Dolce Gelato Treats: Focusing on the Classics
BY JAY REED
D
olce. It’s the Italian word for “sweet.” And what’s the sweetest thing ever to come out of Italy? If the answer that comes to your mind is, “my grandmother,” I’m not here to argue. I don’t know her, but I’m sure she’s delightful. But is she creamy, too? And really cold? Because I’m talking about something else: the Italian word for “frozen,” which would be “gelato.” Dolce also happens to be the name of Starkville’s newest place to get something sweet, frozen and creamy. In what is becoming a trend in Starkville, as well as other local business corridors across the state, a historic building was repurposed and renovated on Main Street. It’s owned by the Masonic Lodge, but most people in the area know it as the old Rex Theatre, which operated for decades beginning in the early 1930s and was Starkville’s first air-conditioned building. Most of the current space is occupied by the Glo company, which approached local business owners Robbie and Bonnie Coblentz about putting a small business in the front corner, where the Rex box office used to be. With multiple ties to the culinary community and the broadcast media world, they considered a variety of possibilities but the dimensions of the space—big enough to serve and seat, but not quite big enough for a kitchen—narrowed their options. After lots of thought, brainstorming and consultations they concluded that a gelato shop with a movie theme would fit the playbill nicely. The next step was to find a source for the frozen sweetness, and a series of random events led both Robbie and Bonnie to Hugh Balthrop and his company, Sweet Magnolia Gelato. The idea of serving a Mississippi-based small batch product appealed to them, and after taste-testing a few of Sweet Magnolia’s offerings, it was an easy decision.
40 • October/November 2021
The current menu at Dolce is simple but growing. They keep about a dozen different flavors in the freezer all the time, served by the scoop. A few classics and local favorites are stalwarts, such as Fior de Latte (a traditional sweet cream), chocolate, honey bourbon, banana pudding, espresso chip and peanut butter cup. The rest of the spots rotate among dozens of Sweet Magnolia options like blueberry cheesecake, pistachio, red velvet cake, or Stracciatella (vanilla with slivers of dark chocolate). Plus, they try to keep a couple of flavors of sorbet such as lemon, strawberry, pineapple or raspberry. Toppings are simple, too: dark chocolate shavings, mini chocolate chips, graham cracker crumbs, whipped topping, chocolate and caramel sauces, and brown butter bits (an exclusive showing).
