If you’ve been keeping your eye on the progress of James Street’s Ada Lane foodie precinct, you’ll have noticed that the culinary procession is starting with the dessert course. Coming hot on the heels of the opening of Jocelyn’s Provisions’ brand-new store is the anticipated arrival of Gelato Messina’s second Brisbane location. The Fortitude Valley site has arrived almost two years to the day since Gelato Messina’s South Brisbane parlour opened to the public, and though both locations are amply stocked with the brand’s coveted collection of creamy treats, the Fortitude Valley spot has a couple of eye-catching fixtures worth mentioning.

Sitting snugly in its Richards and Spence-designed tenancy, Gelato Messina Fortitude Valley has built the space with a slick Palm Springs aesthetic. The parlour boasts a pegboard menu, video projector, neon signage and a cushy bench for those that need to eat their selection then and there, but the biggest difference is the gelato cabinet. Gelato Messina has done away with heaped mounds of gelato and traditional pozzetti tubs, instead installing a trendy waist-high bench cabinet with glass tops for curious peering. Fortitude Valley is the second location to date to score these cabinets after Gelato Messina’s Braddon location. Naturally, the gelateria’s full range of gelato and sorbet can be found on-site, including a rotating selection of specials, shakes and cakes made from Messina Dairy’s full-cream jersey milk.

Gelato Messina Fortitude Valley is open now. Get all the extra details in the Stumble Guide.