Kent · England
Festival & event paella in Sholden Meadows, Kent
Planning festival paella catering in Sholden Meadows? We bring the pans, burners and fresh ingredients and cook in front of your guests.
- Race days and sports events
- Community events and open days
- Music and food festivals
Live festival paella catering in Sholden Meadows
How the day works
A typical event goes like this: we set up the pans and start the sofrito, the rice cooks in front of your guests, and it is served hot from the pan when you are ready to eat. Summer events in Sholden Meadows have daylight until about 9:15pm at midsummer and about 7:00pm by late September, so evening trading normally finishes in daylight in high summer. Winter markets, dark by about 3:50pm, need a well-lit pitch.
- It starts with your event details and pitch information.
- We confirm our menu, pitch needs and documents.
- We set up at the agreed time.
- We cook in front of the crowd and serve from the pan all event.
- We pack down and leave the pitch tidy.
Getting ready for the day
- Have a gazebo or cover ready if rain is likely
- Get the venue’s permission for cooking
- Keep the cooking spot clear of fences, hedges and branches
How to get a price
The more you tell us, the more accurate the quote: venue, timings, courses and extras. To send your details, send us your details through our quote form.
Planning help
Festival paella catering for your event in Sholden Meadows
Few street foods pull a crowd like a huge paella pan. The sight and smell of it cooking brings people over, and service from the pan is fast. Popular choices include seafood paella, churros and giant-pan paella, and typical bookings are for feeding crew and volunteers and village fêtes and summer fairs.
At a fête or field event near Sholden Meadows, we can bring hot food to a rural site. Ground conditions and access matter, so tell us about them. Each paella is cooked from scratch on the day, not reheated.
Places near Sholden Meadows
More for events in Sholden Meadows
Common questions in Sholden Meadows
Is Sholden Meadows too small for live paella?
No, we cook in small places too. Let us know about access and parking.
Which station should guests use for Sholden Meadows?
Deal station, about 1.3 miles east of the centre.
Do you provide plates and cutlery?
We can. Tell us what your venue provides and we will include the rest in the quote.
How many different paellas?
Two or three covers most guests. Tell us about your guests’ diets and we will suggest the mix.
How do you work out quantities?
Quantities depend on numbers, timing and courses, with a sensible margin. Accurate numbers help.
Do you cater for vegetarian guests?
Of course. We cook vegetarian and vegan paellas in their own pans, alongside the meat and seafood pans.
Is it really cooked live?
It is. We arrive with everything we need and cook it there and then, serving it hot from the pan.
Can you serve tapas as well?
Of course. Canapé tapas with the drinks, or table tapas to share, served while the paella cooks.
Diets, allergies and planning
A little planning makes sure everyone can eat. Here’s how:
- Check every diet is covered by the line-up
- Check traders’ packaging and waste plans
- Check how many portions traders can serve
- Check allergen info is on display
We set up at the agreed time, following your trader pack.
Larger pans for peak times.
DIY paella versus live catering
A DIY paella party works for small groups. For big numbers or lots of diets, a caterer makes life easier, and keeps vegetarian and allergy-safe pans separate.
Weighing up DIY against a caterer? Consider your numbers, your guests’ diets and your own time. We’re happy to give you a quote to compare.
Live paella or other catering?
Some traders struggle with vegan and gluten-free options. A vegan paella pan sits alongside the others. The cost per head generally falls as numbers rise, since the set-up is much the same either way. Give us your numbers and we will quote.
Why book with us
- Fast service from the pan
- Sangria, plus bar staff for your own drinks
- Options for vegetarian, vegan, gluten-free and halal guests, each in its own pan
- Plates, cutlery and waiting staff available
Take a look at Our pricing And The cost guide.
Events we cater in Sholden Meadows
It adds theatre to a food line-up.
Whatever you’re celebrating in Sholden Meadows, live paella can be the centrepiece. We regularly cater:
- Festivals
- Village fêtes
- Crew, volunteer and VIP catering
- School and charity events
If you are organising a summer fair or fundraiser for a school such as Sholden Church of England Primary School, a paella stall is a crowd-pleaser.
What to look for in a quote
- The wet-weather plan
- VAT, if it applies
- Exactly what’s included in the price
- Whether travel is included
Prices and what affects them
Here’s what makes the biggest difference to the price:
- Parking and unloading
- The paellas you choose
- The number of people
- Timings and hours
Seafood and premium ingredients cost more than chicken or vegetable paellas, so the menu you choose affects the price. We’ll suggest options to suit your budget.
What to tell us
Good planning starts with a few facts. Please include:
- Where the event is
- A photo of the cooking space, if it is a garden or field
- The courses you’d like
- Expected numbers
We quote for each event separately, so you only pay for what you need. For a quote, send us your details through our quote form.
For planners, venues and organisers
For big numbers, we plan pans and serving points to keep queues short, so guests are fed quickly. Let us know how long the food break is.
Many venues have rules for outside caterers: cooking areas, access times and documents. Tell us what your venue needs and we will work to it.
Running an event in Sholden Meadows
Sholden Meadows is about 1 mile north-west of Deal, in Kent. Wherever your event is in the CT14 area, we can bring the pans to you. Sholden Meadows is one of 922 places in Kent where we cook. Our events stretch from Sholden Meadows to Canterbury (13 miles away).
For visitors coming by rail, Deal station is about 1.3 miles away. Events in parks such as Betteshanger Park need permission from the council or landowner, and we’ll send any documents they ask for. With the sea within about 2 miles, we plan shelter from the wind for coastal events.
Anywhere in CT14, we can bring festival paella catering to you. Whether your event is on Bargrave Lane, Wyborn Drive and Banks Way or a nearby road, we will bring the pans to you. Other places close to Sholden Meadows for festival paella catering include Sholden (1 mile east), Great Mongeham (1 mile south-west), Mill Hill (1 mile south), Deal (1 mile south-east) and Finglesham (1 mile north-west). Further out, we also cater in Canterbury (13 miles west), Margate (11 miles north), Dover (7 miles south-west), Folkestone (13 miles south-west), Ramsgate (8 miles north) and Broadstairs (10 miles north).
Nearby you’ll also find Deal Castle (1.5 miles east) and Kent Museum of the Moving Image (1.3 miles east). Open spaces near Sholden Meadows include Monk's Wall nature reserve.
- Schools near Sholden Meadows include Castle Community College (1.1 miles south-east)
- Local pubs include The Magnet pub (0.7 miles south-east)
Planning the cooking area
We’ll be honest if a space won’t work, and suggest an alternative. What matters most:
- Firm, level ground
- Vehicle access before and after the event
- Your trader pack and site rules
If you’re unsure, send a picture of the space and we will say what we think before booking.
Menu ideas
- Tapas
- Giant paella pans
- Chicken & chorizo paella
- Churros
- Seafood paella
- Vegan paella
- 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