Oxfordshire · England
Live paella catering in Charlton, Oxfordshire
Paella for every guest: meat, seafood, vegetarian and vegan pans side by side. Live paella catering, cooked fresh in giant pans at your event in Charlton.
- Wedding breakfasts and evening food
- Festivals, fairs and school events
- Anniversaries and engagement parties
Paella catering in Charlton
Paella catering in Charlton, cooked live
Two or three pans side by side cover every guest: meat, seafood and vegetarian or vegan paellas. Each is cooked separately. Typical bookings include community events and fairs and weddings, from canapés to evening food, serving black rice, chicken and chorizo paella and mixed paella.
A place like Charlton often has a hall, a club or a pub garden nearby; live paella can work at any of them, given permission and outdoor space. We bring everything we need to cook, and pack down our cooking area when service is finished.
- Area
- Charlton (OX12)
- Area hub
- Oxfordshire
- Dietary options
- Vegetarian, vegan, gluten-free, halal
- Add-ons
- Tapas, churros, sangria, crockery
- Price
- Quoted for your event
- Updated
- 23 October 2026
Perfect for your event in Charlton
Live paella is food and a show in one. The pans become a focal point, and the food is hot and generous.
We can help if you are planning any of the following:
- Anniversaries and engagement parties
- Community events and fairs
- Leaving dos and retirements
- Company summer parties
For a christening or wedding at a church such as Holy Trinity Church, a paella lunch or reception nearby is an easy way to feed everyone.
Questions to ask before you book
- How bad weather is handled
- How long the team stays
- Travel and parking costs
- When final numbers are due
Towns and villages near Charlton
Also in Charlton
A closer look at the menu
Paella Valenciana
Valencians take their paella seriously. The traditional pan has chicken, flat green beans and butter beans.
Seafood paella
Prawns, mussels and squid in a rich fish stock, cooked until the rice is golden. It is the pan people photograph.
Dietary needs and planning tips
Paella is one of the easiest dishes for mixed diets, because every paella has its own pan. Here are a few tips for planning:
- Let us know if anyone has coeliac disease
- Plan seating for most guests: paella is easiest eaten sitting down
- Choose two or three paellas so every guest has a choice
- Collect dietary needs with your RSVPs
If you’ve booked staff, they’ll serve, clear and help keep things moving, so you can enjoy your guests.
Crockery, cutlery and waiting staff are available if your venue does not provide them.
FAQs for Charlton
We’re having a ceremony at Holy Trinity Church: can you cater afterwards?
Yes, at a garden, marquee or venue nearby with a suitable spot to cook. Churches rarely have space for live cooking, so the meal is normally elsewhere. Tell us where the reception will be.
How far is Charlton from London?
About 57 miles from central London.
Can you serve drinks?
Yes, sangria. We can also supply bar staff for your own drinks.
What equipment do you bring?
We bring all the cooking equipment. Let us know what your venue has, like tables or crockery.
Is paella enough as a main?
It can be. With bread and salad, paella is a complete main.
When do you arrive?
We arrive well before serving to set up and start the stock. Once the rice goes in, it takes about 20 minutes, timed around your event.
Is the paella cooked on site?
Yes. We cook from scratch in large pans at your venue, where your guests can watch.
Do you cater for vegetarian guests?
Yes, and they’re popular with everyone. They have their own pans, stock and spoons.
Planning the cooking area
No two venues are the same, so we ask about the space when you get in touch. In general, we need:
- Level ground for the pans and burners
- Confirmation that open cooking is allowed
- Good ventilation: outdoors, or an open-sided cover
Not sure about your space? Send us a photo and we’ll tell you honestly.
Menu ideas
- Mixed paella
- Paella Valenciana
- Black rice (arroz negro)
- Vegetable paella
- Seafood paella
- Chicken & chorizo paella
- Vegan paella
Step by step
Service is quick: we serve straight from the pan, so large groups are fed quickly. When service is finished, we pack down. Evenings in Charlton stay light until about 9:25pm in June, but by late September sunset is around 7:10pm; once it is dark, we need light to cook and serve by.
- First, tell us about your event.
- You get a menu and an itemised quote.
- Timings, access and the cooking area are agreed in advance.
- We cook live on the day while guests watch.
- It is served straight from the pan, and we clear our area afterwards.
Before we arrive
- Let us know the timings for the day
- Get the venue’s permission for cooking
- Ensure the spot is clear of anything flammable
Ask for a quote
We quote for each event separately, so the price fits what you actually want. For a quote, send us your details through our quote form.
Related guides
Prices and what affects them
The price comes down to a few factors:
- Guest numbers
- Starters, canapés and desserts
- Timings and hours
- Waiting and bar staff
Live paella often compares well with a sit-down meal, as there’s no kitchen to hire and fewer staff to pay. Ask us for a quote.
Details that help
To check availability and price, we need:
- The courses you’d like
- What the venue already provides
- Roughly how many adults and children
- The venue or postcode
Every quote is put together for your event. Tell us your date and guest numbers, and we will confirm whether we are available that day.
Live paella in Charlton: local details
Charlton is about 7 miles west of Didcot, in Oxfordshire. Tell us where your event in Charlton will be, and we will plan the journey and set-up. Charlton is one of 443 places in Oxfordshire we cover. We cook right across the region, from Charlton to Oxford (about 13 miles away).
Parks such as Betjeman Millennium Park typically need the owner’s permission for cooking, so ask before you plan a party there. School fairs and fundraisers, for a school such as Charlton Primary School, can book us as a food stall. Charlton is within about 8 miles of the North Wessex Downs National Landscape, and country venues and gardens there suit live paella perfectly. Check your venue’s rules on vehicles and cooking.
Wherever your event is in OX12, we can cook for your guests, from busy streets to quiet lanes. That could mean an event in a garden on Grove Road, Little Lane and Ormond Road. You’ll find Charlton on the A417, so it’s easy for us to reach with the van and pans. Close by, we cover events in Wantage (1 mile west), East Challow (2 miles west), Letcombe Regis (2 miles south-west), West Challow (2 miles west) and Childrey (3 miles west). Further out, we also cater in Oxford (13 miles north-east), Didcot (7 miles east), Abingdon-on-Thames (8 miles north-east), Witney (14 miles north), Carterton (14 miles north-west) and Faringdon (8 miles north-west).
Well-known places in the area include Williams F1 Grand Prix Collection (1.8 miles north). Green spaces nearby include Letcombe Valley and Chain Hill.
- Schools near Charlton include St Mary's School (0.6 miles south-west) and King Alfred's (0.7 miles south-west)
- Nearby, you’ll find Lord Nelson pub (less than half a mile south-east)
Why choose live paella in Charlton?
Food trucks and street-food vans serve one portion at a time. A big pan serves many guests fast, which suits weddings and parties where everyone eats together. There’s no one-size-fits-all price for live paella. A simple paella lunch costs less than a wedding with canapés, three paellas and waiting staff. We itemise everything in your quote.
Why us?
- Hot food served quickly from the pan
- Sangria and bar staff available
- Add tapas, canapés and Spanish desserts
- We cover Charlton and the whole of Oxfordshire
Take a look at How we price Or Our guide to catering costs.
Planners, venues and businesses
If you’re booking for a business, tell us how you’d like to handle the booking and payment, and we’ll talk you through the process. We are happy to liaise with facilities on access and timings.
Hosting a party at home? Send a photo of the space and tell us about parking, and we’ll let you know if live paella is a good fit.
- 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