Matteo Servente and Ryan Watt are peddling their gelato. Literally.
The Zio Matto Gelato owners recently bought a bicycle with an attached cart/cooler to help them sell their five-ounce gelato containers, which are already in area restaurants and markets.
“We had this idea of ‘How do we bring it to people as much as possible,’” says Servente. “The cart is such a visually iconic image in people’s minds.”
And, he says, “We could really use it to bring gelato to people for weddings, corporate events, whatever people might be interested in. It’s a great way to bring the gelato experience to your backyard or wherever you want it.”
Servente, who is from Torino, Italy, founded the business. “The name comes from my niece. When she was very little she couldn’t pronounce my name right. ‘Matteo’ was ‘Matto,’ which is ‘crazy,’ and ‘Zio’ is ‘uncle’ in Italian.”
Servente, a filmmaker and former Crosstown Arts resident artist, says Zio Matto is his main focus. “For many years I had been toying with the possibility of bringing some of these Italian treats to Memphis that I’m used to from growing up. Gelato became the obvious choice.”
He learned “the secret” to making gelato in Italy, and it seemed like the right treat to bring to “a place where the options of real, authentic gelato are not too many.”
Enter Watt, former Indie Memphis executive director. “Ryan and I have worked before in film and have known each other for years. We always had a good friendship and working relationship,” Servente says.
Before Indie Memphis, Watt owned a technology company at Emerge Memphis. “The challenge and excitement of growing something new is really what I get excited about,” he says.
“Gelato is not ice cream,” Servente explains. “It’s a part of the same family, but it’s a less fat version of ice cream. The texture is much silkier in ours and a little bit denser as opposed to the cold, almost icy, texture of ice cream. So, it kind of packs more flavor.
