Before he was affectionately dubbed Helensburgh’s Gelato Man, Massimo Bernardini lived in the picturesque town of Brescia, at the foot of the Alps in Lombardy, Italy.
Naturally, it was while growing up in Italy that Massimo discovered a love for authentic gelato. One summer holiday, however, he came down with a horrendous stomach ache after enjoying strawberry and chocolate gelato – which made him snub those flavours for 20 years. Suffice to say, Massimo’s customers today are glad he forgave strawberry and chocolate of their wrongdoings.
In 2000, with the intention of holidaying in Australia for six weeks, Massimo met his now-wife Emilie in the back bar of the former Bayswater Brasserie, and six weeks quickly turned into a year.
“Massimo was here travelling, and we just happened to be in the same place at the same time, and the rest is history,” Emilie said.
“We went and lived in Italy together for a while and came back here and got married in 2003… and have been living here since 2004.”
The couple were drawn to Helensburgh because of its proximity to both Sydney and the coast and settled here over a decade ago when Emilie was pregnant with their first child.
Massimo worked as a cabinetmaker for several years after emigrating to Australia. Then, no longer content with this career, he took a chance on the Carpigiani Gelato University course.
“They do these courses everywhere in the world and the one in Sydney was filled up, so I had to go to Melbourne because I really wanted to do it,” Massimo said.
“The teacher was the owner of Gelato Messina … so after I finished my course, I asked him if I could work for them [and] they said yes.”
After a year and a half at Gelato Messina’s flagship Sydney store, Massimo started producing his own gelato, selling it by the tub in his former cafe, Big Sister Horsie, and other restaurants around Helensburgh.
With its popularity exceeding expectation, Massimo made gelato-making his full-time gig, first with the Gelato Man cart – available for corporate, party, and wedding events – and then the Gelato Man Shop in February 2021.
“I always had a dream to open my own shop so I can really do my things, my creations and things like that, and Helensburgh is a great place,” he said.
As for the name, Emilie said the choice was clear.
“Whenever Massimo would turn up to an event with his cart, everyone would say ‘Oh look, there’s the Gelato Man!’,” she said.
Massimo said that what sets his gelato apart from commercial varieties is his use of high-quality local ingredients and the effort and consideration he puts into each batch.
“We don’t just make the ice-cream, we also make all the other things that go in with it,” Massimo said.
“It’s always very rewarding and inspirational to see people coming back all the time for more with the big smile on their face.
“It’s very good to see they’re always keen on trying a new flavour.”
Find The Gelato Man at 7b Walker St, Helensburgh and on Facebook