Bringing people together: Olive Joy Co.’s charcuterie plates a centerpiece for people
Published 7:30 pm Tuesday, March 11, 2025
Erin Dirksen shows off one of the charcuterie boards available through her new business Olive Joy Co., which seeks to bring people together around food and fellowship. Photos by Eric Johnson/photodesk@austindailyherald.com
Erin Dirksen folds meat to be placed into a charcuterie board Monday. Eric Johnson/photodesk@austindailyherald.com
Erin Dirksen arranges the final touches of a board intended for a small get together, demonstrating some of the options people can get through Olive Joy Co. Eric Johnson/photodesk@austindailyherald.com
Each board offered through Olive Joy Co. can be a varying collection of food for any occasion. Eric Johnson/photodesk@austindailyherald.com
Each board offered through Olive Joy Co. can be a varying collection of food for any occassion. Eric Johnson/photodesk@austindailyherald.com
Olive Joy Co.’ s boards can feature works of art that can be the centerpiece of any gathering. Eric Johnson/photodesk@austindailyherald.com
The charcuterie spreads by Olive Joy Co. explore the gambit of combinations including fruits, meats and cheese. Eric Johnson/photodesk@austindailyherald.com
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Erin Dirksen believes life is made better when people come together and if that congregation of people is done around a charcuterie board, then all the better.
These two things are a joint connection for Dirksen’s new business, Olive Joy Co., a catering business that specializes in charcuterie creations that can anchor a variety of get-togethers.
“I love getting people together. One of my passions is getting people together and creating spaces where people can just chat and not have to worry about the environment,” Dirksen said. “We’re here together.”
Dirksen has spent a vast amount of her life in Austin, where she has established a family with her husband Philip and their two children.
While Olive Joy Co. officially became an LLC just this January, the roots of the idea have been there for much longer leading up to the business.
Dirksen said she would create the boards for friends and family for anything from a birthday party to a bridal shower. She even created a spread for a wedding last year and after being encouraged by her friends, Dirksen took the leap.
“I think it’s fun. It’s different,” she said. “It’s not just like we’re going to have ham sandwiches or a different style of catering. This is something unique and there isn’t a lot of it around us.”
Dirksen offers three boards ranging from small to medium to party size and each creation comes with a deftly intricate arrangement of a variety of foods: cheese, meat of different varieties, fruit, fig jam and honey is often represented in her creations.
However, the event itself also drives and dictates what Dirksen brings together.
“It just depends on the customer, I think,” Dirksen said, who explained that she sends each customer an order form that asks them to be as specific as possible.
From there, the creations take form in a rented kitchen space that Dirksen uses, though it’s maybe a little more realistic to say each is a work of art.
The boards are arranged in such a way as to show off each morsel, detail and accent in a way that can be as much of a show stopper as anything else. Salami formed into the shape of a rose or folded in a unique way or honey with a small dipper for spreading on cheese or crackers.
“Honestly, they are show stoppers,” Dirksen said. “It’s just an option for people to get a little joy out of what they are doing.”
In the beginning, Dirksen admitted she wasn’t entirely sure how this enterprise would go. A first-time owner of a small business, the idea of putting something like this out into the public was a bit worrying.
But she has found that since putting herself out there, the support for what she is trying to accomplish is there.
“Before I even posted anything, I feel like the outpouring of support has been great,” Dirksen said. “I was really nervous. Is this something Austin really needs? Will it succeed? I was really skeptical, but I’m thankful for the support I’ve already received.”
“I think it’s more than I was expecting,” she added.
With a focus on creating these edible centerpieces for get-togethers, Dirksen has already started putting together ideas for the future, including the equivalent of paint and sip events that combine art and wine.
“Going in and doing a party; teaching people how to make the salami rose,” she said. “What cheese pairs well with what meat. Things like that.”
Dirksen also admitted that it’s been a great way to be able to spend more time with her two children.
“This allows me flexibility to be with my kids more often and I love that,” she said.
However, in the end, Olive Joy Co. comes back to one central thing and that’s bringing people together through food. It’s a central theme of the company that Dirksen wants everybody to know.
“I want people to know this business is just a hope that we can bring people together one board at a time for any occasion and make their event the best one yet,” she said. “I want people to be able to get together, have a good time and eat good food.”
Those interested should keep an eye out in the coming days for both special Mother’s Day’s boards as well as Easter boards, which will be available for preorder soon.
Olive Joy Co. can be reached through both Facebook and Instagram, which will in turn guide people to her website where they can place their orders.
