Best of New York 2013 • Eating

• Nicoletta

  160 Second Ave., at 10th St.; 212-432-1600

  Soft-serve ice cream seems like child’s play for a pastry chef whose career path has led him through the avant-garde kitchens of Will Goldfarb’s Room 4 Dessert, Paul Liebrandt’s Corton, and even El Bulli. And yet it’s possible that Bob Truitt, currently desserts honcho of Michael White’s restaurant group, has never concocted a single more primally satisfying sweet as the fior di latte soft-serve ($5) at his boss’s East Village pizzeria. Based on Truitt’s standard gelato recipe, the stuff is milky and soft, creamy and rich, but not excessively so�in short, it’s the perfect sensorial canvas for toppings that range from simple chocolate sauce to a more elaborate lemon meringue constructed from curd, streusel crumble, and meringue that Truitt’s minions blowtorch and oven-dry. Truitt’s personal favorite combo is chewy-crisp pistachio brittle with strawberry marmalade, a seasonal preserve that has since segued to orange-basil. A passion for ice cream, soft-serve especially, is always tinged with a note of nostalgia, and in Truitt’s case, it derives from family summers spent at the Jersey shore. �I grew up eating pretzel cones,� he says, pondering his next topping inspiration. �They were amazing to me.�

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