Business Q&A: Paciugo Gelato Offers Healthy, Exotic Treats by the Bay

ST. PETERSBURG - Toni and Carl Riche have owned and operated Paciugo Gelato & Caffe on Beach Drive in St. Petersburg since 2006. Their bright, spotless shop, with cafe tables and chairs out front, offers rich, handcrafted frozen Italian desserts.

Often there is a line out the door for such flavors as Amaretto Black Cherry Swirl, Mediterranean Sea Salt Caramel or Green Tea Chocolate Chip.

Paciugo makes dozens of flavors fresh each morning, and the display area can only be properly appreciated in person. A mind-boggling array of items – some not typically associated with frozen treats, such as balsamic vinegar or violets – are used in the creations.

The tastes are amazing, as Carl was generous to offer servings as he gave the grand tour of the products and their creation on a recent morning.

The owners emphasize the ingredients that they do not use, as well as the all-natural and fresh products that are infued in their milk-based gelato and water-based sorbets. There are no artificial flavorings or preservatives in the desserts, no trans fat or corn syrup. 

Toni and Carl opened what was then the second franchise of Paciugo, which now boasts more than 40 stores around the country. Not surprisingly, the company has its roots in Italy.

Toni, originally from Melbourne, Florida, and Carl, originally from Louisiana, operate at 300 Beach Drive across from the Museum of Fine Arts, from 7 a.m. to 10 p.m. Sunday through Thursday and until 11 p.m. on Friday and Saturday.

You may wonder why they open so early. In addition to delicious frozen desserts, they also sell strong Italian coffee. It is not unusual to see someone sipping their espresso with a dollop of gelato.

The company has 18 employees and looks forward to the future serving gelato on the bay.

Q. How has the location worked for you?

A. I love it, because you're looking out at the bay. We've got a place where people can go and sit and talk, turn off the computer and have an espresso, a cappuccino, a latte, a little gelati, and just have a good afternoon, a good evening and slow down, the Italian way.

Q. Can you describe one of the flavors?

A. Here is the Three Vanilla (Tre Vaniglie). The beans come from Madagascar, Tahiti and Mexico – the best vanillas in the world. The good thing is we make it fresh here, so there's no preservatives, no corn syrup. If you look at the label on ice cream in a grocery store, there are all these preservatives, all this junk in it. This has none of that. It's 70 percent less butterfat, so it's a lot more healthy for you. An average cup is about 150 calories, not a whole lot more than a Coca Cola, so it's a lot better for you.

Q. You serve a violet gelato?

A.  The Viola is made from fresh cut Bulgarian violet petals. People either like that one or they don't. There's not much in between, and you don't find it in the United States much.

Q. Can you describe the sorbets?

A. We have three sorbets today, which are fresh fruit and water-based. There are about 110 calories in a typical (3.5 oz.) cup. One is Strawberry Balsamic Vinegar sorbet and we have Mango. You can actually taste the strands of mango because it's made with the real stuff, not just an extract.

Q. What does the business name refer to?

A. Paciugo is Italian, and it means "messy concoction." So we make it here in the back and we make a mess.

Q. You serve coffee, too?

A. South Africa bean coffee. A South Africa bean is a little more fruity flavor and a South America bean is a little more earthy. They're both a fruit and the fruit falls off and you've got the coffee bean but the way it's grown you've got a little more fruity flavor with the South Africa bean and that's what we have.

Q. What did you do before you came to St. Petersburg?

A. I started at Walmart in 1974, when there were 87 Walmart stores. I opened the very first Sam's Club so I'm the founding father of Sam's. I managed the first Sam's Club, then I was the director of operations for them in the Dallas-Fort Worth area. Eventually I decided to retire, and this is a fun thing. We're happy. Toni has 51 percent and I have 49 so it's a female-owned business.