Mercado de la Raza — Oʻahu’s largest Latin American market — just opened its second location.
The business's second retail and wholesale location is in Waipahu. Its grand opening block party will be on Saturday, June 20, in Waipio’s Koa Ridge (in the Royal Koa parking lot). The event will be from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m., but the retail store will be open for shopping until 6 p.m. The store is currently in its soft opening, and is open to the public from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m.
The Saturday event will feature a variety of local food and beverage partners. Attendees can look forward to pop-up booths with authentic cuisine, music and an exclusive Mercado de la Raza gift (available while supplies last).
“I think a lot of people have been waiting for this moment, and we see lots of kids coming in (to our store), so we want to make it a family event,” says Alex Villarino, who co-owns the business with his wife, Megahn Chun.
“We’re in a very residential area, so we wanted to share a little bit of the culture, and introduce them (community members) to the culture and food,” Chun adds.
Mercado de la Raza has been open since 1994, according to Villarino.
“It’s a common thing in Mexico for a mercado to be known as ‘mercado de la raza,’” he says. “Raza means ‘of the people,’ kind of like ‘market of the people.’”
The husband-and-wife team says they wanted to open in central Oʻahu when it was time to expand to a second location.
“We learned there were a lot of people who were traveling from the North Shore, Kapolei, ‘Ewa Beach, Wahiawā and Mililani to our Beretania store,” Chun says. “We decided when we open a second location, it had to be in Central Oʻahu — just to be closer to everybody and serve these communities.
“It was a journey (to find the right location),” she adds. “It’s never easy to find the right fit.”
Chun recalls how she and Villarino would drive around at night, looking at potential places for their next location.
“When we saw this place, we asked our realtor to come and show it to us,” she says. “After we opened the door, I just felt this is the place. We saw a vision, and this is the place that it had to be.”
This second location has been in the works for about a year, according to Chun. The Waipahu store is bigger than the original store, and it features a warehouse section and retail store. Customers will be able to shop in the larger retail space, which is fully stocked with handmade tortillas, imported beverages and snacks, and more. There are also a variety of dishes, merch, flags and more.
“This is a hybrid location,” Villarino says. “We have one side that is destined to help more of the business owners that are on this side of town. On the right side, we have a retail location; we have a little bit more space here, so we’ll probably have a few more products.”
Customer favorites have included tamarind candy, specialty sodas, empanadas, and — in light of the World Cup — jerseys and flags.
“We have sodas from all over Latin America — from Puerto Rico, Brazil, Argentina and Peru,” Villarino says. “Sodas are a big thing.”
“It’s definitely a festive place,” Chun adds. “Anything related to empanadas (is popular) — we have ready-made empanadas you can put in the air fryer or oven.”
Partnering with and highlighting up-and-coming businesses is important to Villarino and Chun. At the Beretania store, a local Latino entrepreneur was featured every month, and their products would be sold in the store, according to Chun.
“We would set them up at the front of the store and give them a sales channel,” she says. “We had Raiz Tortillas, Madres Churros and more; we carried all of these locally made brands.”
“We serve a lot of established restaurants, but we want to give the opportunity to a lot of the smaller ones who are just starting,” Villarino says. “A lot of what we do is to support people.”
A dedicated community gathering space — which will host language workshops, cooking classes and other events — will open later this year.
“We can have a little more space for activations here, things that are more geared for the community,” Chun says. “We have a lot more children’s books; we want to have more children’s events, as well.”
The Waipahu store’s hours are the same as its Beretania Street location — 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. Mondays to Saturdays, and 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. on Sundays. Customers can park in the lot outside the store; street parking is also available.
“Food is the ultimate connector, and we’ve always taken pride in helping people find the exact ingredients that taste like home,” Villarino states. “We want families to walk into this new space and immediately feel a sense of belonging, education and community.
“I think it’s important to show that Latinas are good, hard-working people, and we’re ready to offer so much to the communities,” he adds.
CONTACT
Mercado de la Raza
94-1259 Hulukupuna St. Ste. 105, Waipahu
Mercadodelaraza.com
Instagram: @mercadodelaraza
Open 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. Mondays to Saturdays, 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. Sundays
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Kelli Shiroma Braiotta can be reached at kelli@alohastatedaily.com.
