Oxfordshire · England
Live paella catering in Ardley, Oxfordshire
Cooked live, served hot and made to share: live paella catering, cooked fresh in giant pans at your event in Ardley and the surrounding area.
- Naming days and family parties
- Community events and fairs
- Retirement and leaving parties
Paella catering in Ardley
Live paella or other catering?
Food trucks and street-food vans serve one portion at a time. A big pan serves many guests fast, so everyone can eat at the same time. Premium seafood costs more than chicken or vegetables, so the menu you choose affects the price. Tell us your budget and we’ll suggest a menu.
Why us?
- Every diet catered for, pan by pan
- Events in Ardley and across Oxfordshire
- Plates, cutlery and waiting staff available
- Real theatre, not just catering
See Our pricing Or The cost guide.
About our paella catering in Ardley
Paella was made for feeding a crowd: cooked outdoors in a wide, shallow pan and shared. That is what we bring to events in Ardley. Typical bookings include naming days and family parties and weddings and evening receptions, serving black rice, vegan paella and seafood paella.
In a hamlet or village like Ardley, your own garden or a neighbour’s field can make a wonderful venue. Mention gates and soft ground when you get in touch. Everything is cooked from scratch at your event, not reheated.
- Location
- Ardley (OX27)
- Area hub
- Oxfordshire
- Special diets
- Vegetarian, vegan, gluten-free, halal
- Add-ons
- Tapas, desserts, sangria, staff
- Quotes
- Quoted for your event
- Updated
- 23 October 2026
Towns and villages near Ardley
Also in Ardley
Why choose paella catering in Ardley?
It needs no kitchen, so it works in gardens, fields and marquees where other catering struggles.
Here are some of the events we cook for in Ardley and Oxfordshire:
- Festivals, fairs and school events
- Leaving dos and retirements
- Family celebrations and christenings
- Garden get-togethers
For guests coming by train, Bicester North station is about 3.8 miles away.
Before you book anyone
- Plates, cutlery and napkins, or disposables
- Allergen information for each dish
- How many staff are coming, and for how long
- Whether travel is included
The menu, dish by dish
Mixed paella
Paella mixta combines meat and seafood in one pan.
Vegetable and vegan paella
A slow sofrito, seasonal vegetables and a good vegetable stock make a proper main dish. Vegan versions use plant-based stock.
How the day works
The cooking is part of the entertainment. Onion, garlic, peppers and tomato go in first, then the stock and saffron, then the rice, which cooks without stirring. Planning an evening event in Ardley? Sunset is around 9:00pm in late May, 9:30pm at midsummer and 7:10pm in late September; after dark, the cooking and serving areas need good lighting.
- First, you send us your date, venue, numbers and diets.
- You get a suggested menu and an itemised quote.
- We arrive early, set up the cooking area and start the stock.
- Your guests watch the paella cook, with any tapas served first.
- We serve from the pan, then clear our cooking area away.
Before we arrive
- Arrange a covered spot for wet weather
- Tell us when you want to eat
- Leave space around the cooking area
Getting a price
Most quotes start with a few simple details: the date, where the event is, how many guests and any dietary needs. To send them, use our quote form.
Read more
Planning the cooking area
We cook in large pans over gas burners, so we need a suitable spot. These are the things we check:
- Level ground for the pans and burners
- Open air or a well-ventilated covered spot
- A safe distance from anything that could catch
If in doubt, send us a picture of the spot and we will advise.
On the menu in Ardley
- Seafood paella
- Chicken & chorizo paella
- Paella Valenciana
- Mixed paella
- Vegan paella
- Vegetable paella
- Black rice (arroz negro)
Common questions in Ardley
Which station should guests use for Ardley?
The closest is Bicester North station, roughly 3.8 miles away.
How far is Ardley from London?
Roughly 57 miles from the centre of London, and well within our area.
Can you do sangria?
We can make sangria, and we can staff a bar with your drinks.
Can you cook in the rain?
A covered, ventilated spot keeps us cooking in the rain. We’ll make a plan B with you.
Can you cater for children?
Yes, children are easy to cater for. Tell us how many and roughly how old, and we will plan a pan with them in mind.
What equipment do you bring?
All cooking kit comes with us. Let us know what your venue has, like tables or crockery.
How long does the paella take?
It depends on the menu and numbers. We agree the timings in advance.
What happens with live paella?
We set up a cooking area at your venue, cook the paella from scratch in large pans while your guests watch, and serve it straight from the pan.
DIY paella versus live catering
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.
If you do cook yourself, test the pan and burner together beforehand, keep the stock hot, and leave the rice alone once it is in. Keep a clear zone around the burner.
Diets, allergies and planning
Most events have a mix of diets. To cater well for them:
- Confirm allergies by email
- Plan a meat, a seafood and a vegetable or vegan pan
- Have seats for most of your guests
- Let us know about other food at the event
Paella is at its best straight from the pan, so we serve when guests are ready.
Need plates or staff? We can provide them.
Ardley: venues, travel and local tips
Ardley is about 4 miles north-west of Bicester, in Oxfordshire. Across the OX27 area, we can bring the pans to you. We cover 443 places across Oxfordshire, from the larger towns to small villages. You can also see our page for Oxford, about 13 miles away.
If you’re celebrating after a service at a church like Church of St Mary, live paella at a garden or venue nearby works well.
Here we cover the OX27 postcode area, so your event can be anywhere in it. Local streets include Church Road, Station Road and Somerton Road; an event at home on any of them works well with live paella. We also cook at events in Fewcott (1 mile north-west), Fritwell (1 mile north-west), Upper Heyford (2 miles south-west), Middleton Stoney (2 miles south) and Souldern (3 miles north-west). Further out, we also cater in Oxford (13 miles south), Banbury (10 miles north-west), Bicester (4 miles south-east), Kidlington (9 miles south), Headington Quarry (13 miles south) and Bure Park (3 miles south-east).
A little further out are Ardley Castle (less than half a mile west) and Bicester Community Hospital (3.9 miles south-east). Open spaces near Ardley include Graven Hill.
- Local pubs include The Fox and Hounds pub (less than half a mile north-east)
How we price paella catering
Each event is quoted on its own, based on a few main things:
- Extra courses such as canapés, tapas and dessert
- Crockery and cutlery, or disposables
- How many staff you need
- How many guests are eating
Comparing caterers? Look at what each quote includes: staff, crockery, bread and salads, travel and VAT. Our quotes spell it all out.
Getting an accurate quote
To speed things up, tell us:
- Where the event is
- What the venue already provides
- Diets and allergies you know about
- A picture of the cooking space, if it is a garden or field
Still deciding on the menu? No problem: give us the basics about your event, and we’ll suggest a menu. To start, 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