Melbourne · gelato
Gelato Messina (Fitzroy)
Directly tests whether Melbourne's scene is genuinely its own or a Sydney export: the answer here is explicitly both — a Sydney chain, but one that sources its Melbourne milk from Warrnambool rather than shipping product, and staffs its Melbourne kitchens with a named former world champion.
What we know
- Sydney's Gelato Messina opened its first Melbourne store on Smith Street, Fitzroy, with Richmond and Windsor following soon after (Broadsheet, Fitzroy listing)
- Melbourne's three Messina outlets are headed by lifelong gelato-maker Simone Panetta, who started making gelato with his uncle at age 12, and former gelato world champion Sergio Colalucci (Broadsheet, Fitzroy listing)
- All 40 permanent flavours plus weekly specials across the Melbourne stores are made in-house from Warrnambool milk — a named Victorian regional dairy source (Broadsheet, Fitzroy listing)
- Mind-bending special flavours are released on the same day in both Sydney and Melbourne (Broadsheet, Fitzroy listing)
- Status
- open
- Address
- Smith Street, Fitzroy VIC 3065
- Maker
- Simone Panetta (Messina co-founder, heads the Melbourne operation) and Sergio Colalucci, former gelato world champion, at the Melbourne stores
- Website
- gelatomessina.com/
- Last checked
- 2026-08-21
Something wrong here? Tell us.