Popbar

Often, my schedule is so hectic, I don't even remember if I'm coming or going.  I try to enter everything into my Google Calendar, but even with that, I still forget.  So when Emily suggested we go check out the new Popbar at Metropolis on their grand opening, I put it into the back of my mind.  She sent me a link to sign up for the tasting, which I ignored...  Well, it really didn't matter as she signed me up anyways!  Who needs Google Calendar when you have someone arranging your schedule for you...

Well, we were joined by Kim, which helped us sample 12 different flavours.  We kicked things off with the Strawberry Yogurt (dipped in dark chocolate), Pistachio (dipped in milk chocolate and pistachios) and Hazelnut (dipped in milk chocolate and hazelnuts).  Creamy, thick and not overly sweet, the strawberry yogurt was good and the half-dip of chocolate went well with the fruitiness.  Also thick and rich, the pistachio was aromatic with only a mild sweetness.  The addition of more nuts on the outside only served to heighten the flavours.  Although the hazelnut was also creamy and smooth, it was not as impactful as the other 2.

Heading back for more we got the Gianduia (dipped in milk chocolate and hazelnuts), Blood Orange (with white chocolate drizzle) and Mango (dipped in dark chocolate).  For me, my favourite flavour was the Gianduia since it was creamy, chocolatey and nutty in a balanced manner.  Of course the coating of chocolate and hazelnuts only served to make it taste and eat like a Ferraro Rocher.  Equally tasty, the blood orange had a burst of sweet and tanginess.  Being a sorbetto, it was lighter and more refreshing.  We were universally not impressed with the mango as it didn't have much flavour and lacked the aroma associated with the fruit.  Maybe because it is not in season?

Reluctantly, I went back (with Emily dragging me) to sample the Peanut Butter (dipped in milk chocolate and peanuts), Coconut (dipped in dark chocolate and coconut), Vanilla (dipped in milk chocolate and pisatchios) and Peach (with white chocolate drizzle).  Not far behind the gianduia and blood orange, we found the peanut butter very good as well.  It was rich and creamy with the aromatics of roasted peanuts.  I personally didn't like the coconut as it was bland in my opinion.  Furthermore, the coconut on the outside should've been toasted in my opinion.  Equally meh was the vanilla (even with the coating) as it didn't taste like its namesake.  They should ramp up the vanilla bean in this one.  We didn't actually try the peach ourselves, so I won't comment on it.

By now I was done, but Emily insisted we try 3 more in the Strawberry Sorbetto, Wildberry Sorbetto and Green Tea.  Similar to the yogurt version, but lighter and without milk products, the strawberry tasted like the fruit with purposeful sweetness.  The same could be said about the wildberry as it did taste like a medley of berries while not being overly icy.  We ended off with the green tea which did taste as such with a definite aftertaste that wasn't bitter.  As with the rest of the gelato bars, it was creamy and rich.  Okay, for some people, I'm sure dropping $4.00 on a popsicle (no matter the quality and customization options) is a bit steep.  But consider that Purdy's is around the same price and a scoop of gourmet ice cream or gelato will cost your $5.00 around town, this doesn't seem so bad after all.

*All popsicles were complimentary*

The Good:
- Creamy, firm and rich texture for the gelato
- Lots of customization options
- Not too sweet

The Bad:
- Even after what I said, it is still $4.00
- Not sure why they try to coat the bars with nuts before dipping it into chocolate...