Softville: We're Opening In New York
Softville opens 1st October at 137 Orchard Street, Lower East Side, New York.
We’ve been sitting on this one for a while.
Softville is our first place in North America, and it’s a partnership with Studio Jeremyville, the art and design behind the store mural characters you’ve been eating gelato underneath since 2006.
As you can tell by the name this is not a Messina store. It's got its own look and its own menu, and it’s as much an art space as a dessert one.
THE SPACE
2,500 square feet on Orchard Street, between Rivington and Delancey, behind the building’s original 1920s curved glass shopfront which you might recognise from the recent film Marty Supreme. It sits on a block with Perrotin, The Merchant, Wildair and Russ & Daughters, which is roughly the company you’d want to be keeping.
Inside, it looks like a gallery: sculpture and installations, collectible ceramics, designer objects, and exhibitions by Jeremyville and guest artists that will rotate through.
THE DESSERTS
Gelato soft serve, made properly. No pre-made mixes, no shortcuts, everything made from the best ingredients we can get our hands on, the same way we do things here in Australia.
The menu runs five permanent desserts and sundaes plus rotating specials, with sauces, crunches, baked bits and toppings all made on site. There are vegan options, and a create-your-own setup if you’d rather do it yourself.
Two from the opening menu:
Pavlova Sundae
Mango and yogurt soft serve swirl, baked meringue, raspberry gel, passionfruit gel, vanilla pudding and macerated strawberries.
Dulce con Churros
Dulce de leche soft serve, dulce flan, milk crumb, warm chocolate sauce, hot cinnamon churros and sea salt.
The kitchen is led by Eva Wintersteen, previously Executive Pastry Chef across the Il Buco restaurants and Head Chef at Supermoon Bakehouse, working alongside our Executive Chef Tom Mitchell, the same kitchen brain behind Messina and sister company Shadow Baking.
TL;DR 👀
🍦Softville is an art-led dessert store in New York with Studio Jeremyville
📍 137 Orchard Street in the Lower East Side
🗓️ Opens 1st October
✍️ Gelato soft serve made from scratch, five signature sundaes plus specials, and a gallery attached.
