My daughter was largely built of gelato. While I was pregnant and for her first few months out of the womb we were living on the downtown mall and during that time Splendora's became my favorite local business. It was where I went to celebrate by myself the day I legally changed my name. It was where Matilde received one of her first nicknames (thanks to GM Kelly), and when Splendy's owner PK announced their amazing Pint Club - an awesome, exclusive flavor creation every month - I was all about it. Next time she's enrolling you should definitely sign up. Each month we receive an email detailing the inspiration and process of flavor creation and when we pick up our pint there's a free scoop of any flavor or a coffee included.
I've been to Splendora's dozens of times for a caffeine fix, to use their changing table, to buy bananas, to speak to another adult... so many reasons. Now that my daughter is in love with gelato it is a pleasure to share tiny spoonfuls together as we people-watch. They have comic books, coloring books, crayons and colored pencils! I am constantly entertained by the social media presence they keep (follow them both on Instagram and Facebook for serious farmers' market love, PK's adorable dog Gypsy and the shop's resident grabber-dino!), I admire and appreciate how they support other local businesses, I resonate with their politics, I have fun with their holiday decorations and PK's creativity, I am always impressed by the staff and I have never met a flavor of their gelato I didn't dig... even the weird ones.
Pro-tip: Members of the Virginia Discovery Museum get a free bambino cone with any purchase (i.e. latte for you).
