.
Lava Cake + Espresso Bean Gelato - GOOOD
Red Rasberry Sorbetto - GOOOD
Can get kind of cramped when…
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parking: 0 stars
vegan cookies: 5 stars
strawberry gelato: 5 stars
staff: 1 star
prices: 1 star
basically tasty and close to me.
after reading other reviews tonight before posting this i was reminded of the issues i've also had. i had to knock down a star.
This here is the classic indie rock coffee shop of San Diego. Plus it's one of my favorite coffee shops because it's centrally located, it's in the hub of excitement. The staff always plays cool music, and I absolutely LOVE the tasty but never feared Verocinno. It's a mixture of gelato and iced coffee blended, ima say HELL YES!
One day . . . (at band camp) I was really stuck my phone wouldn't work. I was lost getting to a job and a customer and the staff here helped me out. These people went the EXTRA MILE they got directions then the customer just got in his car, and plugged in the place and guided me up the hill, how awesome!!! This place just generates goodness I tell ya!
Whoever that guy was in the Beemer with the little dog, thank you for your random act of kindness. You restored my faith in humanity (and beemer drivers too).
The googlemaps direction had me going RIGHT on a street that only went left. So thank goodness for this place or I would have had to go all the way home and call up the office and start over.
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I have two words: pumpkin gelato. Enough said!
I've been coming to GV for years, and still consider it among one of the better late night coffee/dessert places to check out in San Diego. If you're in the mood for good coffee and an exotic ice cream treat you should definitely check it out. Despite the small size downstairs, they have a large seating area directly above it.
I've been here twice now and have yet to be disappointed. The gelato is yummy and fun flavors to choose from. Very popular and there can be a line out the door, but it goes pretty fast. It's in that tricky area near Saffron and Shakespeare's and parking is difficult. Be prepared to circle around or stalk someone for a parking spot.
I love the tiramisu
I know there are many logical, science based reasons for why my apartment is 15 degrees hotter than the outside world, but I'm a woman and a poli sci major - logic and science play a fairly small role in my everyday decision making.
At any rate, it's ice cream weather, and instead of polishing off a pint of B&J I decided to ramble on down the road to Gelato Vera. Because nothing says late night insomniac ice cream fix like vanilla bean gelato with a view of the airport lights and free WiFi. For serious.
You can argue with me that gelato and ice cream are different. I will only respond by hitting you with a chocolate hazelnut scoop, and as you die in a happy diabetic coma I will be back at Gelato Vero at midnight thanking the universe that it placed high quality sweet yumminess so close to home.
People thought this was:
my coffee maker broke the other day and stumbled across this place. i hadn't been here in years but i forgot how cool it was. since i just moved to the neighborhood, this is now my coffee shop. bad thing is that if you don't have cash, its a four dollar minimum. they open at six in the morning, but parking is a little more difficult during the day. haven't tried anything on their menu yet, but some of the people that work here are pretty friendly, which says a lot cuz I'm not in the morning before my coffee kicks in. only bad thing is all that caffeine makes me drive too fast on the way to work
I feel like I just had 5 bucks stolen from me. I think this is one of those places that some hipster said was cool and everyone followed. I found it to be overpriced for the lack of flavor. I tried the caramel and brownie gelato and my friend tried the pistachio. We decided we've had better. It doesn't even come close to what real gelato is supposed to taste like. I can't believe I got suckered into going here. All the people sitting outside made me think it would be worth it but I've been duped.
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Despite several serious warnings, I went here yesterday. The outside terrace was inhabited by sprawling prehumans that did not seem to be customers. To reach the entrance it was necessary to walk around a cluster of individuals of a related species that clutched minuscule cups.
Having been in Rome and elsewhere in Italy, I skipped trying the gelati and sorbetti. I had a macchiato that was strangely prepared, lukewarm and half foam.
