It’s 1pm on Wednesday in a far-flung corner of the CBD and Sofu Gelato has a queue halfway up the block.
asserted
Gelato → ’ → block
The aim here seems clear: get in, get your gelato, get your socials, then get out, so the next people can get in.
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people → seem → socials
The scene speaks to the appeal of wife-and-husband team Sharon Sia and Albert Maung’s business idea – gelato made from silken tofu – but also what not so long ago might’ve been thought an unlikely location.
uncertain
what → speak → tofu
Now it’s home to Golden Avenue, The French Exit, Le Royale and San Telmo – and that’s on top of Naldham House, Walter’s Steakhouse, Stilts and Mulga Bills, all of which are a little more than a block away.
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all → ’ → block
“We initially wanted to do it on Elizabeth Street,” Sia says.
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Sia → want → Street
“But it’s super busy there, no empty spaces around and rent is through the roof.
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rent → ’ → roof
“We asked our agent to show us other parts of the city and we stumbled onto this space next door to Golden Avenue.
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we → ask → Avenue
It’s also really close to the Kangaroo Point pedestrian bridge.
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It → ’ → bridge
“We were sceptical because there just didn’t seem to be that much foot traffic around, but our agent told us about the coming Anyday venues [The French Exit, Le Royale].
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agent → seem → venues
When we opened, San Telmo had just opened across the road.
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Telmo → open → road
“We decided to give it a shot and it’s been amazing.
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it → decide → shot
So amazing Sia and Maung have had to close the shop entirely on a couple of occasions to restock on cups and stock.
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Sia → have → cups
Sia and Maung have a unique product on their hands.
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Sia → have → hands
Sofu Gelato bills itself as Australia’s first silken tofu gelato shop.
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Gelato → bill → shop
Tofu gelato is lighter on the palate than conventional dairy-based gelatos, while also being higher in protein.
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gelato → base → protein
And the way Sofu makes it, at least, it’s not as sweet.
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it → make → it
“Tofu [has] … always been made savoury,” Sia says.
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Sia → make → ?
“We saw it [in Korea, where tofu gelato originated] being reimagined as gelato and we really loved it.
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we → see → it
The product itself is not too sweet, not as heavy as traditional gelato – it’s lighter and silky.
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it → ’ → gelato
The shop itself isn’t much more than a hole-in-the-wall slotted into the ground floor of the heritage-listed Spencer Building.
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shop → slot → Building
But it’s an eye-catching spot, with a timber and glass frontage and window that opens to the sidewalk outside, and a heavy timber counter inside.
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that → ’ → sidewalk
Behind the counter is where the magic happens, but instead of traditional pozzetti there’s a Miles Gelato Machine, imported from China, which is a batch freezer, gelato maker and display cabinet all in one.
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which → happen → one
Each gelato – there are 12 pots on the counter – is regularly automatically churned to preserve its silky texture.
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gelato → be → texture
“Logistically, sourcing the machine took a while,” Sia says.
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Sia → source → while
“It’s hard to get your hands on it, but once you do it’s basically a three-in-one machine, so it’s pretty convenient.
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it → ’ → one
For launch, Sofu Gelato is serving seven core flavours that Sia and Maung took six months to fine tune: original tofu, sweet corn, matcha, oolong milk tea, purple sweet potato, black sesame and pandan coconut.
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Sia → serve → flavours
“They’re Asian-inspired flavours, flavours my husband and I grew up with,” Sia says.
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Sia → ’re → ?
“It’s nostalgic.”
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It → ’ → ?
You can also order your gelato as an affogato, with a shot of either espresso or matcha.
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You → order → espresso
For drinks, there’s a matcha latte, an early grey matcha latte and a short range of specialty beverages that draw on the store’s flavours.
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that → ’ → flavours
Looking ahead, Sia says to expect the introduction of seasonal flavours.
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Sia → look → flavours
“We’re already working on another tea flavour because the matcha and oolong milk tea have been really, really popular,” Sia says.
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Sia → work → flavour
“And people have been enjoying the vegan flavours [original tofu, black sesame, pandan coconut], so I think we’ll make that vegan as well.”
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that → enjoy → flavours
The Aporia
