Gelato Overtakes Pastries as Brits’ Go-To Treat, New Data Reveals
Gelato overtakes pastries: To mark the occasion, Badianihas revealed its first-ever trends report. The report highlights how changing routines and consumer behaviours are reshaping snacking habits, from lunchtime treats to mid-afternoon breaks.
The classics are the favourite
When it comes to the nation’s favourite gelato flavours, the trend report highlights that most of us tend to stick to our trusted favourites, with the majority of consumers repurchasing flavours they have tried before.
With over 100 flavours to choose from, and up to 24 available in some shops at any one time, the ones that make Badiani’s top 10 are Buontalenti Pistachio, La Dolcevita, Buontalenti, Stracciatella, Dark Chocolate Venezuela, Milk Chocolate, Salted Caramel, Hazelnut, Strawberry, and Mint Choc Chip, with the Italian classics leading the way. Badiani’ssignature flavour, the Buontalenti, is a year-round bestseller. Named after the Florentine inventor of gelato, it is made of just cream, milk, sugar and eggs. Stracciatella and Pistachio are also a popular choice.
Stracciatella, a creamy gelato filled with fine, crunchy shards of dark chocolate, happens to be the favourite flavour of Badiani’s founder, Paolo Pomposi, which he often enjoyed as a child. It then comes as no surprise that 85% of consumers say familiar or comforting flavours most influence their choices, showing consumers are eager to re-experience their childhood favourite flavours time and time again.
Flavour Trends
Consumers are also often tempted by new and exciting seasonal flavours, such as the Hot Cross Bun gelato evident from high engagement on social media, selling out in less than a week. This reveals that while the nation has personal lifelong favourite flavours, consumers are always curious to try something which is only available for a limited amount of time. This reveals that while the nation has personal lifelong favourite flavours, consumers are always curious to try something which is only available for a limited amount of time.
In 2025, Dubai Chocolate, chocolate with an indulgent pistachio and pastry filling, became so popular from a single viral TikTok video that 2.5 million bars were sold in the UAE in the first half of the year alone. It made headlines, received millions of views across social media, and even caused an international shortage of pistachios. Badiani’s own Dubai Chocolate Pistachio flavour became an immediate favourite amongst customers. The limited editionflavour sold out almost completely within just two days, underlining both the power of viral food trends and the continued demand for pistachio-led indulgence.
However, Pistachio has always been a long-standing classic Italian gelato flavour, with versions of the sweet treat dating back centuries. Despite pistachios’ huge surge in popularity deemed a fad by some, its global appeal continues to grow year on year. Badiani sells more of this flavour with every year that passes as customers become more adventurous and pistachio gains greater prominence, showing that it seems the nation’s love for its creamy flavour is here to stay. Whether this is due to the global influence of the Dubai Chocolate trend, or consumers’ renewed interest in classic nostalgic flavours, it remains the fastest growing flavour at Badiani.
Gelato is overtaking croissants for the first time
The afternoon ‘coffee and a sweet treat’ in the office is here to stay, but pastries may be taking a back seat. Badiani, which also offers a selection of pastries, waffles, crepes and seasonal cakes, are finding gelato sales are overtaking their pastries for working professionals. Compared to stores in more residential locations like Hampstead, which perform best at the weekend, Canary Wharf, home to 250,000 office workers, is the store which performs consistently well, even on weekdays. Gelato is often ordered to the office, enjoyed as a lunchtime treat, and is the perfect afternoon pick me up. Conveniently served in a cup with a spoon, with an everchanging variety of options to pick from day to day, gelato makes a refreshing sweet treat compared to a pastry and comes with significantly less crumbs!
The family’s favourite time for gelato is 3pm
Badiani has seen a clear shift in when and how customers engage with gelato, as the traditional evening indulgence evolves into a new family-led ritual built around the school run. Weekday footfall now spikes from 3pm onwards, with weekends remaining the strongest period, driven by a mix of families, couples, and solo customers depending on the time of day. This post-school window has become a key social moment, where parents and children alike are building gelato into their daily routines, creating a shared pause in the day that fosters community and familial closeness. Customers can also benefit from the Embargo loyalty card, which rewards repeat visits through a stamp-based system linked to spend.
This emerging trend reflects a broader shift. As traditional sit-down occasions become less frequent, families are seeking new experiences that offer the same shared pause. Gelato is the perfect choice for this, as a low commitment outing that still delivers on quality and enjoyment while promoting togetherness. Rather than reserving indulgence for formal desserts, families are now opting for something more flexible and spontaneous, that fits seamlessly between school, work and home life.
