Food Tasting: South & North Okinawa Gelato

Craving for some icy treats in the sweltering heat these days but on a diet? 

Well, cut yourself some slack and grab yourself some Gelato!

We all know by now, that gelato is superior to just the standard ice creams as they're more flavourful and contains much less fats for they uses milk (instead of heavy cream for ice cream) and far fewer egg yolks. Most of the gelato in the market contains about 5% fat while their ice cream counterparts ranges between 15 - 30%.

South & North is a gelato brand from the island of natural goodness - Okinawa. 

They're voted the best gelato in Okinawa, and is also the choice gelato in Tokyo Disneyland and Disneysea. 

What makes South & North unique is that the milk in their gelato comes from two different location: one from Yamakawa Natural Farm Milk in Hokkaido and the other from Miyahira Dairy Milk in Okinawa. Hence, the name South & North. 

To allow their customers to get a feel for Okinawan tradition, culture and history through their food, South & North makes their gelato using traditional confectionery and manufacturing methods of Okinawa. They also take great pride in producing the natural finest, visiting Okinawan farmers and producers to select the finest ingredients and preparing them the right way to ensure that their gelato reflects the flavour of the ingredients at their very best, with no artifical colourings or flavourings to enhance the taste. 

Unlike popular brands with local flavours like Gula Melaka, Milo, Salted Caramel or the usual hot favourites of Italian gelato like Pistachio and Chocolate, South & North uses natural flavours found in Okinawa, some of which might raise a few eyebrows; like bittergourd, but it's not yet made available in SG yet. 

Right to Left: Tarama Brown Sugar, Nuchi-masu Salt (Salty Milk), Red Tea from Oku, Kunigami (Black Tea)

Tarama Brown Sugar: Made in Tarama Village. This gelato offer a sweetness with a complex, mineral-rich finish.

Salty milk : Made using Nuchi masu salt. Seawater is drawn off the coast of Miyagi Island. This sea salt contain high in minerals and it can accentuated the creaminess of the milk flavor.

Red Tea : Made in Kunigami Village. A unique Okinawa tea leaves from Inzatsu Assam variety offer an full aroma character.

Right to Left: Matcha, Okinawan Tofu, Purple Sweet Potato

 Matcha : Using tea leaves from Shizouka Prefecture, this gelato has intense yet slightly bitter after-taste. Great for matcha lover who is looking for the real matcha “kick”.

Okinawan Tofu : Made in Nanho city. Okinawan tofu, being extremely high in protein, is often referred to as “longevity food”. The overall gelato is gently rich with the taste of Okinawa soybeans.

Purple Sweet Potato : From Yomitan village and Miyako island. The purple sweet potato is made into velvety paste before blending into the gelato. The overall taste combined a mild sweetness and intense sweet potato taste, like a puree. 

Green Shikwasa Sorbet

Made in Ogimi village. The tangy sweetness of the green fruit (very similar to lime) is surprising refreshing and fruity. 

Not on display: Ishigaki Cream Cheese and Meyer Lemon Yogurt.

Ishigaki Cream Cheese : Made in Ishigaki Island using milk from Jersey cows. It’s mild, yet refined.

Meyer Lemon yogurt : Meyer Lemon is a natural hybrid of lemon and orange. We made this into a unique yogurt as a suitable alternative after heavy dinner.

Out of the 9 flavours I've tried, there's a few that I liked at first bite. 

Matcha - Seriously, what's not to like about a good, rich tasting Matcha gelato with just the right amount of distinctive bitter aftertaste? Actually I wouldn't even call that bitterness, I'll just call it the 'tea taste'. 

Red Tea (Black Tea) - Well, if they've done a great job with Matcha, they shouldn't do the other tea badly, right? The taste of this flavour is both rich and yet subtle. Rich, because the tea fragrance is really strong and subtle, because the sweetness of the gelato is mild and pleasant. 

Salty Milk - The uniqueness of the salty, milky taste was quite pleasant. But having too much of it might 'tire out' the tastebuds (too jerlat).

Green Shikwasa Sorbet - Tangy, light and refreshing like a glass of ice cold calamansi drink, but without the unpleasant biting sensation on your tongue. 

As for the flavours that didn't go too well with my tastebuds, I guess it would be Okinawan Tofu and Cream Cheese. The latter, because I'm never a fan of cream cheese and the former, because it just taste like a mild-tasting soyabean milk and I really cannot stand the taste of it. 

Sorry, Okinawan Tofu, it's not you it's me. 

South & North doesn't have a permanent shop in Singapore yet, but they are in the mist of finalizing the location.

For now, they have a pop up store at Raffles Xchange (in front of TCC) and they will be selling their yummy gelato at only $4.90 per pre-packed cup until 29th July 2016.

