New dessert bar serving authentic gelato is wowing customers
Opening in 2019, Gelatos is a dessert parlour in Slough which specialises in homemade waffles, crepes, pancakes, cakes and of course gelato – over thirty flavours are made in the shop every day. With a funky interior design tailor-made for creating the perfect pictures for social media, it has hit the ground running as one of the best new dining destinations in Slough.
Owner Raj Sehera explains, “I love gelato, but there was nobody in the area selling that authentic Italian experience. To be able to do that, I realised I would need the authentic Italian equipment.” After careful research, he discovered Taylor UK, the British supplier of Frigomat, the Italian manufacturer of gelato/ice cream makers who have established a worldwide reputation for the quality of their equipment over the course of nearly half a century.
“I didn’t just want to buy the equipment, I also wanted to know exactly how it works,” says Raj. “Taylor were great, I was able to visit their HQ and they took the time to go through everything, letting me get hands-on experience. Being able to get an understanding of what the machines were capable of helped in terms of planning.”
The Frigomat range covers every step of the gelato/ice cream production process, with both separate and combined pasteurisers and batch freezers in a range of capacities. These range from worktop units capable of producing up to 15kg of product an hour, to the largest units capable of 60kg an hour. “We have thirty different flavours on the menu at the moment, freshly made every day,” says Raj. “So we needed equipment that would allow us to make that kind of variety and quantity.”
The gelato itself is made authentically, with a CH04 60 litre pasteuriser that is used to heat and prepare the gelato mix, and a C118 horizontal batch freezer with a maximum output of 35kg an hour. “They’re very simple to use,” says Raj. “We can set the process off, and the results will be the same every time, which lets our staff get on with other things.”
Hygiene and ease of cleaning were also huge factors in Raj’s choice of equipment. “Our entire business relies on the machines working well, but also being easy to keep clean. All of our machines get thoroughly cleaned every day, so it was vital that they’re easy to dismantle and reassemble.” Once the gelato is made for the day, it needs to be stored correctly. Taylor also supplies ISA’s range of display cabinets specially designed for frozen products. “They look fantastic,” says Raj. “We’re very happy with the displays, and their ability to have different temperature zones lets us keep all the products together without worrying that they’re not being stored correctly.”
The ISA range is available with a comprehensive selection of customisation options, some of which are in use at Gelatos. These include curved units, and undercounter refrigeration allowing for extra storage capacity. “That’s been very useful,” says Raj. “We’ve only opened recently, and we’ve been very busy – running out of product would make a pretty bad impression, luckily that’s not been an issue!”
The experience of working with Taylor has greatly impressed Raj. “Every step of the way, they’ve worked hard to take my ideas and find the best way of translating that to reality,” he says. “From the initial consulting and training, to the service and support after it was all installed, Taylor has been only too happy to provide all the help we could need.
“When you start any business, it’s a lot of hard work, but we made the right choice when we picked Taylor UK, the equipment’s easy to use and extremely reliable, so we can concentrate on delivering a memorable experience to our customers.”