Dolcezza Gelato & Coffee Company

What Dolcezza Gelato & Coffee Company does

Dolcezza Gelato & Coffee Company (legal entity Dolcezza Gelato Pints LLC) is a privately held, founder-owned artisan gelato and specialty coffee operator headquartered in Washington, DC. Founded by Robb Duncan and Violeta Edelman after a 2000 trip to Buenos Aires, the company opened its first shop in Georgetown in July 2004 and has since grown to eight retail locations across the DC metro area, including Bethesda Row, Dupont Circle, CityCenterDC, H Street, the Hirshhorn Museum on the Smithsonian Mall, and two concepts at Mosaic District in Fairfax, Virginia. All gelato and sorbetto is produced fresh every morning in small batches at the Gelato Factory & Coffee Lab, a converted flower warehouse behind Union Market, with most ingredients sourced within a 100-mile radius from a curated network of regional farmers including Keswick Creamery, Perrydell Farm, Westmoreland Berry Farm, Toigo Orchards, Potomac Vegetable Farms, S&S Maple Camp, and Tree and Leaf Farm. The coffee program is built around a collaboration with Sey Coffee Roasters (Unido), featuring rotating single-origin beans and Hunapu espresso grown in Antigua, Guatemala, brewed on Chemex and Fetco systems with ModBar equipment at select locations.

The company's revenue model is multi-stream: direct-to-consumer retail gelato, sorbetto, and coffee sales through company-owned shops and downtown farmers' markets; a B2B wholesale program supplying restaurants, hotels, and catering establishments with gelato at $50/gallon and sorbetto at $55/gallon on Net 15 payment terms; a catering and events business with a dedicated contact channel; and nationwide e-commerce shipping of gelato pints via the Goldbelly marketplace. Distribution extends through third-party delivery platforms (Grubhub, Caviar, DoorDash, Uber Eats) and the Toasttab online ordering and gift-card platform. The company has raised approximately $3.28M across four funding rounds between 2017 and 2020, with K Street Capital as the primary institutional investor, and is recognized through editorial coverage from Saveur, Bon Appetit, Wall Street Journal, New York Times, Eater DC, and The Guardian, plus four consecutive Best Gelato in DC awards from Washington City Paper.

Name

Dolcezza Gelato & Coffee Company

Legal name

Dolcezza Gelato Pints LLC

Website

https://dolcezzagelato.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

2004

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

Dolcezza Gelato & Coffee Company is a founder-owned artisan gelato and specialty coffee operator producing small-batch, locally sourced gelato daily in Washington, DC, serving consumers across eight DC metro retail shops, plus wholesale, catering, and nationwide shipping via Goldbelly.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Artisan Gelato & Specialty Coffee

NAICS

Ice Cream and Frozen Dessert Manufacturing (311520), Coffee and Tea Manufacturing (311920)

SIC

Ice Cream & Frozen Desserts (2024), Beverages (2080), Food And Kindred Products (2000)

akta.pro primary industry

Ice Cream & Gelato Shops (THAFAGAA)

akta.pro secondary industries

Gelato Manufacturing (AFAHAEAD), Specialty Coffee & Tea Retail (Beans, Leaves, Accessories) (CRAHAGAI), Specialty Coffee Adjacent Beverage Bars (Chai, Cacao, Alternative Lattes) (THAFAKAH)

Keywords

• Artisan gelato
• Specialty coffee
• Small batch frozen desserts
• Wholesale gelato supply
• Farm-to-table desserts

Headquarters

HQ city

Washington

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices9 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Hardware or Manufacturing

Cost components

Supply Chain, Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Infrastructure

Revenue model

1. Retail gelato and coffee sales: Direct-to-consumer sales of gelato, sorbetto, and coffee drinks through 8 company-owned shops and farmers' market locations in the DC metro area.
2. Wholesale gelato: B2B wholesale gelato sales to restaurants, hotels, catering events, and other dining establishments. Gelato is produced in small batches per order. $50 per gallon for gelato, $55 per gallon for sorbetto. Net 15 payment terms for approved wholesale accounts.
3. Nationwide shipping (Goldbelly): E-commerce nationwide shipping of gelato pints via Goldbelly marketplace, enabling customers across the US to order Dolcezza gelato for home delivery.
4. Catering and events: Catering services for events and private functions, supported by dedicated contact channels ([email protected]).

