CioccolatItaliani: The Finest Italian Cafe in Town

While Ed and I were having our usual weekend date night at Dubai Festival City, a newly opened cafe  along the Canal Walk caught our attention. CioccolatItaliani  is a famous upscale cafe in Italy that serves contemporary Italian dishes and desserts. I can tell, the lovers of Italian cuisine and the chocolate connoisseurs are very pleased to welcome CioccolatItaliani to Dubai's dining scene. CioccolatItaliani sounds so sweet and so chocolatey. Aside from the catchy name, the cafe looks elegant and very inviting! 

CioccolatItaliani at Dubai Festival City

I couldn't keep my eyes off the small room at the corner of the cafe. It has two of my favorite words plastered on it: gelato (my guilty pleasure) and laboratorio (I am a Medical Laboratory Technologist by profession)! Yep, CioccolatItaliani has its own gelato laboratory! We also couldn't resist the sight of the chocolate bars at the opposite corner, so there was nowhere left to go but inside!

chocolate slabs at 300 AED/kg and chocolate bars at 30 AED

The most amazing Laboratory I have ever seen! :)

There is a display of Italian desserts at the counter. There are fountains in where melted chocolates flow endlessly! Everything looks sinful, but I was in chocolate heaven and I didn't care.  I was torn between gelato and pastries, while my husband suggested that we should have brioche, a soft pastry filled with chocolate. As I often rely on him when it comes to Italian cuisine, I agreed on his choice. Gelato can wait! :)  

cakes at the counter

fountains of melted chocolate: LATTE FUSO or milk chocolate , BIANCO FUSO or white chocolate,
NERO FUSO or dark chocolate

We ordered Colmato Con Fuso; soft and warm, freshly baked brioche with melted dark chocolate and whipped cream! It was so yummy! I had all my thoughts on the goodness of the heavenly dessert that I didn't know how the rich chocolate dripped on my fingers and even on the table. Grrr, messy and sticky, but who cares? 

Colmato Con Fuso

We had our coffee in Italian sizes. Ed had Marocchino Freddo; a drink made of iced chocolate, iced coffee and ice cream. I had Cappuccino Biancofuso; cappuccino with melted white chocolate. I didn't know Italian size means "super mini size". Hahah! I consumed my cappuccino in less than 5 gulps; quite expensive for its size, yet it left me with full satisfaction. And I couldn't help but notice the melted white chocolate that was left at the bottom of my cup. I had to spoon out and relish the lusciously sweet and creamy biancofuso! 

Marocchino Freddo

Cappuccino Biancofuso

Me and my tiny cup of coffee with white chocolate 

With the steep prices, I said that CioccolatItaliani can never be our regular coffee place. But when we had another date night at DFC a couple of weeks ago, we were drawn once again to the Italian coffee shop! Without a doubt, I fulfilled a self-promise and immediately ordered crepe with gelato!

The wait staff who took our order was extra friendly. He had a little chitchat with my husband about CioccolatItaliani and his training in Italy. So, there I was, trying to understand a conversation between two Filipinos who can speak Italian! Anyhow, kudos to him for knowing every details about his work, such a good role model to everyone who works in the F&B industry!

For my crepe, the wait staff said that I can have it filled with three gelato flavors, melted chocolate and nuts. An over-filled crepe seems to be delightful, however I always love to have it simple. I want to relish the taste of the crepe itself. I don't want it to be overpowered with fillings and toppings! So, I chose two gelato flavors; white chocolate and hazelnut, melted dark and milk chocolate to drizzle on top, and of course it wouldn't be complete without whipped cream.

My crepe was served in a lovely arrangement, too pretty that I spent a minute or two taking pictures of it.  I knew I had to stop when I noticed the gelato was already melting! It was the best tasting crepe I ever had. The gelato has an authentic taste; rich, creamy and milky with a very fine texture! The crepe and gelato were a perfect match, I didn't feel the need to top it with chocolate and cream. Two thumbs up!            

Crepe con Gelato

Along with my heavenly crepe, I had Latte Machiato Freddo; cold milk with iced coffee. It looks simple, but tastes perfectly good, not too sweet for my liking. Ed, on the other hand, selected from the chocolate menu. When he said that he wants Cioccolata Calda Con Nicciole, I was puzzled, yet too excited to see what it is! Then, I was dumbfounded when the wait staff handed over his chosen drink. It was a tiny cup of thick hot chocolate with whole hazelnuts on top! Uh-oh, I felt jealousy took over me. With my reaction, my husband immediately knew that I want some. :) It was a drink made from chocolate wonderland; thick, rich and so gratifying!  

Cioccolata Calda Con Nicciole

Latte Machiatto Freddo

As I have said, everything's quite expensive, but believe me, it's worth every Dirham! Here are some photos of CioccolatItalianni's menu: 

What we had:
-first visit-

Cappuccino Con Fuso: 22AED
Marochinno Freddo: 24 AED
Colmato Con Fuso: 25 AED
additional whipped cream: 5 AED
Aqua Panna: 12 AED
-second visit-
Latte Macchiato Freddo: 20 AED
Cioccolata Calda Con Nocciole: 28 AED
Crepe con Gelato: 30 AED

Location:

CioccolatItaliani

Canal Walk

Dubai Festival City