Eva’s Gelato
Do you know the difference between gelati and gelato? In Winnipeg most of the little shops that serve Italian ice cream have gelati in their names and then many years ago, Eva’s Gelato opened almost at the corner of our street. The owners, as opposed to having of an Italian heritage were from Argentina and so I concluded that gelato was a Spanish version of gelati. Perhaps I was even guilty of having perpetrated that Winnipeg rumour. In those days, Eva’s was a a narrow little store front with not much room for more than the freezer and a hard-working employee. The frozen treat was scooped from a big white plastic pail into a weeny brightly coloured bowl with a “Barbie-doll” sized spoon. My eyes were always pulled to those translucent bowls but I was a sugar-cone fan from a way back and so even though my eyes wanted one thing, my tummy desired another.
Now, of course I know that gelati is simply the plural version of gelato, or maybe it is the other way around.
I have had my fair share of gelato experiences in between our original taste of Eva’s and the “new” Eva’s sensation. While D and I traveled along the west coast of Italy from Sicily to the Italian and French Riveria, gelato fixes were the primary motivation for an evening walk after long train rides or a day of hiking.
We have our favourite spots too on Isla Mujeres where coconut gelato is my fav and D’s is pistachio.
Eva in the mean time had also been busy, moving east on Corydon into expansive new digs. The quality of her product did not diminish with the move. Nor did its popularity. By then Eva’s was available at other retailers in carton form. I even enjoyed it recently at the inaugural Bomber game at Investors Group Field.
We decided long ago that Eva’s made and served our favourite gelato but I needed a recent photo of their new locale. So I sent J2 (aka Daughter #3). Many of you know that she is days away from giving birth to our first grandbaby and when I asked for the favour, she was quick to oblige. What is it about pregnant women and ice cream?
When I was expecting my first baby 28 years ago, it was the summer that Dairy Queen came out with Blizzards. D and I would often walk in the evening with DQ as our destination. J2 has gained just the right amount of weight and even though our grandbaby is sticking way out in front, from the back, you wouldn’t even know that she was pregnant. I on the other hand, gained some 70 pounds when I was pregnant the first time around, and I can definitely equate that weight gain to the Blizzards. During my third pregnancy when I craved ice chips and celery, my weight gain was 22 pounds.
Kath’s quote: “Ice cream is exquisite. What a pity it isn’t illegal.”-Voltaire
Love-that is all.