East Sussex · England
Festival & event paella in Old Town, East Sussex
Bring the theatre of live paella to your event in Old Town. Everything is cooked fresh on the day, and serve it straight from the pan.
- School and charity events
- Sports club events
- Farmers’ and Christmas markets
Festival paella catering near Old Town
Perfect for your event in Old Town
It feeds crew and volunteers well.
Live paella works for big and small events alike. Common bookings include:
- Open days and community events
- School and charity events
- Food and music festivals
- County and country shows
School fairs, for a school like Gildredge House, are a natural fit for a paella stall.
Comparing caterers
- The venue requirements
- When payment is due
- Travel and parking costs
- The deadline for final numbers
How our festival paella catering works in Old Town
We bring the pans and burners and work to your site rules, from arrival times to waste. We cook seafood paella, churros and chicken and chorizo paella, and we are often booked for village fêtes and summer fairs and seasonal markets.
Around Old Town, a fête or summer fair suits a giant paella pan. Send us the pitch and access details. Tapas, canapés, desserts, sangria and staff can all be added, so the whole menu comes from one caterer.
- Area
- Old Town (BN21, BN20, BN22)
- County
- East Sussex
- Dietary options
- Vegetarian, vegan, gluten-free, halal
- Add-ons
- Tapas, desserts, sangria, staff
- Price
- Ask us for a quote
- Page updated
- 23 October 2026
Questions from Old Town
Can you cook at venues in the South Downs National Park?
Yes. Some venues there have rules about vehicles, ground and cooking, so check with yours. We’ll work to whatever the site needs.
Could we have live paella in Gildrege Park?
Only if the landowner, normally the council, allows it. Check with them, and we’ll provide our paperwork.
What if the weather’s bad?
A covered, ventilated spot keeps us cooking in the rain. We’ll make a plan B with you.
What do you need at the pitch?
Tell us what’s available at the pitch and we’ll confirm what we need.
Can you supply plates?
Yes, on request. Crockery, cutlery and napkins, or good-quality disposables are available.
Where do you cater?
We cover London and the South East, including East Sussex. Find your area.
Can you trade at our festival or fair?
Send us the details, and we’ll reply with our availability and what we need.
Can you do sangria?
Sangria, yes. We can also supply bar staff for your own drinks.
What festival paella catering costs
The same guest numbers can mean different prices, depending on:
- Extra courses such as canapés, tapas and dessert
- The paellas you choose
- Plates, cutlery and glassware
- How long we are needed on site
If you have a budget in mind, tell us, and we’ll put together a menu that fits. A simple menu can still feel generous.
What we need to know
To check availability and price, we need:
- What the venue already provides
- Vegetarian, vegan, gluten-free, halal and allergy numbers
- A picture of the cooking space, if it’s a garden or field
- Whether you want canapés, tapas or desserts
Each quote is tailored to your event. Tell us your date and guest numbers, and we will check availability at the same time.
Planning the cooking area
Every venue is different, so we ask about the space when you get in touch. In general, we need:
- A pitch big enough for the pans, burners and serving table
- Flat, firm ground
- Clearance from tents and gazebos
If in doubt, send us a picture of the spot and we will advise.
Menu ideas
- Vegan paella
- Tapas
- Giant paella pans
- Churros
- Seafood paella
- Chicken & chorizo paella
Dishes our guests love
Seafood paella
Seafood paella is always popular.
Giant paella pans
It’s the huge pan people come to see.
Old Town events: pitches and permissions
Old Town is about 1 mile south-west of Eastbourne, in East Sussex. For festival paella catering in Old Town, we plan around your venue and timings: a quote, a plan and live cooking on the day. Old Town is one of 289 towns and villages in East Sussex we cover. You can also see our page for Brighton, about 18 miles away.
If your event is in Gildrege Park, the organiser will need the landowner’s permission; we’ll supply our paperwork. Running a fête for a church like Church of St Mary? A paella pan draws people in. Within about 6 miles is the South Downs National Park, where events may have extra rules on vehicles and waste; we’ll follow the site’s requirements. The coast is within about 2 miles of Old Town, so for seaside events we plan a sheltered pitch.
Here we cover the BN21, BN20 and BN22 postcode area, and we can cater your event anywhere in it. Your event could be at a home on Love Lane, Mill Road and Greys Road. For events just outside Old Town, we cover Upperton (1 mile east), Meads (1 mile south), Eastbourne (1 mile north-east), Holywell (1 mile south) and Ratton Village (1 mile north). Further out, we also cater in Hastings (15 miles north-east), Bexhill-on-Sea (10 miles north-east), Seaford (7 miles west), Lewes (13 miles north-west), Hailsham (6 miles north) and St Leonards (14 miles north-east).
Nearby you’ll also find Eastbourne District General Hospital (1 mile north) and Pevensey Castle (4.4 miles north-east). Not far away are Combe Hill.
- Local schools include WMG Academy for Young Engineers (less than half a mile south) and Motcombe Infants' School (within half a mile north-west)
- Local pubs include The Lamb Inn (under half a mile east)
What happens on the day
We take care of the food from set-up to service, so you can enjoy your event. If you’ve chosen tapas or canapés, they go out first as the rice is cooking. At midsummer, events in Old Town stay light until about 9:15pm, which helps evening trading. Winter markets, dark by about 3:55pm, need a well-lit pitch.
- Tell us about the event, the crowd and the pitch.
- We reply with our menu, prices for visitors and requirements.
- Paperwork goes over in good time.
- We time the first pans for the lunchtime rush.
- When trading ends, the pitch is cleared and left clean.
Getting ready for the day
- Get the venue’s permission for cooking
- Arrange a covered spot for wet weather
- Tell us when you want to eat
How to get a price
Tell us your date, venue or postcode and roughly how many guests, plus any dietary needs, and you will get a menu idea and a price. Just fill in our quote form.
Planning help
Should I cook it myself?
You can cook paella for a crowd yourself, but it takes practice. A big pan needs a burner that heats it evenly, and getting the rice right at scale is tricky. Our guide to cooking paella for a crowd explains how.
If you do cook yourself, test the pan and burner together beforehand, keep the stock hot, and leave the rice alone once it’s in. Keep a clear zone around the burner.
Live paella or other catering?
If you want a trader that adds atmosphere, a paella pan delivers. Tapas, desserts, sangria, staff and crockery are optional extras, so you can choose exactly what you need.
Why Old Town hosts choose us
- Everything cooked fresh at your event
- Cooking your guests will gather round to watch
- We cover Old Town and the whole of East Sussex
- No hidden extras in your quote
Read How we price And The cost guide.
Towns and villages near Old Town
What else we do in Old Town
Working with your venue
Hosting a party at home? Send us a picture of the garden and tell us about access, and we’ll tell you honestly whether live paella will work.
If you run the same event each year, tell us your dates early, so we can hold the date.
- 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