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I am shocked that this place won "Best Dessert in 2007" and even if it was well deserved at that time, I'm pretty sure their melted gelato will not be winning any awards this year. Also, the best gelato places make some effort to present the flavors nicely, usually with pieces of the gelato flavor displayed as a top layer, such as tiramisu or fruit. At Gelato Vero, the presentation includes puddles of liquefied gelato.
Customer service is poor. First, the server ignores me when I'm standing in line and starts assisting the customers behind me instead. When I finally get her attention, I proceed to order the cherry almond chocolate, the only flavor of the few available that was just replaced with a fresh batch. She then tries to serve me the last bit of the melted portion that had just been removed. Seriously?? I kindly asked for the newer one instead (it was nothing special anyway--pretty bland), but that should have been a given. Had I asked for a gelato shake, it might have been a different story.
I have no desire to return to this cramped, poorly run establishment. Get your act together, Gelato Vero.
People thought this was:
I like this place. They're coffee is good; their drinks are good; their pastries and gelato are good. Their service has been poor in the past, but it's getting much better it seems, so five stars. :)
The scenesters and hipsters are not that intolerable, they're just kind of part of the whole indie coffee shop scene.
I just wish there weren't so many cars passing by (noisy + smelly), or else I wouldn't mind coming here more often.
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Mexican Mocha is way better than the regular mocha. And the lemon poppyseed scone was like a little pillow of morningtime heaven.
However, the people working there were so friggin' pissed off that I had the audacity to order a drink! I felt as though I was interfering with their, "standing around" time, or "waiting for my hangover to pass" time, or "chatting about new tattoos" time. As much as I love zombies, these girls were not the cool "must eat brains" kind of zombies. I know you're tired, so am I. So make yourself a damn cup of coffee and stop being so damn sour because starting my day off with a couple of chicks who seem as though they're both on the rag really sucks!
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This place is handy because it's right before I jump on the 5 to head to Hell, I mean, work. I… Read more »
And now an excerpt from Kyle's erotic reviews:
Do you like nuts in your Gelato? I bet you do, you naughty girl! Try pistachio. You probably thought I was referring to my nuts, didn't you? Well, I'm not. Whip cream excluded, I don't put any sugary treats near my joint because it's just not sanitary. But we're not here to talk about food safety or Italian ice cream on my joint, baby. We're here to talk about the smooth, creamy seduction of gelatooooooo. Yeee, girl, say it with me "Gelatoooooo" Mmmm, that was nice. Now dip your finger into a bowl of that sugary stuff and just savor the goodness. Don't do it too fast, baby; we're just getting started. How'd that taste? Delicious, I know!
How about some coffee, girl? They got that here. I bet you like coffee, don't you? What's that? Oh you want free internet? They got all the free internet you can handle, milady. Let's surf the web until the sun comes up and then do it again. You give new meaning to the phrase "Yahoo". I want to "Google" you over and over. Let's go back to "Myspace" where I can ***** on your "Facebook". Have I killed this metaphor yet? Hell nah! So let's just get Amazon dot com all over each other.
Feel that? That's not caffeine, baby. It's not the weird hippie sitting one foot from us, either. That warmth you're feeling is a little thing called Cafe love, my little sugartits. What's that? You don't know what Cafe love is? Cafe love is a little different from restaurant love or bar love. Cafe love is somebody that's working on their "screenplay" on an overpriced Macbook. Cafe love is two hipster dudes wearing funny hats and drinking mocachinos. Cafe love is me complaining sexily about my job while you errantly stir a cup of tea! You catch my drift? I know the Cafe love got you hooked, my rose petal. Now let's get down to business. My XL Frappacino ain't gonna drink itself!
To summarize, Gelato Vero will put the cream in your coffee. If you don't like cream, they'll just give it to you black. If you don't like black, they'll probably offer you sugar. Gelato Vero aims to please.......
People thought this was:
Gelato Vero Caffe is terrible. How this shop has so many positive reviews is beyond me.
