Oxfordshire · England
Festival & event paella in Headington Quarry, Oxfordshire
Paella street food for festivals, fairs, markets and community events in Headington Quarry: paella made from scratch in big, shallow pans, right in front of your guests.
- Country shows
- Feeding crew and volunteers
- School and charity events
Planning an event in Headington Quarry?
DIY paella versus live catering
You can hire equipment and do it yourself, but you’ll still need to source ingredients, prep and cook for hours. We take care of all of it.
If you do cook yourself, test the pan and burner together beforehand, have hot stock ready, and leave the rice alone once it is in. Keep a clear zone around the burner.
How our festival paella catering works in Headington Quarry
Big batches mean lunchtime rushes are easy. Each portion takes seconds to serve. For village fêtes and summer fairs and sports clubs and race days, we will put together a menu of vegan paella, churros and giant-pan paella for your guests.
Around Headington Quarry, a fête or summer fair suits a giant paella pan. Send us the pitch and access details. We cook every pan in full view of your guests, so it arrives hot and becomes part of the event.
- Where
- Headington Quarry (OX3)
- County
- Oxfordshire
- Diets
- Gluten-free, vegan, vegetarian, halal
- Extras
- Tapas, churros, sangria, crockery
- Quotes
- Contact us for a quote
- Updated
- 23 October 2026
Also near Headington Quarry
What else we do in Headington Quarry
What happens on the day
Expect a friendly, organised team. Arrival and serving times are agreed beforehand, set up the pans and burners, and get on with cooking and serving. Summer events in Headington Quarry have daylight until about 9:25pm at midsummer and about 7:10pm by late September, which helps evening trading. For winter markets, dark by about 3:55pm, the pitch needs lighting.
- Send the event name, expected visitors and pitch size.
- We reply with our menu, prices for visitors and requirements.
- We send the documents the event asks for.
- On the day, the pans are on before the busiest hours.
- When trading ends, the pitch is cleared and left clean.
How to prepare
- Name one person we can ask on the day
- Choose a level spot for the cooking area
- Arrange a covered spot for wet weather
How to get a price
Planning festival paella catering in Headington Quarry? Tell us what you have in mind and we will reply with a menu and a clear price. Just send us your details through our quote form.
Read more
Space, weather and the venue
We cook in large pans over gas burners, so the cooking area needs a little planning. These are the things we check:
- Your trader pack and site rules
- Spacing from tents and other structures
- Vehicle access before and after the event
If in doubt, send us a picture of the spot and we will advise.
On the menu in Headington Quarry
- Chicken & chorizo paella
- Tapas
- Churros
- Seafood paella
- Giant paella pans
- Vegan paella
Community events around Headington Quarry
Headington Quarry is about 2 miles north-east of Oxford, in Oxfordshire. Across the OX3 area, we can cook for your guests. We cover 443 places across Oxfordshire, from the larger towns to small villages.
If you are organising a summer fair or fundraiser for a school such as Headington Quarry Foundation Stage School, a paella stall is a crowd-pleaser. Events in parks such as Bury Knowle Park need permission from the council or landowner, and we will send any documents they ask for.
This part of Oxfordshire takes in OX3, and we can cater your event anywhere in it. From Old Road, Mark Road and York Road or a nearby road, we can cook there. Close by, we cover events in Headington (1 mile north-west), Headington Hill (1 mile west), Northway (1 mile north-west), Oxford (2 miles south-west) and New Marston (2 miles west). Larger places within reach include Didcot (11 miles south), Bicester (10 miles north), Abingdon-on-Thames (7 miles south-west), Witney (13 miles west), Thame (10 miles east) and Wantage (15 miles south-west).
A little further out are Nuffield Orthopaedic Centre (0.5 miles south-west) and Templars Square (2.1 miles south). Open spaces near Headington Quarry include CS Lewis Nature Reserve and Shotover.
- Local schools include Windmill Primary School (under half a mile south-west) and Cheney School (1.1 miles south-west)
- Pubs nearby include The Chequers pub (less than half a mile south-east)
- Local facilities include English Faculty Library (2 miles west)
Prices and what affects them
Each event is quoted on its own, based on a few main things:
- Timings and hours
- Guest numbers
- Whether you need crockery
- Starters, canapés and desserts
Compared with a plated meal, live paella is frequently good value, as there’s no kitchen to hire and fewer staff to pay. We’ll send you a quote.
What we need to know
You do not need everything decided to ask for a quote, but these help:
- The courses you’d like
- Any dietary needs and allergies
- The date and rough timings
- Approximate guest numbers, including children
We need only a few details to quote: date, location, guest numbers and diets. To send them, use our quote form.
For event organisers in Headington Quarry
Booking for a company? Tell us what your finance team needs, and we’ll talk you through the process. We can work with your facilities team on access and timings.
For big numbers, we plan pans and serving points to keep queues short, so guests are fed quickly. Tell us how long you have for food.
FAQs for Headington Quarry
What’s the nearest station to Headington Quarry for guests?
Oxford station, about 3 miles west of the centre.
Do you trade at school fairs around Headington Quarry?
Yes, if the school is happy for us to cook on site. Send us the date, pitch and expected numbers.
Do you provide drinks?
Sangria can be added, and we can staff a bar with your drinks.
Which areas do you serve?
We cater across London and the South East, Oxfordshire included. See all areas.
Is there a vegan option?
Yes, always. A vegan paella pan sits alongside the meat and seafood pans.
Do you do starters?
Yes, it is the classic pairing. Tapas go out first, then the paella.
How much paella per person?
We plan quantities from your guest numbers, timings and other courses, with a sensible margin. Give us accurate numbers for the best result.
Can you feed our volunteers?
Yes, at set times to suit your schedule. Send us numbers and times.
Planning for every diet
We cater for vegetarian, vegan, gluten-free and halal guests. To get it right:
- Feed crew and volunteers at set times
- Make sure the line-up includes vegan and gluten-free options
- Give traders a single information pack
- Check allergen info is on display
Allergen details are available at the stall.
Bowl food for easy eating on the move.
Occasions we cook for in Headington Quarry
It covers several diets with one trader, which saves pitches.
Live paella suits almost any gathering. In Headington Quarry, people book us for occasions like:
- Open days
- Charity and school events
- Agricultural and county shows
- Village fêtes
For visitors coming by rail, Oxford station is about 3 miles away.
What your quote should include
- Travel and parking costs
- How late numbers can change
- How long the team stays
- How bad weather is handled
Live paella or other catering?
Not every trader covers vegans. A vegan paella pan sits alongside the others. Cost depends on guest numbers, the menu and the courses, along with staff, extras and travel. Every event gets its own quote.
Why Headington Quarry hosts choose us
- Starters and desserts to complete the menu
- Plates, cutlery and waiting staff available
- Every diet catered for, pan by pan
- A quote that spells everything out
Take a look at Our prices page And What paella catering costs.
- Cooked live in giant pans at your event
- Vegetarian, vegan, gluten-free and halal options
- Paella, tapas, canapés and desserts
- Sangria, bar staff, crockery and waiting staff