La Mar Salada - SPANISH MARKET — Local services in Wilmington

The reviews don’t lie, Kat & Victor host a very fun & delicious paella making class! I was there for the 5pm class in early December with a friend. There was a charcuterie board out with Spanish meats & cheeses & amazing crackers plus white or red wine (vino y vino tinto?) when we arrived. (Are the crackers back in stock???!!!) I’ve made paella before yet I definitely learned some great tricks here!! I’ll have to follow up with Kat since I tried to take notes as they made it & I lost track at some point. She said she would email a recipe / instructions to me. Kat was very great to communicate with esp since I was one of those “problem child” customers when you have a ticketed event….. she was very helpful with rearranging dates. Thank you! Lots of great Spanish treats & ingredients for paellas line the shelves. Olive oils, jamón, olives, rice, chorizo - etc! The chorizo stuffed olives are excellent & the other jar of green olives I got are the best olives I’ve ever eaten!!! I need to go buy a case. The 2 paellas were delicious! We had plenty to eat & seconds were offered all around the room. I even got to take a small plate home with me. I’m planning to attend one of their tapas classes now, too & they will bring their paella grills & cook custom at your party!! Delicious & fun!! Maybe I’ll have them cook for a gallery walk in Southport (at my gallery & store Lantana’s!!) The owners are genuine, kind & keep the event flowing as they describe the steps or entertain you during cook times. No wonder they are constantly selling out! Thank you, Kat & Victor!

My only negative would be a warning that it was quite warm in the shop with two large pans of paella cooking & about 15 of us...

Update- attended a wine and tapas event. Everything was extraordinary! The wine consultant was knowledgeable and extremely friendly. He had the export manager with him and he was from Spain! We learned so much about the Spanish wines. The food by Kat and Victor was phenomenal and paired perfectly with the wine. I missed a picture of the first dish because I was too excited about it. The potato salad was light and full of flavor. The bocadillo was filled with Serrano and fresh tomato. The croquettes were absolutely amazing. Filled with mushroom and manchego. They were crispy on the outside and so creamy on the inside. The garlic aoili was a perfect dipping sauce. We thought we were done but Kat pulled out a Basque cheesecake. So creamy and finished with a drizzle of olive oil. I could have eaten the whole cheesecake. Love the classes they do. They are an amazing couple. A wonderful way to spend an evening with the wonderful owners who are so knowledgeable and good cooks. You will enjoy an evening of wine, food and lots of laughs. We were able to help with prepping the food and learn the tricks of paella. The store has a huge selection of Spanish foods, oils and sweets along with everything you need to make paella. Can't wait for the next class. This is a must stop and check out store. Everyone will find something they will love. They bring authentic Spanish foods...

Tonight I went with some friends to La Mar Salada to learn how to make paella. I hadn't heard that this business had opened on Castle Street, When I drove to the address and was able to find parking behind the establishment, and a nice little parking lot, I was excited to see this beautiful front door to this very welcoming business. Business. They had it set up for 14 of us to learn how to make paella while enjoying wine and appetizers. There's store is full of authentic Spanish delicacies, and specialty items. Cat and Victor were great hosts, very welcoming and although many of us arrived a strangers, we became fast friends. We participated in cutting things up that would go into the paella and they told us about this Spanish dish and the authentic way of making it. Several of us had never had paella. Others had had seafood paella. Tonight they made chicken and chorizo paella and a vegan paella. Both were excellent. They even gave us a goodie bag to take with us with special rice that they had used and an apron to remember their store by. I would highly recommend it. It was well worth the price of admission, and I look forward to going back and buying some more of their goodies. When you go, be sure to tell them...