Deltone (Tone) Moore was at the circus riding an elephant with his daughter when he was inspired for the name of his popcorn business. When Popcorn Elephant wasn’t quite right, Popcorn Monkey was born.
“I kept thinking well that would be dumb to have a monkey holding popcorn, but then I thought popcorn is so good that he would put down his yellow banana to pick up a yellow kernel of corn,” Moore said.
Popcorn Monkey, located in Middleburg, is a quaint cave-like shop lined with popcorn bins, old school candy, and exotic flavored soda bottles. Going into the store and sampling flavors is an experience in and of itself, but Moore and his wife, Mickey, also manage online orders and do corporate and various other events, such as bridal and baby showers.
Popcorn Monkey has almost 100 flavors of popcorn in rotation: Smokey Bacon and Sundried Tomato, Bacon Cheeseburger, Green Apple, Loaded Potato, Sea Salt and Cracked Black Pepper, Dark Chocolate Sea Salt, and almost anything else you can imagine. According to Moore, the perfect batch of popcorn requires high quality ingredients and a perfectly crafted recipe.
“It’s really a science,” Moore said. “A lot of people say well, it’s just popcorn, but it’s really just not. There’s more to it.”
His customers give him ideas for new flavors. He explores them all, even the absurd. Cilantro and Lime? Sure, why not. Coconut Curry? He’ll give it a whirl. Each recipe takes time; nothing is simply thrown together.
Moore is upbeat and happy, but he admits that the path to getting where he is today wasn’t always easy. His childhood was tough, and he struggled with having one parent and not knowing his father. He wanted something different out of life, and Popcorn Monkey gave him that.
“People don’t understand life is a verb. It requires action. Most people will sit around and talk about it,” Moore said. “There’s a quote I’ve always liked and it says that there are three people in the world: there are those that talk about what happened, those that watch what’s happened, and those that make things happen. I make things happen.”
His plan was to open Popcorn Monkey with his wife and mother in November of 2013, but when Moore’s mother passed away his plans were delayed. Despite the ups and downs, Moore put in a lot of work and with help from the Middleburg Business and Professional Association, opened the doors to Popcorn Monkey in March that same year.
“I have the ability to not let fear stop me. A lot of people’s fear controls them. That’s something I don’t understand yet,” Moore said.
Moore wanted everything about Popcorn Monkey to be unique. It’s why he developed his own custom process for making popcorn, experimented with all kinds of flavors, and spent so much time developing his brand.
“I don’t want to be like everybody else,” he said. “Popcorn Monkey is different.”
His love for popcorn began as a boy, sitting above third base watching the Cleveland Indians and waiting for the popcorn man to come by. Many years later, his wife inspired him to make popcorn and he mixed and combined flavors in his basement.
It’s those sights, sounds and smells of his past that Moore holds onto and recreates for his customers, all while adding his own Popcorn Monkey twist.
Kate O'Toole 