Meet Alessandro Restelli | Gelato maker

We had the good fortune of connecting with Alessandro Restelli and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Alessandro, how has your background shaped the person you are today?
We are from Italy and Mexico, different countries but both sharing a culture for real artisanal food and work, all the hard labor behind a meal is never underestimated and we celebrate the uniqueness of all the ingredients and techniques used, that have been passing through generations. Sometimes we talked about how “spoiled” we are with food, we were raised under a very high level of fresh ingredients and it just made us appreciate more every single one. When we are creating new gelato recipes we go for simple ingredients and try showcasing them in their most simple form so anyone who tastes them in the second they have them can immediately identify the flavor. Starting our own business we have no questions about what we wanted, we were sure we wanted to bring that artisanal feeling to LA, in a world where everything is starting to be automated or cutting corners, it’s almost a rebellious act to make something by your own hands. We respect the traditional recipes we were thought and we will never change them as they are part of our identity.

Can you give our readers an introduction to your business? Maybe you can share a bit about what you do and what sets you apart from others?
We are proud of all the hard work we have invested in Ecco un Poco, it’s been a tough year and there were times we thought we wouldn’t make it, but thankfully the community around us helped us supporting our business, everybody was super supportive sending us positive messages to keep going on and we are very happy we have such great neighbors. Coming from abroad it feels like we have found our family right here on W 3rd St, we love talking to our neighbors and they even suggest flavors to us and get excited when they see their own recommendations in the menu.

Our small gelateria is proudly a family owned business, we are a young couple and have huge support from our family, it’s a dream come true to make gelato as a living, it’s almost like playtime every time we are in the kitchen or designing recipes, we do take it seriously but gelato tasting is definitely one of the best parts of the job.

Having our own business is definitely a challenge, it’s just us two here in LA, so our family and friends in Italy can’t help us with daily hardships, this past year we have been working non stop seven days a week to keep the shop open, we couldn’t take a rest day, but seeing our shop open today after all the hardships of this past year makes it all worth it.

At Ecco un Poco we make real Italian gelato, all natural, we weight every single ingredient, nothing comes from a premix bag, and every flavor has its own unique recipe as it should be. We work with traditional Italian recipes, but we do sometimes like making more unusual flavors, we like delivering an authentic Italian experience right here in the heart of LA.

If you had a friend visiting you, what are some of the local spots you’d want to take them around to?
I’ll start with a visit to The Grove, get a cup of coffee and look around the place to walk up to the Original Farmers’ Market, you can get a quick bite or a snack for the way as we would keep walking on 3rd Street to some good places to eat. My first recommendation will be “Oste”, they make Roman cuisine (not Italian but specifically Roman!) and their pinsa is light and oh so authentic! I recommend it as an Italian myself. But when I get family visiting from Italy, I love to make them try a real American barbecue experience, so still in the same street you can find “The Slab”, great barbecue and sandwiches, enough food to make a huge party satisfied… if you keep going on the street right before grabbing a gelato at our place, you can find “Chicas”, the taco place looks super cool and it’s a fun-laid back spot to have some tacos and margaritas. A little over a block from our place is “No. 10”, an Italian restaurant that we absolutely love, I recommend having some of their cool cocktails to freshen up right before finishing the 3rd St tour at the Beverly Center.

Who else deserves some credit and recognition?
The person who deserves a lot of credit is Vetulio Bondi, one of the best gelato masters in Italy and probably the whole world, who I have the honor to call my mentor and friend. He taught me everything I know about gelato, how to enjoy my time in the kitchen and to have always a smile on my face. I will call him any day with any question or doubt and he will pick up the phone no matter in which corner of the world he is. I wouldn’t be a gelato maker this happy with my work if it wasn’t for him.

Website: https://www.eccounpoco.com/homepage

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/eccounpoco/

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/eccounpoco/

Yelp: https://www.yelp.com/biz/ecco-un-poco-natural-italian-gelato-los-angeles