The worst gelato shop I've ever been to so far. This place is a tiny and uncomfortable hole-in-the-wall. It's muggy inside and the freezers where the gelato is held are obviously not cold enough because you can clearly see that the gelato is melted in there.
The tiramisu tasted like vanilla with tiny bits of angel food cake. Not only did my gelato not taste like tiramisu but it also contained little chunks of ice. I should have just sampled their product first before I wasted a couple dollars on it.
The service was just as bad. Also if you come here in the evening on a weekend get ready to have to park far away and then have to hike up Mission Hills to get back to your car.
Little Italy is probably less than a mile away from this place - I highly recommended just going there if you're in the mood for gelato.
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Surprised at how late this place closed, but I'm not complaining.
We parked up the street (up the hill) actually from this place, and it was a little dark and scary and sketchy going to the place. Also, I completely missed the door cuz it was hidden behind this red wooden bar type thing.
The inside of the place has a lot of character, red walls with a lot of black and white photos. Kind of an indie cafe scene, that serves gelato. Very interesting.
Got the chocolate hazelnut gelato. IT WAS LIKE NUTELLA. delish!!
Those plastic cups that they come in though - is that really necessary?
If it wasn't midnight I would have totally ordered a coffee.. seems like a legit place for coffee!
I've lived in Italy so I know what gelato is supposed to taste like - this is not it. I will admit that it is delicious, but the texture is off. Gelato is supposed to be creamy, but here the texture is icy and crunchy. I have only once tasted gelato that was on par with the italian stuff (unfortunately, it is in salt lake city) so I can say that this place is rather average as far as American gelato goes, but is nothing compared to the authentic stuff!
People thought this was:
Yea this place is cool. Been here many times. Tiramisu is my favorite here because it's got bread chunks in it ya'll. I've spent many times studying up top using their free wifi. I even took a dump in their bathroom a few times, I can't help it man i'm lactose intolerant and i'm eating ice cream go figure! They keep it clean man can't beat that!
Peace.
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Update: This place has fantastic gelato!
I have officially tried both the gianduja (chocolate hazelnut) and the spumoni (vanilla cream, cherries and chocolate pieces) and I think I'm in love! My heart is racing and my eyes are dilated... Oh wait, maybe that is just a sugar rush. Oh well. It's all good.
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Delicious! I recently tried the rassberry sobert and it was wonderful! Little chucks of fresh… Read more »
Best gelati in San Diego :)
and some of the best coffee.
Open late! Wifi... great.
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A quality I love about this place is the small town cozy feeling I get as soon as I walk in. It's location, next to nothing prices and unfailing friendly service are conducive to that feeling. A quality I dislike of this location is the fact that the area is usually bustling and parking are limited.
Their Gelato is enticing even on a cold evening. Many a time where my bum froze eating either pistachio, strawberry or vanilla bean Gelato at their outdoor patio. The pain was well worth the satisfaction.
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I have wanted to try this place for months. I am now hitting myself over the head for having ever waited so long!
I like to consider myself a vanilla ice cream/yogurt/gelato connoisseur.. their Tahitian vanilla knocked my freaking socks off! I first had the tester, then.. I had to have the large cup of gelato! After it was all over and the gelato was finished.. I was craving more! How does this happen!? Well, let me tell you.. it is just that good.
Another lazy day with the Klan... and i dont mean the KKK.... i mean the kids and myself.... Little bro little big sisters.... and friends and the cute boi.
After a nice brunch and movie watching at my casa i came up with the awesome idea of Gelato and Coffee... its my new thing... I dont know why. but since i can eat dairy again im trying all the stuff i have been missing.. Gelato is one of those things.. Man i love me some Hazelnut Chocolate Gelato. its so so so so good... and of course with a soy latte on the side it made it much more nuttier than i expected!
Gelato Vero is one of the coffee joints i have been coming to for years on end. After heavy meals next door at our local british pub i would waddle down to GV and grab a coffee... hoping it would help with the gut bomb.
