Massa

Literally was dreaming of this place last night, that’s how good it is. (Yes LITERALLY!) My subconscious clung to it’s deliciousness, oh the fresh fried dough, topped with your choice of gelato (chocolate!), chocolate sauce, and nuts… and whip cream! Or however you want to style it up!
So incredibly decadent, you have to make a few extra laps around Navy Pier to burn it off, but oh my my my it is insanely delicious… my absolute favorite dessert on Navy Pier! Stop by and check them out, and there is enough to share!

As far as gelato places go, not bad. I was there at tourist trap hell (aka Navy Pier, lol) a few months back, and seeing this place was a pleasant surprise, since it saved myself and a friend from overpaying for ice cream at the inflated prices the Navy Pier Ben and Jerry’s charges. Also if you want to hit up a local B&J Scoop Shop, may I instead recommend hitting one of the suburban ones instead where the prices aren’t jacked up (i.e. Oak Park, Glenview (Glen Town Center), etc.)?
IIRC, the gelato I got was only slightly over $ 4, which beats the higher price I would’ve had to pay for a scoop of B&J ice cream in a cup at their Navy Pier location. Only drawback I noticed is that they only serve something like 3 – 4 flavors at a time. IIRC I think they’re related to the Massa out in the ‘North Ave. restaurant block’ portion of Elmwood Park, and I wonder if that location has a better selection of gelato flavors?
Definitely underrated, and I’m surprised this location only has 4 reviews overall (w/​1 being filtered). This is located on the south side of Navy Pier at one of the outside booths on the water side, inbetween the seafood restaurant Riva and the Landshark beer garden area.

We don’t often go to Navy Pier but decided to take a stroll there last weekend, right in the height of tourist season. The temperature was in the mid-70’s, there was a nice cloud cover, comfortable breeze, and a spectacular view of the lake. We also like to people-​watch, and today we could see in vivid, frightening reality just how bad the obesity epidemic in this country has become.
But what’s driving this growth in girth? As the wife and I started to ponder this question, we decided to have a snack. How about ice cream? No. Funnel cake? No. Instead, we stopped by Massa, a nice little stand on the pier. Their specialty? Fried dough. You have to admire the honesty. They don’t try and give the snack a fancy, French name (read: beignets) but say exactly what it is you’re eating. Deep fried squares of dough smothered in powdered sugar. Cooked to order, and delicious.
After gorging ourselves on fried dough, we went back to the topic — what is causing obesity?

small cart.
fried dough, gelato, something else
price ranges between 6 – 8 for fried dough w toppings or gelato
it’s good. a bit pricey but that’s expected.

This is a great little stand at Navy Pier! They’ve got super good fried dough and they put gelato on it to make it into a sundae!