The full story of the gelato cabinet at Cafe Vera in Morningside: who makes Hackney Gelato, how gelato actually differs from ice cream, what a scoop costs, the vegan options, and how to order it like a regular — including the affogato move.
Walk into Cafe Vera on Morningside Road any day between 9am and 5pm and the first thing most people stop at isn’t the coffee machine — it’s the gelato cabinet. Nine different flavours, scooped fresh, rotating daily. Kids press their faces against the glass. Adults pretend they’re deciding for the kids.
We get asked about it constantly: who makes it, why it tastes different from supermarket ice cream, whether there’s a vegan option, and why the flavours keep changing. So here’s the whole story — everything we know about the gelato we serve, and how to get the most out of a visit.
Who actually makes it: the Hackney Gelato story
We don’t make gelato in-house, and we’re not shy about it — because the people who do make it are genuinely among the best in the country. Hackney Gelato was founded by Sam and Enri, two Italian-born chefs who met while working at Michelin-starred Locanda Locatelli in London. Before starting their own kitchen they trained with master gelatieri across southern Italy, learning the slow, traditional methods that most industrial producers abandoned decades ago.
Every batch is still made in small quantities in their East London kitchen on Blackhorse Lane. No giant factory, no months-old stock sitting in a distribution freezer.
And the awards back it up: 82 Great Taste stars in 8 years, which makes Hackney Gelato one of the most-awarded gelato producers in the UK — and you’ll find their gelato served in Michelin-starred London restaurants, with acclaimed chefs such as Marcus Wareing and Pierre Koffmann among those who have worked with it. When we were choosing whose gelato deserved a permanent cabinet in our cafe, it honestly wasn’t a long debate.
Gelato vs ice cream: what the difference actually is
People use the words interchangeably, but gelato and ice cream are different products, and you can taste it from the first spoonful.
First, density. Gelato is slow-churned at a much lower speed than ice cream, so far less air gets whipped into it. Less air means more actual food in every scoop — a denser, richer mouthfeel where ice cream can taste fluffy and hollow.
Second, temperature. Gelato is served slightly warmer than ice cream. That matters more than it sounds: extreme cold numbs your tongue and mutes flavour, so a slightly warmer scoop lets the hazelnut taste properly of hazelnut and the mango taste properly of mango.
Third — and this is where Hackney Gelato separates itself even from other gelato — the ingredients. They use fresh milk, whole nuts and real fruit, slow-churned the traditional way. No flavour pastes doing the heavy lifting, no shortcuts. It’s the same logic as good bread or good coffee: start with real ingredients, take the time, and the result doesn’t need disguising.
“Less air, served warmer, made from real ingredients — gelato isn’t posh ice cream, it’s a different product altogether.”
What it costs and how to order it
One scoop is £3.95 — a proper taste. Two scoops, £5.95, is the most popular order and the sweet spot if you can’t pick one flavour (nobody can). Three scoops at £7.45 is the best value per scoop, and the right call on a sunny Meadows-walk kind of day.
And a detail we’re quietly proud of: every scoop we serve is a generous 100ml minimum — noticeably larger than the typical scoop. When you’re paying for proper gelato, the scoop should feel like proper value.
Everything comes in a waffle cone or a cup, your choice — and the waffle cone is included at no extra charge. Want to push the boat out? Add a chocolate or strawberry sauce for 50p, or add a scoop of gelato to a Belgian Waffle for £2.50.
And then there’s the order we quietly think is the best thing on the menu: the affogato, £5.50. Vanilla Hackney Gelato with a shot of fresh espresso poured over the top at the counter. Hot, cold, bitter, sweet — it’s dessert and coffee in one glass, and it takes about ninety seconds from order to table. If you’ve never had one, make this the day.
Vegan and vegetarian options
The cabinet always carries a mix of two product lines: dairy gelato and plant-based sorbetto. The sorbetto is vegan-friendly — built on fruit and water rather than milk — and it’s not a token afterthought; Hackney Gelato’s sorbetti are made with the same real-fruit, small-batch approach as the dairy range. The dairy gelato is vegetarian.
Because the lineup rotates, the vegan options change too. Just ask whoever’s on the counter what today’s plant-based flavours are — there’s always at least one, usually more. If you have an allergy, speak to the team before ordering or check our allergens page; we’d always rather take an extra minute than guess.
Why only 9 flavours, and why they keep changing
Nine isn’t a limitation, it’s a choice. A cabinet of nine flavours that turn over quickly means everything you’re scooping is fresh and nothing sits around. It also means the lineup stays interesting — regulars check what’s in the cabinet the way other people check the specials board.
If you’re making a special trip for a particular flavour, follow @cafe__vera on Instagram — we post the daily lineup there. Or just embrace the rotation: the second-best flavour you didn’t plan to order is half the fun of a daily-changing cabinet.
Finding us
Cafe Vera is at 26 Morningside Rd, Edinburgh EH10 4DA — minutes from Bruntsfield, Marchmont and the Meadows, and an easy stop on the way back from Blackford Pond or Blackford Hill. We’re open every day, 9am to 5pm.
Come for brunch and stay for a cone, or just duck in for a scoop on a walk. The cabinet doesn’t judge either way.
Hungry now? We’re open every day, 9am–5pm.
26 Morningside Rd, Edinburgh EH10 4DA