In terms of ordering behaviour, there’s a clear generational split. While children tend to gravitate towards familiar, comforting flavours (such as the signature Buontalenti) they’re also drawn to the more playful and visually exciting serves like mango or strawberry sorbet. Parents, however, are more inclined to opt for classic or premium flavours, including the famous Stracciatella, Coffee or the ever-trending Pistachio.
Gelato has become a year-round treat
Gelato is no longer just a summer indulgence. Data from Badiani shows it accounts for over 79% of total sales even in winter, demonstrating its evolution into a daily or monthly treat that transcends weather. Seasonal autumn and winter flavours such as Mince Pie, Pumpkin Spice and Chocolate Orange are among the brand’s bestsellers, while festive classics like Panettone and Pandoro see customers returning year after year. Together, they highlight gelato’s growing appeal as an alternative to traditional winter desserts.
However, seasonal shifts are less about whether customers are buying gelato, and more about how they are enjoying it and which flavours they gravitate towards. In winter, gelato consumption remains strong, reflecting a broader trend of indulgent desserts providing emotional comfort. Richer, creamier flavours such as Buontalenti, Buontalenti Pistachio, La Dolcevita and Chocolate become especially popular during the colder months, as customers lean into more indulgent choices.
Takeout boxes see a spike in October and January as customers enjoy gelato at home, making it a cosy, shareable treat. While smaller indulgences, such as the range of Pinguinos available (Badiani’s gelato on a stick dipped in chocolate), become January bestsellers, acting as “mood-boosting” treats that help counter the darker, colder months. This aligns with a shift in consumer behaviour, where cold desserts are increasingly appreciated for their emotional and sensory appeal, offering small moments of reward, nostalgia, and enjoyment, even when the weather is chilly.
Customer behaviour from Badiani’s loyalty programme further underscores this year-round appeal. Members visit on average once per month during winter, rising to two and a half times per month in summer, while engagement with the free gelato offer via the Embargo app has generated 18,457 claims to date. These patterns highlight that winter consumption is not just residual, it represents an opportunity to engage consumers with comforting flavours, shareable formats, and indulgent moments that fit their routines and emotional needs.
Together, these insights highlight a clear shift in consumer habits: gelato is no longer dictated by the weather, but instead embraced as an everyday treat, offering winter comfort and mood-boosting treats alongside summer refreshment and enjoyment.
Future trend spotting
Social media trends and TikTok have heightened creativity within the dessert space, and consumers are growing ever more experimental with the variety of flavours they expect from brands. Badiani’s taster pots facilitate this experimentation, allowing customers to try new and unique flavours in formats they recognise. Namely, Badiani has seen a huge uptake in savoury and exotic flavours. Matcha has taken the world by storm, with the category experiencing a 114% increase in sales from 2024–2025, and more than half of under 35s claiming to have consumed the drink recently. This boom has caused many brands to formulate new recipes, utilising the flavour in unexpected ways, including Badiani, which last year did both a vegan and dairy Matcha flavour to strong customer demand. The brand also introduced a special Matcha Affogato range, allowing customers to pair it with coffee or a shot of matcha in a variety of ways, further tapping into the trend for customisable and elevated dessert experiences.
FoodService Equipment Journal reports that 53% of consumers say that sweet and savoury flavour combinations appeal to them. In light of this, Badiani has observed a new wave of product development that blends classic desserts with savoury elements, reflecting a growing appetite for more complex flavour profiles. Badiani have explored savoury flavours in their Savoury Gelato Tasting which explored flavours such as Tomato, Olive Patè and Cacio e Pepe.
In parallel, desserts are becoming more about the overall experience, rather than just flavour. Consumers are seeking novelty, theatre and shareability, often driven by social media. This has led to the rise of visually striking, unexpected and interactive dessert formats that offer something beyond taste. Diners want more than to enjoy delicious food, they want to create one-of-a-kind memories while doing so. From something as simple as customisable, BYO desserts, to limited time drops and strategic partnerships, these approaches give the consumer autonomy and can create a much stronger connection to the brand. This can be seen withinthe rising number of community events such as Wahaca’s run club or Franco Manca’s ‘Map my Pizza Run.’ Both of these activations tap into wellness spaces, which can open doors to a new demographic who may not have engaged with the brand previously.
