Gelato Messina Dessert Bar opens in Darlinghurst

Raspberry meringue is one of more than 20 toppings at the Gelato Messina Dessert Bar. (Photo: GoodFood)

In a move to send Sydney's sundae-lovers into a spin, Gelato Messina has opened a dessert bar.

Located in the Darlinghurst space that once housed Messina's Creative Department, the Messina team describes the dessert bar as "an adult in a candy store/stuck in a supermarket overnight."

The emphasis is on do-it-yourself sundaes - think the Sizzler dessert bars of the '90s, or the frozen yoghurt joints of today, but even more fun. Choose your vessel (cup, cone, doughnut, crepe or choux pastry puff), select your soft-serve (this month it's burnt vanilla gelato or Fanta flavour) and go nuts on the toppings.

The meringue-studded Pavlova-kona. Photo: GoodFood

"We've been toying with the dessert bar idea for ages," says Gelato Messina co-director Declan Lee. "We love the froyo [frozen yoghurt] concept but it's never been done properly. We want to make it more adult. No Freckles and M&Ms."

There are more than 20 toppings to choose from, all made in-house. Think smoked butter popcorn, burnt honey mousse, and mandarin gel.

"We don't just want to put Redskins on a sundae," says Lee. "We prefer to put our on spin on toppings and make, say, a Redskin custard instead."

If you prefer to leave things in the hands of professionals, Messina has its own creations you can order. Menu items ($9.90) include the Carni Candi - a waffle cone filled with Fanta soft-serve, strawberries and cream jellies, and Redskin custard, that's dipped in chocolate and topped with fairy floss; and the Pavalova-kona - a raspberry waffle cone full of burnt vanilla gelato, raspberry jellies, passionfruit curd, raspberry coulis and raspberry meringues. 

The Messina Dessert Bar menu will change its offerings every one to two months so you'll never get bored of the sweets, scents, and soft-serves on offer. Not that there was much chance of that anyway.

DIY sundaes start at $7.50 for the base and soft-serve, with toppings an additional 80 cents per item.

Gelato Messina Dessert Bar, Sun-Thurs 5pm-11pm; Fri-Sat 5pm-11:30pm, 243 Victoria Street, Darlinghurst, gelatomessina.com

Source: GoodFood - 25th September 2014