By Julie Lawrence Special to OnMilwaukee.com Published Sep 24, 2008 at 9:59 AM

The calendar tells us that fall is officially in play, but as long as the Indian summer keeps the warm sun shining, indulging in cold afternoon sweets is still fair game.

Cold Spoons, a gelato shop located at 5924 W. Vliet St., opened Wednesday, Sept. 17. Owners Sandy Murphy and Brett Swider also operate the nearby Highlands Café, 1413 N. 60th St.

The shop offers about 25 flavors of gelato, including a vegan, soy-based option (currently it's chocolate). Murphy says she's been rotating two to four flavors out daily as a way to test and establish customer favorites.

"We want to see which kinds work best for the seasons, as well," she says. She plans to set up a voicemail system for customers to call for featured flavors of the day.

If you'd like to be a part of her taste testing of sorts, you have your choice of tempting options such as pistachio, hazelnut, chocolate hazelnut, vanilla, tiramisu and rum raisin. Her sorbetto list is fruit-filled and includes kiwi, watermelon, mango, pink grapefruit and forest berry.

Cold Spoons is open 11 a.m. to 9 p.m., Monday through Thursday, 11 a.m. to 10:30 p.m., Friday and Saturday, and 12 to 8 p.m. Sunday.

Julie Lawrence Special to OnMilwaukee.com

OnMilwaukee.com staff writer Julie Lawrence grew up in Wauwatosa and has lived her whole life in the Milwaukee area.

As any “word nerd” can attest, you never know when inspiration will strike, so from a very early age Julie has rarely been seen sans pen and little notebook. At the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee it seemed only natural that she major in journalism. When OnMilwaukee.com offered her an avenue to combine her writing and the city she knows and loves in late 2004, she knew it was meant to be. Around the office, she answers to a plethora of nicknames, including “Lar,” (short for “Larry,” which is short for “Lawrence”) as well as the mysteriously-sourced “Bill Murray.”