Till then, 

Mia Foo

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Mia's Review: Alfero Artisan Gelato [Sponsored]

For those ladies out there who loves to indulge in an ice cream feast once in a while and yet lament over your newly added flabs, did you know that you can actually indulge in a more guilt-free alternative?

The astounding difference between Alfero Gelato and your usual ice cream! Mostly importantly, there's only 2 to 9% fat content compared to the #fatdieme 18 to 30% fat content in a normal ice cream. 

And that's Marco Alfero, owner and founder of Alfero Gelato, who came from Turin, Italy to Singapore in 2009 to deliver us this gelato heaven.

Alfero Artisan Gelato is prepared with a mixture of high quality ingredients – milk, cream, sugar, eggs, fruits, chocolate, nuts, etc. with a high nutritional value. Italian gelato contains less fat than ice cream, has less incorporated air and is served at a higher temperature (-11 degree Celsius). Our gelato provides a greater flavour experience because there is less fat that coats the tongue, more flavour per spoonful (due to less air), and the taste buds are more alive since the temperature is not so cold as to numb the sensitivity. The lower fat content also means fewer calories to burn. 

-credit to Alfero Gelato-

And I got to visit the branch located conveniently at a quiet corner of Marina Square level 2 for this small and cozy food-tasting session with fellow bloggers Finaldust, Hazel, Oyhz and Janel.

And I was pleasantly surprised to find out that they serve coffee as well!

 Macchiato

It comes in a really cute, small sized coffee cup and I felt rather dainty sipping it. Coffee wise, it was pretty good if you enjoy a bitter coffee. Somehow I felt that there's a slight sour aftertaste after I added in the sugar, so I'll probably go sugarless the next time I'm there.

Couldn't help but snap a  picture of the colourful selection of their English Tea from Gryphon Tea Company.

In order to achieve perfection during the conservation phase, a special cabinet called pozzetto is used to store the gelato, where no air and light contamination will affect the quality of the gelato. Marco strongly believes in serving only the best-tasting gelato, which is why he is the only man in Singapore who keeps his gelato covered while on display. 

And of course, this marks the start of our crazy photo-taking session, which truly is a race against time because the gelato melts so quickly! 

And there's Janel with her hugeass DSLR and Oyhz holding on to her pink Samsung camera, the mother of my Samsung NX Mini. *rofl*

The total 11 flavours we've tried from top left in clockwise direction:

Lemon, Bacio, Dark Chocolate, Yuzu, Strawberry Milk, Walnut, Pistachio (both nutty flavours were in a sorry state by then because they were the very first cup to be served), Mango, Durian, Avocado, Passionfruit.

Having tried all with the exception of Durian, I have to say that I really cannot decide on my favourite flavour. 

Despite being a chocolate lover, Dark Chocolate and Bacio, which tasted like Ferrero Rocher, somehow got a little bit 'common' in spite of the rich and creamy texture and I found myself getting addicted to the strong nutty fragrance of Pistachio and Walnut. It felt like I was munching on the roasted nut itself, albeit with a smooth and creamy texture in my mouth.

Strawberry Milk was surprisingly yummy as well, with a slight tangy flavour of fresh strawberry instead of the usual artificial flavouring we taste in the normal ice creams. 

And for ladies with a love for lighter, icy citrus flavours, you can't go wrong with any of the sorbets, with Yuzu, my personal favourite sorbet, and Mango winning the popularity vote at the table. 

Cendol Gelato Waffle

Yes, you saw it right. It's a cendol flavoured gelato, the brain-child of Marco after being introduced to the flavour of Gula Melaka. 

As I'm not a fan of cendol at all, I only took a test-bite of the gelato and found the flavour pretty mild and manageable. But for one who loves a good Cendol with flavours that pack a punch, this might be a little to bland for you, as mentioned by Hazel.

As for the waffle, in spite being pandan-infused, there wasn't much of the distinctive pandan fragrance, which might be a good thing as overpowering pandan flavour tends to be an acquired taste. They were also slightly crisp on the outside and fluffy on the inside, which makes the waffle itself a pretty good choice if you're craving for something more filling.

Brownie with Snow White Gelato

If you're wondering what's a Snow White flavour, it's actually just milk.
Rich milky taste with a smooth creamy texture, I can see that this will be one of the hot favourite for young children, and the generous glob of gelato really did make the dry and crumbly brownie more appetizing.

Alfero Artisan Gelato is located at:

Marina Square #02-226A/B 

81 MacPherson Lane #01-37

Orchard Gateway #B2-06

For more information, visit their website HERE

Till then,
Mia Foo

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