Kekou - Gelato in Asian Inspired Flavours

Sorry, ate some of the top before snapping! 

I was really tempted to get the whiskey green tea gelato (a combination that all karaoke-goers should know, lol), really, really tempted but alas, I opted for 2 other flavours to top my sugar cone.  I still had work to do, lol!

Kekou specializes in gelato with Asian inspired flavours and their first location on Baldwin was always talked about.  So, when they opened one on Queen West and Spadina, I knew I had to visit. I initially went in thinking I would get their roasted oolong tea gelato (hoping to find something reminisent of the strong tea flavoured ice cream I had in Taiwan), but because you can sample the flavours before purchase (very big plus!), I decided it was a little too sweet for me.  Would have preferred more tea and less sweet, but I could see it being very popular!

In the end, I chose the soursop and black sesame ice cream.  Yummy!  The soursop was sweet and slightly sour while the black sesame had good sesame/nutty flavour and although some people might not like the actual whole sesame seeds in the gelato, I was okay with it.

Service was friendly and they also have a stamp card.  Buy 9 gelatos and get a medium one free or buy 9 drinks and get one free.  And, they also have happy hour, Mon - Fri 3-5pm you get double stamps, sweet!  Oh, AND if you are looking to have other sweet treats or just a hot tea/beverage, all are quite reasonably priced.  My next visit just might involve a lot more than gelato!   

I was tempted to get the milk oolong tea (the only oolong on the menu) as this tea is actually a more unique tea and in Taiwan it is more commonly called "Jin Xuan" (金萱) which is one of the four major cultivars grown there. But, I was headed to Nohohon after.  Being a bit hung up about tea terminology (skip this is your not finicky about terminology), I did notice that when they described oolong tea, they said semi-fermented tea which is not the correct English term.  It is semi-oxidized because the leaf is being oxidized (like how an apple turns brown) rather than fermented which involves yeast or bacteria. In Taiwan, they still use the Chinese characters (發酵) which translates to "ferment" to describe the process, but that was how they historically described it so I can see how it is still used.  Anyway, just a small thing.

Space is quite open with lots of room for customers to stand and stare at the menu, or sample flavours or pay for their products.  There are also 3 large communal tables since eating gelato out in the cold especially during winter is, well..unlikely.  Overall, great place for gelato!

Kekou
394 Queen Street W.
Toronto, ON M5V 2A6
(416) 516-0637
www.kekou.ca