Hands-On Meals

In 2024, JACKIE MONCADA and her husband, JUAN, purchased and rebranded a small olive oil shop in Wilmington. Though Little Olive Co. has a substantial curation of oils and vinegars, it has become so much more in the two years.

Before endeavoring into the business of dips and other cooking accoutrements, Jackie Moncada has been working in the health and wellness field for over ten years and sees Little Olive Co. as a wonderful addition to any healthy household.

“We’ve always had an entrepreneurial spirit, and we love good, healthy food,” she says of her and her husband. “The olive oil shop was this perfect thing we weren’t looking for, but we stumbled upon it. Our whole mission now is good, simple food that doesn’t have a lot of ingredients.”

When stepping into the shop, customers will see one massive wall of olive oil and a separate wall of vinegar.

“One of the main things people say when they enter is ‘Oh my gosh, it smells so good in here,’” Jackie Moncada says. While on a regular day, the oils themselves are quite aromatic, if you stop by on a Friday or Saturday evening, the delicious scents may be coming from an impressive meal being cooked.

As Little Olive Co. has grown over the past two years, an early decision to integrate cooking classes into the shop has taken it from a store to a community. The shop currently has two chefs: Lora Plauche and Linda Mitchelle. “My husband and I don’t have culinary backgrounds, so we knew we had to bring some experts in,” Jackie Moncada says.

While seasoned cooks are sure to enjoy the classes, she says they are for everyone. “Our chefs are so passionate,” she says. “If you’ve never cooked before, they will walk you through it. It’s a place to have fun and cook at a relaxing, slow pace.”

While the cooking classes offer classic Italian recipes such as handmade pasta with honey butter tomato sauce, attendees can sign up for any class that intrigues them – from a parmesan risotto to Polish-style homemade perogies.

“We’re always trying out new things … like our Watermelon Poke Bowl this August,” Jackie Moncada says.

Another benefit of the class, for both attendees and Little Olive Co., is that the dishes incorporate the shop’s oils, making sampling and recommendations even breezier.

The olive oils found in Little Olive Co. aren’t like your run-of-the-mill grocery store oils. Aside from their quality and health benefits, the selection spans from their fused and infused oils, such as one of Jackie Moncada’s favorites, the Blood Orange Extra Virgin Olive Oil, to fun vinegars such as a Lychee Balsamic. They also sell plenty of other goodies – from local teas to cooking tools.

In the shop, customers can sample oils, and repeat customers can bring back their oil bottles and receive a 10% discount when refilling.

Jackie Moncada highlights the more imaginative purposes of their oils. “If you’re looking for a simple snack item you want to make healthier, we make air-popped popcorn and drizzle our Butter Olive Oil on it,” she says. “There are so many things you can do to be creative with the oil – like a simple grilled fish with orange-fused oil or a simple strawberry salad with a fig balsamic glaze. They perk up so many dishes.”

Their website offers not only access to sign up for cooking classes, but a blog which details recipes, olive oil history, and more.

As transplants, the Moncadas see the Wilmington community as a perfect place for their business. “People here love good food,” Jackie Moncada says. “We just got into the Riverfront Farmers Market (turn to page 29 for more info about the farmers market), so we’re excited to immerse ourselves in the community even more.”

The shop evaluates its products and suppliers across a variety of measures, from the oils’ Ultra-Premium Certification process to polyphenol content, which comes from premium oiling practices, leading to high levels of antioxidants.

“As someone in the health space, olive oil has always been a staple in the kitchen,” Jackie Moncada says. “We’ve completely fallen in love with these oils and vinegars, and when we first tried them, we agreed, olive oil and vinegar had never tasted this good.”

To view more of photographer Megan Deitz’s work, go to megandeitz.com.

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