01
Real fruits.
When a flavour says strawberry, mango, or feijoa, that's exactly what's in it — whole fruit, folded straight into the churn, nothing standing in for the real thing.
Our story
A Sicilian gelateria
that washed up on Browns Bay beach.
We've been making gelato on Clyde Road since 2002. One shop, one recipe book, one increasingly cluttered notebook of flavour ideas.
Since 2002
The Penguino Story
Malcolm and Ann moved from Nelson to Auckland in 2002 to open up Penguino. They chose beautiful Browns Bay beach right in the plaza and loved serving the locals and community their freshly made gelato ice cream.
Over two decades later, it's still the same shop, the same churn, the same recipe book — though the flavour notebook has gotten a lot thicker. We will continue to honour their tradition and legacy.
2002
First scoop served
112
Flavours invented
63,000
Litres of NZ milk in 2025
4.8
Out of 5 star reviews
What we believe
Three things,
non-negotiable.
02
Make it where you sell it.
Every batch is churned at the back of the shop, ten metres from the cabinet. No trucks, no central kitchen, no long freezer journey before it reaches the counter.
03
A scoop should make someone's day.
Nobody needs gelato — you came here because you wanted it. That's exactly why every scoop has to earn its place, whether it's a first date or a five-year-old asking for "the blue one" for the third time this week.
Twenty-four years, slowly
A short history of Penguino.
-
2002 · spring
One cabinet, six flavours.
A long lease, a borrowed espresso machine, a $400 sign painted by Ann's mum. -
2016
Cuisine
We hired our first staff member, Tia. She still runs the kitchen. -
2019
The cart hits the road.
Weddings, school galas, that one All Blacks afterparty no one can talk about. -
2022
The sorbet line goes plant-based, full stop.
Six sorbets, dedicated equipment. Vegans of Browns Bay, rejoice. -
Today
Twenty-six flavours. One Cattabriga. Same shop.
We're not opening a second store. We're going to keep doing this one well.
The crew
Eight humans,
one penguin.
Malcolm
Co-founder · head churner
Ann
Co-founder · everything else
Dee
Current owner
Stirling
Master churner
Matt
Speedy Gonzales
Kirsten
Scooper
Anna
Scooper
Pip the Penguin
Mascot · employee of the month, every month