How fish tacos and margaritas helped this Wilmington restaurant succeed for 30 years

Allison Ballard, Wilmington StarNews
Updated ·2 min read

Believe it or not, fish tacos were a new thing to Wilmington 30 years ago. Then came K38 with its Cali-Mex food in 1993. It’s since become a beloved Wilmington institution at 5410 Oleander Drive. Although much has changed in the area’s food scene (and at that restaurant) since then, some things remain. The Live.Eat.Surf. restaurant group celebrated their big anniversary earlier this month with $3 tacos and margaritas.

If you missed it, no worries, here’s a look at how it all happened.

1993: Josh Vach opens K38 Baja Grill on July 13, inspired by the taco stands and surfing culture of Mexico and Southern California. The restaurant got its name from a kilometer sign that marks a famous surfing spot.

2001: Vach opens Tower 7, a small, casual restaurant at University Landing, which then moves to its current location in Wrightsville Beach in 2006. A year later, he added Café del Mar, a coffee bar next door.

2013: For its 20th anniversary, K38 closes for four months for an extensive renovation, which was unveiled in May. Diners see new dining areas, an outside patio and a new bar with custom woodwork and unique glass tiling.

2018: Over the years, Vach opened concepts like Kiva Grill, KBueno, Cruz and Las Olas as a part of the Live.Eat.Surf restaurant group.

2019: At the time of his death at the age of 53, the group had eight restaurants. Later that year, Cruz and KBueno Norte closed. Soon after, the group became a part of the portfolio of Raleigh-based Hargett Hunter, a hospitality industry investment group.

K38 Baja Grill at 5410 Oleander Drive celebrates 30 years in business with $3 tacos and margaritas on July 13, 2023. ALLISON BALLARD/STARNEWS
K38 Baja Grill at 5410 Oleander Drive celebrates 30 years in business with $3 tacos and margaritas on July 13, 2023. ALLISON BALLARD/STARNEWS

2020: Hargett Hunter, whose businesses also include Trudy’s (an Austin-based Tex-Mex brand), the fast-casual Marugame Udon found in California and Hawaii, and the Alabama-based Cajun Steamer, will grow the Live.Eat.Surf brand through the K38 and Tower 7 brands.

2022: Live.Eat.Surf unveils an updated rebrand for K38 Baja Grill. KBueno Mexi-Q Grill reopens as a new location of the restaurant in The Forum, and another opens this year at the Crossroads at Independence shopping center, which means there are now four K38 locations, including Porters Neck and Oleander Drive.

A K38 Baja Grill opens in October 2022 at he shopping center with the new Harris Teeter off Carolina Beach Road in Wilmington, N.C. STARNEWS FILE PHOTOS
A K38 Baja Grill opens in October 2022 at he shopping center with the new Harris Teeter off Carolina Beach Road in Wilmington, N.C. STARNEWS FILE PHOTOS

2023: A new Tower 7 location opens at 509 Evans St. in Morehead City. And the location that started it all celebrates 30 years in business with classic specials, custom-decorated cookies and a limited-edition T-shirt.

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Allison Ballard is the food and dining reporter at the StarNews. You can reach her at aballard@gannett.com.

This article originally appeared on Wilmington StarNews: K38 restaurant celebrates 30 years in Wilmington