🍦 The best ice cream in the world is in Brussels: we stepped inside Gelateria Giotto
Updated on May 16, 2026 by Pierre
Did you know we have a world ice skating champion right near our house?
Not a Belgian champion. Not a likeable finalist. The world champion. He's the one who beat 3.500 ice cream makers from 18 countries, after four years of international selections. And he makes his tubs a 10-minute walk from Place Brugmann, in a shop of barely a few square meters.
At InsideBrussels, we love these kinds of stories. So we went to check it out. 🍨
The scoop: what happened in Las Vegas?
End of March 2026, Christian Wu, co-founder of Gelateria Giotto, won the world final of Ice Cream Festival World Masters organized in Las Vegas from March 24 to 26. The competition is considered the unofficial world championship of artisanal ice cream, supported by Carpigiani and SIGEP, the two major institutions in the sector.
On the podium: Belgium in gold, Spain in silver (Carlo Guerriero, Cadiz), the Netherlands in bronze (Kees Baars). And a second Belgian medalist: Fabio Marasti from La Gourmand'Ice in Verviers, prize for "best story".
Not bad for a small country, right? 🇧🇪
But who is Christian Wu?
27 years old, from Brussels, and a trajectory that is not exactly classic for an ice cream maker. Business studies, a short career in strategic consulting, and then in June 2021The turning point: to quit everything and make gelato.
Heading to Padua, Italy, to train with Maestro Antonio Mezzalira, one of the biggest names in Italian artisanal gelato. Several months of apprenticeship. Return to Brussels. Opening of the first shop in Ixelles in 2023, a stone's throw from the Châtelain. Then a second in Jette.
At his side: Karen Tran, co-founder. Together, they set up a gelateria that changes its 4 flavors every weekworks with local and seasonal products, and completely rejects industrial logic.
In 2024, Christian had already won the Belgian championship with the creation that would, two years later, give him the world title.
The ice cream that changed everything: Il Bosco dei Cento Acri 🌲🍯
The name itself is a statement: The Hundred Acres Wood, in Italian. That's the name of the forest where Winnie the Pooh lives, in the original book by A.A. Milne. That's exactly where Christian got his inspiration.
The creation consists of:
- Un milk cream infused with wild honey and Scottish pine
- Un porcini mushroom crumble (yes, really)
- Un marbled lemon-honey to tie it all together
On paper, it's audacious. On the palate, it evokes an autumnal walk in the forest. The international jury praised the balance, the technique, and above all the narrative dimension of creation. Christian recounts:
"For my suit, I drew inspiration from the forest and from Winnie the Pooh. The tastes, the smells, and the feeling you get when you're among the trees."
There you have it. An ice cream that smells like the forest floor and has conquered the world. 🌲
Where can I taste it?
Obviously, since the title was announced, there's been a bit more of a crowd waiting outside. And deservedly so. Our advice:
📍 Gelateria Giotto — Ixelles (Châtelain)
152 Rue Washington, 1050 Ixelles Small, bright space, clear counter. This is where it all happens. Tuesday to Sunday, usually from 13 p.m. to 19 p.m.
📍152 Rue Washington, Ixelles 1050
(I.e.103 Rue Bonaventure, 1090 Jette The second location, more out of the way but with the same quality.
Budget: with some local €3,5 per scoopFor what it is, it's honest.
🔗 gelateriagiotto.be 📲 Instagram: @gelateria_giotto
Our verdict 🥄
What we love about Giotto, beyond the world title:
- La weekly rotation perfumes, which pique curiosity
- Using Belgian products when possible (Wépion strawberries, kriek)
- The classics executed to perfection (fior di latte, Piedmont hazelnut, Syracuse lemon)
- And this idea that an ice cream can tell something, not just being good
If you haven't been yet, now's the time. Before the queues become unbearable all summer long. 😎
Suggested internal link
👉 To extend your stroll through the Châtelain, also check out our article on the trendy neighborhoods of Brussels
Sources for further reading
- RTBF — The best ice cream maker in the world is from Brussels
- BX1 — A Brussels resident crowned the world's best ice cream maker
- Carpigiani — Official statement
- VRT NWS — Brusselaar wint wereldkampioenschap
Barely a foot in the Belgian capital, Pierre launched “InsideBrussels.be” more than 10 years ago, the idea is simple: “What to do? Where to go to eat or have a drink? “. Entrepreneur at heart, this is not his first project! Far from there. EatLocal.io; KingCard.be, Bricabrac.be … Like wine, with time the project improves!
Pierre does not hesitate to share his favorites and his best addresses of Brussels restaurants that he could recommend to you with his eyes closed.