Still loving the hell out of this place!
People thought this was:
How Gelato Vero received so many 4 and 5 stars on here is beyond me. We had a craving for gelato and knew of this place from always passing it and the rave reviews on yelp, so we thought we'd give it a try. We scored on front row parking on India, which was amazing, but normally parking here is a nightmare, no matter what day you go.
First impression of the exterior, with the fresh aroma of piss and cigarette smoke, was not a good one. The small cave like interior, was a bit charming, but could get packed real quick. The selection of gelato was satisfactory, enough to satisfy anyone's favorite flavors. The problem I had was with the product itself. It was icy in flavor, not the rich creamy texture you would expect. I had the nutella flavor, which was decent, and the tiramisu, which was pretty flavorless. If I didn't know better, I thought I had ordered vanilla.
Maybe an off day. Maybe off flavors. Not sure we will be back though.
People thought this was:
Oh please. Just please. Would all the gelato connoisseurs who've, like, totally been to Italy where they have, like, REAL gelato give it up already? Yes, world travel is a delightful thing and we'll all take your word for it that gelato made in its homeland and sampled on a Venetian gondola with a swarthy man named Paolo outstrips its American incarnations by far, but what were you expecting? We are in San Diego, home of artificial tans and burritos with french fries in them. Culinary and cultural bastardization is our calling card and you demand -- what? -- authenticity?
The offerings at Gelato Vero Caffe in Mission Hills, while limited, are always cold and delicious, always sweet creamy fantasia in a biodegradable pastel container. And the tiny spoons! Perfect for pretending you are a giant! That, e-comrades, is nothing to sniff your nose at. The staff, indie stereotypes personified, have been kind and courteous each time I've visited, but even so, I'd be willing to tolerate a little scener-than-thou attitude because 1) I'm admittedly not very scene, and 2) pistachio gelato plus hot passionflower tea equals a world worth living in.
Also, there's the haunted freezer and you never want to piss off a ghost by saying the gelato at its establishment is "inadeguato." That's how curses get started. It's science.
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One of my S.O.'s favorite places, Gelato Vero served some of the best gelato I've had outside of Italy. I tried the chocolate hazelnut (HELLO, Nutella in a cup) and the spumoni, and they were delicious.
The interior next to the counter is tiny, but they also have an upstairs with plenty of space for large groups.
The gelato here was so memorable that I will be putting in a special request to return next time we're in San Diego.
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Although I prefer Pappalecco, my friend prefers Gelato Vero, so I've returned several times. I think the first time I came was an off night, as the gelato has been consistently better than it was when I first tried it. They also regularly have two flavors of sorbetto, which is basically like gelato-y sorbet. No milk in it at all, so the flavor is really intense. I think it's vegan, but wouldn't swear to it, as I don't care much one way or the other. They also have a cool upstairs space that I didn't know was there the first time.
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I really really like gelato, so was quite happy to end up here for dessert. The gelato is quite… Read more »
I'm a picky eater so the flavors aren't always my favorite. My tea is always burnt and over steeped, because the baristas put wayyyyy too much tea for such a small cup.
And no more smoking up stairs?? QUE! Not that I smoke any more, but that was probably the best thing about the place.
Now, we only come here, if its on the way, which is never.
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Lately I've been craving gelato...ahh-who am I kidding, I'm absolutely addicted to gelato and have been for years! I'll go to random places to get my fix! Gelato Vero satisfies my sweet tooth and my high-quality expectations.
Gelato Vero could be the tiniest cafe I've been to, but don't slight them for their cramped quarters. This place has a small but very delicious selection of gelato/gelato sorbetto. I highly recommend the pistachio gelato, mango and blackberry gelato sorbetto (fab!) and the espresso bean flavors. The portions are on the small side (in keeping with the small theme) but that's probably a blessing in disquise! Too much of a good thing could pack on the lbs!
