The Mad Italian closes its doors after sane moment of epiphany

The Mad Italian Gelato Bar seemed to be on an upward trajectory over the past few years, having expanded twice from its original Leaside location (first to Little Italy in 2011, then to the Danforth in 2012). But owner Eli Turkienicz has confirmed with us that the business is finished, and that all three locations are now closed.

Turkienicz says that a poor economy was a deciding factor in closing the business. “It was losing too much money,” he says.

In addition to its gelato, The Mad Italian was known for its pizza cone (a.k.a the Zazzu), an oddball food item that managed to get a good amount of media attention. As for Turkienicz, he says he’ll likely have some new projects on the go soon, but has nothing specific in the works just yet.