A gelato craving duly addressed at Grom

Earlier this week, I had a killer gelato craving. Insistent and persistent, it wouldn't let me rest until I had gotten some of that cold, creamy goodness so appropriate for delightful spring weather like this. I had had grand plans to check out one of the gelato places downtown that I haven't yet tried, but once I finished dinner on the appointed day, I kinda wanted it, like, now. So I set off for the nearest high-quality gelato place nearby: Grom. Sigh.

Grom is kind of like Pinkberry in my book, in that I always leave just ever-so-slightly unsatisfied. While Grom (unlike Pinkberry) at least isn't mostly air, it does have the same skewed dollar-to-amount-you-get ratio (I think in some circles that's also known as "value"). I've been to Grom a few times now, and while the gelato is quite clearly made of the highest quality ingredients, you truly only get about five or six bites of it before your $5.25 is gone. At least if you get a nice counter staffer, which I did this time around, you can sneak in several samples before making your choice.

Interesting biodegradable spoons

My selection was a small cup of half Bacio, half Torrone (nougat). After tasting that insane dark chocolate at Capogiro, I've been in search of the same brownie-batter flavor, which Bacio was not; instead, it was a slightly bitter milk chocolate studded with nearly whole hazelnuts (and a lot of them!). Combined, the flavor fell slightly short of the desired Nutella, and quite a bit short of the luscious richness of Capogiro's Scuro. The Torrone, however, was quite nice, a smooth nougat-y base filled with another kind of nut (almonds, I think)? The sweetness offset the slight bitter edge of the Bacio, and alternating tastes of each provided a perfectly delicious dessert experience. And while I still left feeling ever so slightly ripped off, the beautiful evening and the chance to eat some tasty ice cream while sitting outside offset it. Sort of.

Grom
1796 Broadway, between 58th Street and Columbus Circle
212-974-3444