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South Phillyans may have already noticed the Capogiro sign on Passyunk between Tasker and Morris, right down the street from Cantina.  I first saw it about two weeks ago and just about lost my knickers.  Some dear readers are well aware that ice cream is my all-time favorite food, and that, of course, includes gelato.  Last night some neighborhoodies and I tried out the new location and it is seriously adorable.  Located inside an old rowhome, the owners have really run with the homey vibe: soft blue walls, gold accents, framed family photos covering the walls.  I treated myself to a sugar cone of pistachio and bacio gelato.  Bacio is Italian for ‘kiss’ and also happens to be my favorite candy on the planet.  Almost like an Italian Hershey’s Kiss, Perugina’s Baci (if you have speakers on your computer, you might want to turn the volume down a bit before clicking that link) is a hazelnut coated in a blanket of hazelnut chocolate then smothered in plain chocolate.  IT’S GOOOOOD.  So you can imagine the gelato version was beyond fantastic.  The Passyunk Scoop Shop, as they’re calling it,  also serves coffee and espresso and has a serious-looking espresso machine in the front window.  I didn’t realize that they served more than gelato, and indeed they had cookies, biscotti, and really tempting looking marshmallows and other assorted treats on display.  The Capogiro folks are also opening a location on Penn’s campus soon – then I’ll really be in trouble.

Another recent addition to my neighborhood (Newbold) is Ultimo coffee shop (which I’ve been mistakenly calling Brew for weeks now).  Co-owned by the people behind the South Philly Tap Room, the shop owners are for real about coffee and serving fresh, local, high-quality products.  Located on the corner of 15th and Mifflin, Ultimo features a number of different brews daily at different price points,  and works with Counter Culture Coffee.  Their pastry case serves a few different kinds of croissants (almond creme, chocolate, plain) care of Four Worlds Bakery, and instead of boring old bagels they have a multi-grain baguette that you can get with your choice of butter, peach butter, or chevre (available from Green Meadow Farm and Apple Tree Goat Dairy, respectively).  They also feature sandwiches: on Saturday they had tapenade, arugula, and chevre on a baguette.  It looked ultra fresh and tasty.  Word on the street is that they’ll be selling bottled beers as well, once their liquor license comes through.  The inside seating area is a bit wonky and tight – right now there are a few tables outside, but it will be interesting to see what happens come fall/winter.  Either way, a bustling coffee shop is just what Newbold needs right now.  During the short time I was there I saw families, older residents, hipster kids, construction workers, you name it.  Patrons at the two tables next to me struck up an immediate rapport and conversation over coffee, croissant, and some smokes.  It really felt nice to see the ‘hood coming together like that, even if it was just for coffee.

(No pictures of either because I left my camera home both times.  Duh.)