gravy gelato

KFC x Hackney Gelato

You never saw it coming. You’ll never forget it. How the heck did we get here.

In 1952, Colonel Harland Sanders had a vision of 11 herbs & spices. In 2025, the KFC team experienced what rational people can only assume to have been a collective hallucination. Out of the haze came one clear idea – Gravy Gelato.

The KFC Team approached our co-founder and chief gelatiere, Enrico. He thought he was being pranked. Gravy. In gelato form. Seriously?

A murmur of Italian concern and confusion arose from the Kitchens. The English-speaking staff learned a few words you don’t tend to find in the guidebooks. A flurry of hand gestures, a few signs to ward off spirits.

But something about the idea struck a chord with the Hackney team.

Enrico is a chef - trained in kitchens across Italy and London, including those decorated with Michelin stars. He knows flavour, how to create depth and balance, and the importance of picking the best ingredients. If anyone can create a Gravy gelato that may sound unbelievable but tastes amazing, it’s him.

And we do love to challenge him.

Now, Enrico is no stranger to pushing the taste envelope. Long before we started selling in shops and supermarkets, Enrico was creating weird & wonderful flavours for local restaurants. His recipe collection is vast. Armed with a small horizontal churner, these unique gelatos were used in all courses of dinner service. Avocado & Candied Bacon. Wild Garlic Cream. Horseradish, served over a mushroom tart. Gorgonzola. Smoked Salmon & Chives. Yes, made with actual salmon. That one put the machine into a 3-day clean cycle. Valuable lessons learned. Taste buds tested. Minds blown.

And so, leaving our larger kitchen set up to continue making our usual range, Enrico dusted off the small churner that had brought to life so many unbelievable flavours, ready to take on The Colonel’s challenge.

Hackney Gelato fuses the traditional methods of Italian gelato-making with the bold flavours of the London food scene. We are Italian Born, London Raised. But this? This is more like Kentucky meets Catania, with a connecting flight somewhere near Camden.

We leave the real chicken to KFC (see, we did learn from the salmon experiment). Our recipe is a veggie ode to the Colonel’s iconic gravy. Made with a brown rice milk base and real gravy, this gelato takes you on a journey. Umami, herby, and savoury. Rich but creamy. It’s an experience like no other. Try on its own, dipped with fries, or smothered on a piece of chicken.

Be bold. Be adventurous. It’s what the Colonel would have wanted.

Available at from 1pm on May 15th on the KFC Shop. Grab your tub while stocks last.

GET YOUR GRAVY

All proceeds go to the KFC Youth Foundation. Find out more here.