While Los Angeles has just about every type of food imaginable, there are certain items which never seem to translate. New York style pizza, for instance, tastes just a bit different, despite the best intentions of proprietors around the city. Maybe it's just a difference in the water or the flour for the dough; whatever it is, it may never be replicated on the west coast. Even Mexican food, while outstanding, is still L.A. Mexican food, and not exactly the real thing.

I had long ago designated Italian-style ice cream, or gelato, as a similar lost cause in the City of Angels. If you've ever been to the boot-shaped peninsula you know all about gelato and its addictive powers. It is truly the best ice cream in the world, made by craftsmen who have been perfecting their trade for decades.

The consistency is perfect: creamy, not too frozen, smooth on the tongue. The flavors are diverse and all delicious, from classics like strawberry (fragola) to hazelnut-laced chocolate variations such as chocolate chip (straciatella).

Be it the milk, the cream, the ice or the flavorings, for some reason it is nearly impossible to create gelato outside of Italy. At the very least you would need a trained Italian professional and as many ingredients from Italy as possible. Gelato Bar in Studio City makes good on these two requirements and comes as close as possible to the real thing.

The bar, which is styled after an Italian cafe, is stocked exclusively with Italian cups, plates, coffee machines, ice cream spoons, and everything else necessary to the operation. The ingredients for the gelato are all shipped in from Italy and everything is kept as Italian as possible until the very last step, when a Venice-born gelataio makes the gelato itself somewhere in the Valley.

The result is some incredible ice cream, easily the best I've ever had in the United States. It's as close to the real thing as you're likely to find here, and certainly worth a visit.

Speaking with the manager, she told me the difficulties found in trying to replicate the Italian style and flavor. Originally, she says, they tried to ship the ice cream straight in from Italy, but the cost was astronomical. Next, they tried to ship it from within the U.S. at a different location, but the consistency of the ice cream was lost in transit.

The only option left was to create it nearby with an Italian-born man doing the bulk of the work. At nearly $5 for a small cup, the attention to detail certainly shows in the price, but it is well worth the money, especially for the uninitiated.

There may not be a Colosseum outside, but with some delicious menta melting in your mouth, you won't want to be anywhere but Gelato Bar. Check them out at www.gelatobar-la.com

Gelato Bar
4342 1/2 Tujunga Avenue
Studio City, CA 91604

By Chris Boyd