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion2 records

Distribution channels5 records

Marketing channels5 records

Core offering

Dolcezza Gelato & Coffee Company crafts and sells artisan Italian-style gelato, fat-free sorbetto, and specialty coffee beverages. Gelato is produced fresh every morning in small batches at its factory behind Union Market in Washington DC, using seasonal ingredients sourced from regional farms within a 100-mile radius. The company sells directly to consumers through 8 retail shops and farmers' markets, supplies wholesale gelato to restaurants and hotels, and ships nationwide via Goldbelly.

Product overview

Dolcezza Gelato & Coffee Company offers a unified product portfolio centered on artisanal gelato and expertly crafted coffee. The core offerings are Gelato (Italian-style frozen dessert with lower fat and density than traditional ice cream) and Sorbetto (fat-free fruit-based options), both made fresh daily using locally sourced ingredients from regional farmers. Coffee beverages feature rotating single-origin beans from Sey Coffee Roasters. The company operates 8 retail shops and several farmers' markets in the DC area, with wholesale gelato pints (available in 14 flavors) and nationwide shipping via Goldbelly extending reach beyond physical locations. Mom & Pop is a breakfast-focused sub-brand featuring coffee, pastries, sandwiches, and gelato pints in the Mosaic District.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Quantifiable outcome

• Best Gelato in DC for four consecutive years (Washington City Paper)
• +4 more outcomes

Named customers1 record

Segments2 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Integration6 records

Feature4 records

Partnerships

Ten partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• GoldbellycoreChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorGoldbelly serves as the nationwide e-commerce shipping partner for Dolcezza, enabling customers across the United States to order Dolcezza gelato pints for home delivery. Dolcezza is featured on the Goldbelly platform with dedicated product listings and nationwide shipping capability.
• Sey Coffee RoasterscoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerCollaboration between Sey Coffee Roasters and Dolcezza to produce the Hunapu espresso, grown in Antigua, Guatemala at 1500-2000 meters altitude. Dolcezza works hand in hand with Sey Coffee Roasters (Unido) featuring a full rotating roster of their immaculately sourced and roasted coffee beans.
• Westmoreland Berry FarmcoreOthersBerry supplier in Oak Grove, VA along the Rappahannock River. Provides blackberries, red raspberries, black raspberries, blueberries, and strawberries. Dolcezza drives to the McLean Farmers Market on Fridays to pick up produce and visits the farm at Westmoreland Berry Farm for weekly flat pickups.
• Toigo OrchardscoreOthersMark Toigo operates a farm in Shippensburg, PA. Provides strawberries, cherries, peaches, nectarines, plums, apricots, melons, cantaloupes, apples, pears, quince, chestnuts, corn, honey and ciders. Dolcezza picks up produce at local farmers' markets every Wednesday and Sunday.
• Perrydell FarmcoreOthersThe Perry brothers (Chip, Tom and Greg) produce fresh milk, cream, chocolate milk and butter from their farm in York, PA. Dolcezza drives to their farm every week to pick up dairy; cows are milked and milk is bottled the same day. Happy cows make happy milk.
• Keswick CreamerycoreOthersMelanie, Mark, and Madeline at Keswick Creamery have been grass feeding Jersey cows in the beautiful Cumberland Valley since 1974. They supply ricotta and yoghurt to Dolcezza.
• Potomac Vegetable FarmscoreOthersCasey and Stacey tend this farm in Purcellville, VA and grow all of Dolcezza's herbs including chocolate-mint, mint, tarragon, cilantro, lemon-thyme, and Thai basil. Dolcezza visits their stand at the Arlington Farmers' Market on Saturday.
• S&S Maple CampcoreOthersLocated in Corriganville, MD on 526 acres of Sugar Maple trees that have been in the Shinholt family since the 1800s. Dolcezza picks up maple syrup every Sunday at the Dupont Farmers' Market. Used to make Maple Syrup gelato replacing all sugar with maple syrup.
• Tree and Leaf FarmcoreOthersZachariah at Tree and Leaf Farm supplies heirloom neck pumpkins (sweeter than butternut squash), opal basil, basil, young ginger, and sweet potatoes. Pumpkins are cut into 2-inch rounds, coated in a spice bath, roasted, and folded into cream and milk base.
• Singing Dog VanillaminorOthersSupplier of vanilla beans from Eugene, OR. Works with growers in Papua New Guinea and Indonesia to source organic vanilla, paying farmers fair prices and sharing profit percentages. Dolcezza considers these the finest vanilla beans available.

