In Italy, a cafe is a place to socialize. It’s a place where people drink coffee, meet others with similar interests and talk about ways to better society. This is exactly what Mario Sommella, a native of Naples, Italy, hopes his new gelato shop, Caffe Romeo, will become in Charleston. “My goal is to try to recreate the authentic style [of] life in Italy,” Sommella said. “So that means the gelato or coffee shop, like with the pastry, is like the place — the meeting point.”

Sommella opened the shop near the end of June on Bridge Road, and his authentic ingredients and personality have already grabbed the attention and love of locals. Though its name directly translates to “ice cream” in Italian, gelato’s texture is different from traditional American ice cream. “The main difference is the gelato has less fat content, it’s less frozen and has less sugar,” Sommella said.