Kent · England
Paella Catering in Aldington
From the first sizzle of the sofrito to the last spoonful of crispy rice, live paella catering, cooked fresh in giant pans at your event makes the food a highlight of your event in Aldington.
- Anniversaries and engagement parties
- Company summer parties
- Christenings and family gatherings
Live paella catering in Aldington
Questions from Aldington
We are having a ceremony at Church of St Martin: can you cater afterwards?
Yes, at a garden, marquee or venue nearby with a suitable spot to cook. Live cooking normally happens at the reception venue, not the church. Tell us where the reception will be.
Do you come out to small places like Aldington?
No, we cook in small places too. Let us know about access and parking.
What space do you need to cook?
A level space for the pans, burners and a serving table, outdoors or in a marquee or well-ventilated area, plus the venue’s agreement to cooking.
Do you cover Aldington?
We do. Aldington is one of the places we cover. Tell us your date and we will check availability.
Who clears up?
We take our equipment and leave the cooking area tidy. Table clearing is available with waiting staff.
When do you arrive?
That depends on your menu and numbers. We agree the timings in advance.
Do you have a kids’ option?
Of course. Children frequently love a simple chicken paella. Tell us how many are coming.
How do you work out quantities?
Pans are sized to your numbers and other courses. Let us know about any other food. See how much paella per person.
Paella catering for your event in Aldington
A single cooking set-up can feed a crowd, very little goes to waste, and the food is served hot. That is why it works for so many events. For festivals, fairs and school events and christenings and family gatherings, we can cook mixed paella, vegetable paella and vegan paella.
Somewhere like Aldington, a field or garden is frequently the perfect setting. Mention gates and soft ground when you contact us. All the cooking equipment comes with us, and we clear our cooking area away afterwards.
A closer look at the menu
Seafood paella
Seafood paella starts with a good fish and shellfish stock. Shellfish goes in towards the end so it stays tender.
Paella Valenciana
Valencians take their paella seriously. The classic version is chicken, green beans and butter beans with saffron, and it is a crowd-pleaser.
Should I cook it myself?
Plenty of people try cooking paella for their own party. Common mistakes are mismatched pans and burners, overfilling and stirring. If you’d rather be with your guests, we will do the cooking.
For a small group, cooking yourself can work well. For larger numbers, mixed diets or a wedding, a caterer takes the pressure off, and keeps vegetarian and allergy-safe pans separate.
Diets, allergies and planning
We cater for vegetarian, vegan, gluten-free and halal guests. To make it work smoothly:
- Tell us about coeliac guests specifically
- Tell us what else is being served
- Tell us how many children are coming
- Have seats for most of your guests
Let the paella rest for a few minutes before serving, and that’s when we invite guests up.
Bread, salad and lemon wedges make the meal go further.
Where we can cook in Aldington
Safety and good cooking both depend on the spot we use. We need:
- Agreement from the venue or landowner to cook on site
- A safe distance from anything that could catch
- Somewhere close to park and unload
If you’re unsure, send a photo of the space and we will say what we think.
What we offer
- Paella Valenciana
- Mixed paella
- Seafood paella
- Chicken & chorizo paella
- Vegetable paella
- Vegan paella
- Black rice (arroz negro)
Also near Aldington
Other catering in Aldington
Working with your venue
If your event is in a public space, such as a park, check what permission you need first. We will provide any information the landowner or council asks for.
For larger events, we plan the number of pans and serving points around your timings, so guests are fed quickly. Tell us how long you have for food.
What happens on the day
When the rice goes in, it’s left alone. That’s how the grains cook evenly and the toasted base, the socarrat, forms. Your guests will smell it before they see it. Evenings in Aldington stay light until about 9:15pm in June, but by late September sunset is around 7:00pm; after dark, the cooking and serving areas need good lighting.
- Get in touch with the basics: when, where and how many.
- We come back with paellas to suit your guests, plus any extras.
- Closer to the day, we confirm timings and the cooking spot.
- On the day we cook live, timed around your event.
- We serve, then leave our area tidy.
How to prepare
- Give us your final numbers and diets
- Keep the cooking spot clear of fences, hedges and branches
- Let us know who to talk to on the day
Getting a price
It is easy to get a price: share your date, venue, numbers and diets. We will send a clear, itemised quote and a suggested menu.
Read more
Planning live paella in Aldington
Aldington is about 5 miles south-east of Ashford, in Kent. Give us the address of your event in Aldington, and we’ll plan the journey and set-up before the day. Aldington is one of 922 places in Kent we cover. You can also see our page for Canterbury, about 14 miles away.
School fairs and fundraisers, for a school such as Aldington Primary School, can book us as a food stall. Thinking of a picnic-style party in Poulton Wood? Public parks generally need permission from the council or landowner for cooking, so check first. Aldington is within about 7 miles of the Kent Downs National Landscape, a lovely setting for an outdoor event. Some venues in protected landscapes have rules about vehicles and cooking, so check with yours.
This part of Kent takes in TN25, and we can cater your event anywhere in it. Local streets include Earlsfield, Walnut Ridge and Badgers Close; an event at home on any of them works well with live paella. Close by, we cover events in Clap Hill (1 mile north-west), Stonestreet Green (1 mile north), Bonnington (1 mile south-west), Postling Green (1 mile south-east) and Aldington Frith (1 mile west). Further out, we also cater in Ashford (5 miles north-west), Canterbury (14 miles north-east), Folkestone (10 miles east), Hythe (6 miles east), Preston (15 miles north) and Hawkinge (10 miles east).
Nearby you will also find Lympne Castle (3.8 miles east) and William Harvey Hospital (3.6 miles north). The countryside around Aldington includes Hatch Park.
- Local pubs include Walnut Tree Inn (under half a mile east)
Why live cooking beats a buffet
For something a little different, live paella adds colour, smell and theatre to your event in Aldington. The cost per head generally falls as numbers rise, because the cooking set-up is similar for different sizes of event. Tell us your numbers for an accurate price.
Why Aldington hosts choose us
- Events in Aldington and across Kent
- Paella cooked from scratch on site
- Tapas, canapés and desserts if you want them
- Every diet catered for, pan by pan
Read How we price And The cost guide.
What paella catering costs
Two events with the same number of guests can cost different amounts, depending on:
- How long we are needed on site
- Parking and unloading
- How many guests are eating
- How many staff you need
When you compare quotes, check what each one includes: staff, crockery, sides, travel and VAT. Our quotes spell it all out.
What we need to know
You do not need every detail fixed to get a quote, but it helps to know:
- Vegetarian, vegan, gluten-free, halal and allergy numbers
- A photo of the cooking space, if it’s a garden or field
- The address or venue name
- Expected numbers
A detailed enquiry gets a more accurate quote: venue, timings, courses and extras. To send your details, fill in our quote form.
- 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