The Wooden Spoon Catering and Events

Yvette catered our wedding of 160 people and did amazing! The paella was very affordable, dietary friendly (vegan and gluten free option) and beyond delicious. The serving process was extremely smooth (smoothest our day of coordinator has ever seen) and guests loved being able to watch the cooking process. It has been a month and our guests are still talking about how incredible the paella was and that they have never been so satisfied with wedding food before. Many of them even went back for 3rd and 4th servings and we had more than enough food for everyone (even leftovers!). We had a couple fly in from Spain who said "this is the real deal!". Thank you Yvette for making our day memorable!

Their bread was delicious!!!! Somehow crisp on outside and soft in the inside, with rosemary flavor! Also loved the honey eggplant tapa! Tasted like chips and it was SO crispy. The paella I really liked, even better than the ones I've tried in Spain, but if I were to come back I really want to try their other tapas!! Plus the interior was super cute, and it felt intimate. By the way if you want paella you need to reserve in advance, but if you walk in you can get their tapas!

This place is very charming and serves quality food and wine. The menu is authentic and well thought out. The ingredients are definitely fresh. The downside is that the website is a little contradictory in that it reads "by reservation only" and right below enthusiastically states, "walkins welcome!" Turns out you need a reservation to order paella or other main entre, which I assume they have even though I didn't have access to the main course menu. You can only order tapas without a reservation. The tapas were just as I remembered them in Spain. However, they were expensive for what they were. A tortilla (potatoes, onions, and eggs) was $18 and a small bowl of patatas bravas (fried potatoes with mayo-based sauce) was $16. I would like to return in the future, with a reservation, to try the paella.

Edit-
The owner has gone above and beyond with follow up to this review. We will certainly return. The Wooden Spoon has a caring owner and chef. We will certainly try additional items on the menu.

I SO wanted to love this place. Went with another couple. We all go out to dinner often, all over the city. We ordered the seafood paella in advance. I wish I had pics.
We ordered the bread and dipping sauce and manchego. Very good. The server was lovely and I thought the decor was really nice.
The paella was a huge disappointment. 3 prawns and six tiny, tiny clams. The rice was okay. Just rice. Nothing special. It almost felt like they forgot about the paella and threw it together. It was very strange.
We also ordered a couple of tapas dishes. The zucchini and shrimp ajillo. The shrimp was very nice and flavorful and cooked well. The zucchini tapas just tasted oily. Maybe it was an off night. We all were so excited and left disappointed.

Really enjoyed this restaurant. The eggplant was amazing. My only disappointment was that you have to order paella 24 hours in advance. I understand it but sometimes it's hard to know with a new restaurant what you want to order. We had a group of 6 and everyone enjoyed their

Chef Yvette prepared an amazing Mixta paella that we enjoyed for Thanksgiving dinner (along with delicious bread as well)!

Okay, so I don't normally leave reviews, because normally even "good" restaurants don't make me want to take the time to write a review. This one does. If I could give 10 starts instead of 5, I would. I cannot give enough praise to The Wooden Spoon and the people who have so clearly devoted their whole selves to it. My fiancé and I arrived there not knowing if we would be able to sit down because it was reservation only on a Friday, but we were met personally by the chef, Yvette, and the waitress, Erin. It is a very intimate restaurant that makes you feel at home immediately. We chatted with Yvette and Erin most of the night, and it was truly one of the better restaurant experiences that have ever had.

I haven't even gotten to the food yet.

Oh my GOSH. When I say the food is out of this world... So normally, I have a very sensitive stomsch. I am easily agitated by food with aggressive spices, and unfortunately often upset by Spanish food (Americanized Spanish food, I should clarify). Almost all of the ingredients at this restaurant are imported from Spain, and when I say they were delicious and did not upset my stomach in the least, I mean it. The passion that Yvette pours into her food is undeniable, and I cannot give enough praise to this restaurant and the people working here.

Absolutely cannot wait to return.

I'm so glad I found this place on a foodie FB page! All the reviews rave that if you want an authentic paella that you should come here and we agree! *Paella must be ordered in advance since it's not a fast dish to make, good things take time. It was so easy and simple to place the reservation; she has a quick template for you to follow on her website.

Our server Luis was great and started us off with some fresh bread and dip, it was focaccia I believe. We all loved it, even my kids devoured it. We tried the mixta paella (seafood, chicken and vegetables) it was so delicious, I'm not a even huge fan of squid (my husband is) but I ended up eating them! And it's served with a homemade aioli that I wish I could put on everything. It was lemony and garlicky, just amazing. Tapas was beautifully prepared - which does not require a reservation - we tried the tortilla espanola, a Spanish potato and onion omelette (very filling, so save some room if you ordered paella which is comes at the end) served with an addictive homemade brava sauce! Not too spicy but it's got a kick to it. My in laws loved the patatas bravas.

Chef Yvette even came out to check on us, told us a bit of her story and explained some of her sauces. You can just feel she radiates this joy and passion for what she does. The atmosphere is cozy and charming, music playing felt like we were actually in Spain. We felt bad because the Google menu has a glitch that mentioned chicken tenders and fries. Which we were planning on ordering for our kids, but Luis was so patient and attentive and Yvette went above and beyond, she whipped up some angel hair pasta for my boys to be able to eat, which was perfect because they love spaghetti

If you're looking to support a local, small business come here. The quality of the food, the atmosphere and the staff are some of the best you'll find here in Richmond.

The wonderful owner is of Spanish heritage and actually goes back and forth to the kitchen to cook and/or supervise the cooking. She will recommend things, she will tell you about what's good, what is and is not on the menu that day. This is a hidden gem with limited hours but what a delight. Sit at the bar, have a chat, have a glass of wine and some patatas bravas or another tapas offering. Don't expect speed - this is a small operation - but what you get is personal attention from a person who truly believes in what she's doing. She would rather serve something delicious and talk to her customers than compromise the ideal. The highlight on this menu (which I did not try) were the varied and extensive paella offerings. Even if you get them to go (this was the impressive part!) customers may take the paella in a casuela (the cast iron skillet) for a small deposit and it is returned when the casuela is returned. Wow! Pretty cool.

Oh and in the background, you may hear some old time Julio Iglesias. Nice.

HOLY. SMOKES. Talk about a taste sensation! Delicious patatas bravas (OMG SOO GOOOODD), zucchini carpaccio was amazing, and the PAELLA... forget about it...

Not to mention... amazing service and a wonderful owner... heartfelt food with flavor... you can't go wrong.