Nicoletta, founder of NICOLETTA TRADING, grew up in Italy and spent years in Switzerland and the South of France. Quite organically, she was immersed in cultures where food appreciation is integral to daily living, and where ingredients and preparation are fundamental to everything edible.

In 2011 Nicoletta ’s passion for outstanding products inspired her to open a specialty food market on Manhattan’s UWS, Gastronomie 491, featuring fine artisanal and Mediterranean products. The curated selection reflected a quest for the unusual and a desire to share her finds with fellow food lovers.

Nicoletta, now back with a new concept, brings unique foods to the New York and US markets. Her search took a serendipitous turn while visiting Portugal a few months ago. Nicoletta came across a fine chocolate manufacturer and fell in love with the line of exquisite chocolate bars. It was indeed love at first bite…

Intrigued by these chocolate bars, she dug deeper into the story behind them. The cocoa beans, an essential ingredient in any chocolate product, are native to the tiny equatorial island São Tomé, located off the coast of West Africa. The island, first discovered by Portuguese navigators in 1470, became a large cocoa producer in the 1800’s, paving the way for a wonderful collaboration with chocolatiers in Portugal.