Business & Tech

Paradiso Olive Oils & Vinegars Brings Heavenly Tastes to Redmond

Owner Kevin Carder says his unique tasting room is not only delicious for customers, it's great fun for him.

Local business owner Kevin Carder has opened his own piece of paradise with , a new Redmond shop that's focused on selling top quality condiments.

On a honeymoon trip to Arizona, Carder first discovered paradise in a “fusti”—a metal container for holding infused olive oils and balsamic vinegars. While casting about for a new direction after years as a painting contractor, Carder says he fell hard and fast for the specialty shop and wanted to bring something similar to Redmond.

“I wanted to do it; it was a near instant response,” he said.

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Carder began researching in earnest and connected with a long-time supplier of infused oil and vinegar, Veronica Foods. Though the store, which opened in September, is independently owned and not a franchise, Carder has an exclusive with Veronica Foods, which originated in New York in 1925 and now operates out of Oakland, Calif.

Carder and his wife, Shirley, have lived in Redmond for about 30 years, raising their children here. A longtime contractor, Carder did the buildout on his leased space at 16717 Redmond Way mostly himself, installing shelving, new flooring, and picking up steel display cases and a recipe rack from the recently closed Borders Books in Redmond.

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Carder says olive oil tasting rooms are a fast-growing retail industry—when he first started researching about a year ago, Veronica Foods supplied about 60 such enterprises around the country; now its customers number more than 200.

Paradiso customers can taste any individual olive oil or vinegar, along with dozens of combinations made of the 40 or so varieties stocked in the store. The flavors range from Tuscan spiced or herbes de Provence olive oils to pomegranate-infused balsamic vinegar. Carder bottles the fresh oils and vinegars on the spot for his customers and has a rack full of recipes to help people make the most of what they buy, though even simple combinations can be a pleasure, he said.

“I like to get a salad from the store, and replace the dressing,” Carder said. “My absolute favorite combination is blood orange extra virgin olive oil with chocolate balsamic—that’s good on strawberries.”

So far, Carder said most of his customers seem to share his enthusiasm and appreciate the free tastings.

“I’d say 95 percent of the people who walk in the door buy something,” he said.

The store is open and in full swing, and Carder expects a new shipment of freshly pressed oils from the northern hemisphere’s olive crops to come in by the holidays—which could mean great deals on what’s currently in stock, too, he said.

Carder is also looking at offering fundraisers for local groups, and has space available for book clubs and other groups that would like to work with him. Eventually, he said, he’d like to open a second location, perhaps in Issaquah or Snohomish, but for the time being, he’s focused on supplying Redmond with a taste explosion.


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