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I've been going to Gelato Vero since my dad used to bring me there as a kid. Hands down the BEST GELATO EVER! Great coffee. I enjoy a good dark-roasted coffee and they do it right.
This is a sweet little joint on the corner of the street that i would have easily missed had it not been for the bright neon lights flashing as a drove up. It's cramped and stuffy on the inside, but there's more seating outside and upstairs which is much nicer anyway. The view isn't all that great--a straight shot of the 5-freeway ad SD airport--but they have free wifi making it a great place to get some work done whilst enjoying some bomb gelato.
The lady that helped my roomie and me was super helpful sharing all her favorite flavors and giving us generously scooped sample spoons. I went with the spumoni which was just as good as that one gelato joint in little italy and the prices were pretty decent.
Met up with Richard and Dale here yesterday-
I'm a gelato lover, and they had a sign out front that said "Best of 2007" so I had high hopes for this place.
Serving MELTED gelato- and trying to play it off- no bueno.
Don't they know I'm a Yelper? ;D
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Most of my mornings begin with a large coffee from Gelato Vero. The staff is chill and they know their repeat customers. The coffee is delicious and always organic. The gelato is the best you're going to find in Southern California. In fact, I believe that they make the gelato for all of the local restaurants.
I'd been going here for years up until 2002. The other night on a whim my friend Arthur and I decided to go back and have a gelato and some coffee while catching up.
I don't know why I stopped coming, but their gelato is still fantastic. My only complaint was that they were out of my favorite, tiramisu. I settled for the Caramel with brownie and it was still delicious.
Their coffee is superb. This place is out of the way for me since I now live in the Rancho PQ/Carmel Mtn. area, and parking in this area between El Indio and Saffron has always been a bitch and a half, but for a cold, creamy, small cup of heaven every now and then --- a drive is in order.
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I went with fellow yelper Abigail G. a while back and the gelato was enjoyable. At the time we thought it was great. I liked the nutella flavored variety a lot actually. But....then two things happened.......
1. A certain someone told me a certain story about a certain something that happened in the freezer at said place that completely creeped me the eff out. I know what happened doesn't really have a lot to do with the gelato but the fact that everytime I think of this place now I'm reminded of what happened unnerves me.
2. I went to Papalecco not too long ago. Papalecco pwns Gelato Vero's ass by far.
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Ok, I have travelled the world and sampled Gelato ice cream in parlors in Italy, Las Vegas, Canada, and across the US. Let me save all of you a lot of time, drive down to Washington St. & India St. (and try to find parking on the street), go to Gelato Vero, and experience the best Gelato money can buy! For real. Theirs is rich, creamy, chewy, and smooth. Decadent! Really, there is no reason to try any other Gelato parlors in my opinion, Gelato Vero really has it down pat.
The best value is to buy it by the pint and take it home and share it with someone you care about. Their milkshakes are also very good, and a very good value considering how expensive Gelato can be. Anyway, this place has been a landmark in San Diego for at least 20 years now, go find out why! Also, don't miss their excellent coffee and teas, and they have an upstairs room with tables & chairs that offers great views of the airport! Check it out, you'll be glad you did!
5 stars for the gelato alone. Excellent quality, good variety of flavors, friendly staff. I also like the random people chilling outside. I have come here many times with my dad who loves gelato so much he planned an entire trip to Italy around gelato stands.
Did I mention those cute little flower shaped cups? Call me a sucker...but I just love those things.
I've been going here for 3 years now. I just went again last night and reminded myself to yelp it when i get a chance. So here it is. Best, most authentic, decently priced gelato in San Diego.
The end.
Gelato?
Tasted more like freezer burn; I'm not sure if they make their Gelato there or not. It just didn't taste like how it should to me..
I've been to Italy and had Gelato for days; I've had awesome Gelato round' San Diego...This was not proper Gelato.
Sorry but the cute pastel colored cups & spoons won't win this chick over..
Think I'll pass on this place.
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