Come the first day of the year, every year, it is impossible to escape the barrage of detox, veganuary, dry January and the likes that fill up social media timelines, TV and magazines. Not to mention restaurant menus that jump on the bandwagon of the widespread healthy push for the new year.
And a treat was indeed offered by Gelupo Gelato who, against the detoxing efforts of their competitors, hosted a month-long chocolate extravaganza called Chocolate Sagra which runs until 5 February, turning their already delectable products into a chocolate themed feast.
Launched in June 2010, Gelupo is the second venture from chef Jacob Kenedy and Victor Hugo, also behind Bocca di Lupo, the award-winning Italian restaurant in Soho. A traditional Italian gelateria, delicatessen and espresso bar, Gelupo is located opposite Kenedy’s trattoria on Archer Street.
We had the tough job of trying pretty much the entire range. Chocolate, under many guises: hot and drinkable; ice cream flavours; cakes and so forth.
We then enjoyed sipping the most luxurious, decadent hot chocolate,the Italian style (thick, dark), which Gelupo offers spiced too: the cardamom version we tried was simply divine, served with a dollop of fresh cream on the side.
Amongst the other things we managed to try before being too full, an amaretto biscuit coated in hot chocolate, a cantuccini biscotto with dark chocolate chips and an indulgent, moorish brownie crammed with the most delicious toasted hazelnuts.
Do yourself a favour, stop the detox right now and enjoy the Chocolate Sagra while it it’s on (or if you’re still thinking of a January without fun, wait for February and catch the last few days of the event).