Thursday, October 22, 2015

Italian ice cream in Israel

There is quite a resemblance between Hadassa Hospital (which is where I underwent the ENG test) and the airport. The car park is a fair distance from the hospital itself but is also at a much lower altitude (the hospital is on the top of a hill whereas the car park is halfway up the hill). There is a shuttle bus which collects people from the car park and drops them off at different places around the hospital. Until ten years ago, people used to enter the hospital directly, but then a new entrance building was erected; this houses several shops and cafes. An underground pathway leads from this building to the hospital itself, making it very difficult to orientate oneself in relation to the above ground hospital. A series of tunnels branching from a general entrance hall led to a lift which brought us to a more familiar location; getting from there to the room where the ENG test is conducted was fairly easy.

After the test was completed, we made the return journey, this time stopping in the shopping mall situated in the entrance building. As I wrote before, I was feeling a little washed out and was thinking that maybe a cup of tea would be a good answer – although the chances of having tea as I like it were low. I then spotted a shop which provided an alternative answer: Aldo Italian Ice Cream. They were serving (amongst other flavours) the mint ice cream that I like (I tasted a sample before buying); the flavour is peppermint and not pistachio! The server informed me that although the cream is sourced locally, all the flavouring concentrates are sent from Italy. This explains why the taste was as good as what I have eaten before in Monterosso or Sorrento.

The ice cream was divine, although I should note that there were pieces of chocolate dispersed within and that chocolate was of low quality. As I assumed that I wouldn't be returning to the hospital  in the near future, I decided to take advantage of the opportunity and buy a kilo of this excellent ice cream (the server tried to include as little chocolate as possible). When we got home, I immediately stored the ice cream in the freezer then checked the Internet to discover that not only does Aldo have about thirty branches in Israel, it also has one in Bet Shemesh, albeit in a shopping mall which I don't normally visit. Obviously I don't get out enough.

Now I know where I can get a fix of Italian ice cream, should ever the need arise. 


[Edit: As opposed to what I wrote above, it transpires that the local branch of Aldo is situated in the mall which I do visit - but in the food court, a part where I never go].

[A much later edit: every branch of Aldo operates on its own, although each gets raw materials from the same source. Each branch is at liberty to sell the flavours which it thinks will sell - which is why the Bet Shemesh branch does not sell peppermint ice cream. I have to wait for an annual visit to Hadassa in order to stock up.]

[SO: 4002; 3,17,38]

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