Gelato-mania hits L.A.

It used to be hard to find a decent cup of gelato anywhere in L.A., except at the very respectable Al Gelato on Robertson. But seemingly overnight, it seems that gelato is everywhere. So far, the consensus seems to be that Massimo's in Venice is one of the best of the bunch -- I liked the pear and the espresso. Il Cono in Beverly Hills has one of the widest selections, with soy and sugar-free varieties available (although, why bother?). In more far-flung locations, there's Mrs. Freeze in Whittier and Hacienda Heights and the highly-touted Gelato Paradiso in Newport Beach. We haven't tried Gelato Italiano on Melrose yet. Eating L.A. stopped in at the new gelato bar at Monte Carlo Market in Burbank and we were unimpressed -- it seemed very runny and the flavors didn't seem clear, although the watermelon and lemon sorbettos were refreshing. It's not house made. The gelato bar at Whole Foods in Glendale is pretty good -- they sell the widely available Ciao Bella gelato, but it always seems to taste better when it's hand-scooped. The blood orange sorbetto and green tea flavors are nice. I've eaten quite a few vats of in gelato in Italy, though, and I have to say none of these places seem to quite capture the real essence of Italian gelato.