Mr Goaty Gelato

After five years of Mr. Goaty being churned here daily on the Central Coast it is safe to say we are calling it our own.  Mr. Goaty Gelato is cult-like in its popularity and is just another brilliant endeavour based at Distillery Botanica, previously the Fragrant Gardens for those wondering why you are walking through a beautiful ornate iron archway that bears the name.

Mr. Goaty Gelato is as magical as the grounds it is created on daily.  Yep, daily. Speaking with Julia Hughes, she shares

“What people need to understand is about gelato just because it is a frozen product doesn’t mean it has a shelf life.  You should eat it within two days. You really do taste the difference when it is freshly made.  There is nowhere else on the Coast where you can get freshly churned gelato.”

Once you have tried the gelato you will know there is a slim chance this deliciousness is lasting more than two days!

When Dan Hughes’, Julia’s husband, business partner and previously a Chef at Three Blue Ducks, Bronte; started making gelato at the Erina kitchen he was purely a man with a van.  Mr.Goaty was found at festivals and events selling this all-natural, multi award winning Gelato!  The demand for the gelato grew exponentially and saw Mr. Goaty take up a permanent home in Dan & Julias’ café Bar Botanica.

When you enter the mud-brick venue you won’t find bright display case of gelato as it is housed in a more traditional way. A beautiful imported Italian gelato Pozzetti (refrigeration for Gelato) and is stored in perfectly tempered stainless-steel cylinders for Gelato – not ice-cream.  Gelato is served slightly warmer than ice-cream, so the texture is softer and smoother.  The reason being “ice-cream contains cream, usually from cows. Majority of ice-creams contain 10%-20% butter fat making it quite high in fat. ⁠Gelato on the other hand has a lower percentage of fat as it is traditionally made with milk only, which also means the flavours in gelato are normally much more intense than ice cream.” Mr. Goaty website.

So, as we are used to eating with eyes; with the visual aspect taken away we are enticed by the flavour combinations and they are amazing!  The concept of Garden to Gelato is the foundation of flavour creation at Mr.Goaty, with Dan using what is available in their on-site garden and seasonal produce in the local Central Coast food bowl, which allows for new flavour to be created every day!

Julia explains “Mr. Goaty has 60+ flavours, with new created flavours every day, which we can because we churn it fresh every morning.”

In the Garden-to-Gelato range we have flavours such as The Honeycomb & Lavender, Lemon Myrtle Macadamia and Turmeric & Orange are absolutely worth a second scoop as is their HAPPY HOUR gelato menu hosting a Ginlato which is made up of “the elements of juniper, wild lime, coriander and ingredients that go into the Moores Gin” Julia shares.

The Custom Creation you have the Matcha Mint Choc Chip and a Mr Black Double Espresso.  The Classic range includes the best-selling Vanilla Bean with flavour such as Butter Caramel, Stracciatella (fine chocolate chip) and we can’t skip the seasonal flavours with Silky Sorbet (Vegan) giving us the Strawberry & Finger Lime freshness.

With grass roots of Mr. Goaty being made with goats’ milk, this key ingredient still features with unique flavours such as Honeycomb & Lavender, Turmeric & Orange. 

You will see the Mr.Goaty van at special events and festivals, but know you only have to drift down the garden path to experience this unique and only daily churned Gelato on the Central Coast.