Vivi Dolce Gelato Lab: La Dolce Vita

We’ve been fans of Vivi Dolce’s intensely-flavored gelatos and sorbets for a while now, so when we found out the formerly WeChat-only business had opened a concept store in 798, we were over there faster than an ice cream melting in the midday sun.

Vivi Dolce’s new Gelato Lab is an almost clinical space, with just a pop of the brand’s signature bright pink breaking up the white space – a very different experience from the stereotypical 1950s rockabilly style that many ice cream emporiums draw inspiration from. A similarly scientific approach is taken to the gelato, which is made with all natural ingredients to a specific recipe that carefully balances both fat and sugar, giving a taste and texture far superior to many of the commercial brands on the market. Owner Vivienne Li studied the art of gelato for several months at Italy’s Carpigiani Gelato University and her expertise certainly shows – the gelato and sorbet is the smoothest we have had in Beijing.

Signature flavors include mango sorbet, made with 55 percent fresh mango; rich Italian hazelnut; and an almost-savory sea salt vanilla. In store, sample up to two flavors for RMB 35, or go for a shake (RMB 45) or gelato-soda (RMB 35) made with one of their fruitier flavors such as cherry-berry. You can also pick up tubs of gelato to take away. We plumped for hazelnut and dark chocolate (a cheat’s Nutella, if you will), and an espresso to enjoy at one of their outside tables – an altogether more pleasant experience than many of the inferior cafés that litter 798.

Daily 10am-5pm. 707 Jie, 798 Art District, 2 Jiuxianqiao Lu, Chaoyang District (400 0090 821)
朝阳区酒仙桥路2号798艺术区707街（近798北门）2km north of Jiangtai (Line 14).