Scale indicators4 records

Recent moves11 records

Expansion highlights7 records

Direct peers

• Jeni's Splendid Ice Creams: Jeni's is a leading artisan ice cream brand founded in Columbus, OH, with direct-to-consumer scoop shops, nationwide shipping, and wholesale distribution. It is directly comparable to Dolcezza in product positioning (small-batch, premium, distinctive flavors), retail format, and D2C/wholesale channel mix.
• Salt & Straw Ice Cream: Salt & Straw operates artisan scoop shops with a farm-to-cone sourcing philosophy and unusual seasonal flavors, with strong national brand presence. It mirrors Dolcezza's craft positioning, retail scoop shop model, and editorial-driven premium brand building.
• Van Leeuwen Ice Cream: Van Leeuwen is a premium ice cream and vegan ice cream brand with scoop shops, grocery distribution, and D2C. Comparable to Dolcezza on premium positioning, retail expansion, and wholesale/CPG ambitions within the better-for-you frozen dessert category.
• Grom: Grom is an Italian gelato chain with traditional artisan methods and a menu of gelato and sorbetto. It is directly comparable to Dolcezza on gelato specialization, retail scoop shop format, and emphasis on ingredient provenance and traditional production.
• Amorino: Amorino is a global Italian-style gelato brand operating scoop shops with traditional gelato craftsmanship. It competes directly with Dolcezza on gelato specialty, retail format, and the European artisan gelato positioning that anchors Dolcezza's brand.

Broad incumbents

• Talenti Gelato: Talenti is a mass-market premium gelato brand owned by Unilever, distributed broadly through grocery and CPG channels. It is comparable to Dolcezza on product category (gelato/sorbetto) but competes primarily through retail CPG rather than scoop shops, representing a different distribution model.
• Häagen-Dazs: Häagen-Dazs is a globally recognized premium ice cream brand with both retail CPG distribution and licensed scoop shops. It overlaps with Dolcezza on premium frozen dessert positioning but operates at a vastly different scale with mass-market distribution.
• Blue Bottle Coffee: Blue Bottle is a specialty coffee company with cafés, retail beans, and D2C. Comparable to Dolcezza's coffee program on specialty single-origin sourcing, premium café positioning, and rotating bean roasters, though operating at significantly larger scale.

Regional players

• Stumptown Coffee Roasters: Stumptown is a specialty coffee roaster and café operator with strong Pacific Northwest presence. Dolcezza's coffee program already references 'Stumptown Espresso' as a gelato flavor, reflecting alignment on premium third-wave coffee positioning, though their geographic markets differ.
• Graeter's: Graeter's is a heritage premium ice cream maker based in Cincinnati with scoop shops and grocery distribution. Comparable to Dolcezza on small-batch artisanal production and scoop shop retail, though concentrated in the Midwest rather than the Mid-Atlantic.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• Facebookfacebook.com/dolcezzagelato
• Instagraminstagram.com/dolcezzagelato
• Xx.com/dolcezzagelato
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/dolcezza-gelato-holding-llc

Compliance1 record

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles2 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds5 records

Investors1 record

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Dolcezza Gelato & Coffee Company