Kent · England
Live paella catering in Kemsing, Kent
Hot, generous and cooked in front of everyone: live paella catering, cooked fresh in giant pans at your event for events in Kemsing and across Kent.
- Weddings, from canapés to evening food
- Big birthdays
- Garden parties and summer barbecues
Live paella catering in Kemsing
Paella catering in Kemsing, cooked live
Almost any venue with a level, ventilated spot will do: a garden, marquee, barn, courtyard or field. Popular choices include paella Valenciana, mixed paella and seafood paella, and we are often booked for family celebrations and christenings and community events and fairs.
Around Kemsing, events are frequently in gardens, local halls or nearby venues. If access is tight, we’ll plan around it. We cook every pan in full view of your guests, so it arrives hot and becomes part of the event.
Perfect for your event in Kemsing
It needs no kitchen, so it works in gardens, fields and marquees where plated meals are hard.
Live paella works for big and small events alike. Typical bookings include:
- Weddings, from canapés to evening food
- Naming days and family parties
- Fairs, fêtes and festivals
- Retirement and leaving parties
If you are organising a summer fair for a school like Kemsing Primary School, a paella stall is a crowd-pleaser.
Comparing caterers
- Whether crockery, cutlery and napkins are included
- When payment is due
- Allergen information for each dish
- What the price includes, item by item
Dietary needs and planning tips
Dietary needs are easy to plan for with a little notice. Our advice:
- Pick a mix of paellas to cover every diet
- Ensure most guests can sit to eat
- Tell us how many children are coming
- Send allergies to us in writing
Paella is best eaten as soon as it is ready, so we serve when guests are ready.
Finish with churros, crema catalana or tarta de Santiago, or serve your own cake.
For event organisers in Kemsing
For big numbers, we plan pans and serving points to keep queues short, so guests are fed quickly. Tell us how long you have for food.
Booking for a company? Tell us what your finance team needs, and we will talk you through the process. We’re happy to liaise with facilities on access and timings.
Why live cooking beats a buffet
Next to a hog roast or barbecue, paella makes vegetarian, vegan and halal guests easier to cater for, thanks to separate pans. Service from the pan keeps queues moving. Access and travel can make a difference to the cost, so it helps to tell us about your venue. Everything is confirmed in writing.
Why Kemsing hosts choose us
- Food that becomes part of the entertainment
- Separate pans for vegetarian, vegan, gluten-free and halal guests
- A quote that spells everything out
- Waiting staff and crockery on request
Take a look at How we price And What paella catering costs.
Space, weather and the venue
No two venues are the same, so we will ask about yours before we confirm. In general, we need:
- Somewhere close to park and unload
- Confirmation that open cooking is allowed
- Good ventilation: outdoors, or an open-sided cover
If in doubt, send us a picture of the spot and we’ll advise.
Popular choices
- Paella Valenciana
- Vegan paella
- Black rice (arroz negro)
- Chicken & chorizo paella
- Vegetable paella
- Seafood paella
- Mixed paella
Towns and villages near Kemsing
Also in Kemsing
Kemsing: venues, travel and local tips
Kemsing is about 2 miles north-east of Sevenoaks, in Kent. Across the TN15 area, we can cook for your guests. Kemsing is one of 922 places in Kent where we cook. Our nearest city page is London, about 19 miles away.
Historic houses near Kemsing include Knole House (2.8 miles south) and Lullingstone Castle (3.7 miles north). If your event is at a historic house or estate, check its rules on caterers and cooking early. Thinking of a picnic-style party in Kemsing Down? Public parks typically need permission from the council or landowner for cooking, so check first. The Kent Downs National Landscape is within about 3 miles of Kemsing, and country venues and gardens there suit live paella perfectly. Check your venue’s rules on vehicles and cooking.
For paella catering in TN15, we plan around your venue and your guests. Streets in the area include High Street, Copperfields Walk and Childsbridge Lane, and we can cook for an event on any of them. Other places close to Kemsing for paella catering include Cotman's Ash (1 mile north-east), Heaverham (2 miles east), Woodlands (2 miles north-east), Romney Street (2 miles north) and Knatts Valley (2 miles north-east). Within a short drive, we also cover Maidstone (14 miles east), Dartford (9 miles north), Royal Tunbridge Wells (12 miles south), Gravesend (11 miles north-east), Tonbridge (8 miles south) and Northfleet (10 miles north-east).
A little further out are Kemsing Castle Bank (0.5 miles east) and Otford Heritage Centre (1 mile west). The countryside around Kemsing includes Dryhill Nature Reserve.
- Nearby schools include St Michael's Preparatory School (0.6 miles north-west) and Knole Academy (2 miles south-west)
The menu, dish by dish
Mixed paella
Chicken and seafood together.
Black rice
Arroz negro is coloured and flavoured with squid ink, and is usually served with alioli. It’s a striking addition to a seafood menu.
Cook it yourself or book a caterer?
For a small group, cooking yourself can work well. For big numbers or lots of diets, a caterer makes life easier, 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 do not stir once the rice goes in. And keep children and pets well away from the burner.
What happens on the day
Once the rice is in, we don’t stir it. That is how the grains cook evenly and the toasted base, the socarrat, forms. Your guests will smell it before they see it. Evenings in Kemsing stay light until about 9:20pm in June, but by late September sunset is around 7:05pm; once it is dark, we need light to cook and serve by.
- Start with the date, the place and the numbers.
- Expect a menu idea and a clear, itemised price.
- Closer to the day, we confirm timings and the cooking spot.
- On the day we cook live, timed around your event.
- Guests are served from the pan, and our area is cleared afterwards.
Preparing for the day
- Get the venue’s permission for cooking
- Ensure the spot is clear of anything flammable
- Tell us where to park and unload
Getting a price
Send us the date, your venue or TN15 postcode and guest numbers, plus any dietary needs, and we will reply with a menu suggestion and a quote. To get started, send us your details through our quote form.
Related guides
Kemsing questions
Can you cook in Kemsing Down?
Only with permission from the park’s owner, typically the council. Check with them, and we’ll provide our paperwork.
Can you cater a reception after a service at Church of St Mary?
Yes, at a nearby garden, marquee or hall where we can cook. Live cooking normally happens at the reception venue, not the church. Tell us where the reception will be.
Do you provide drinks?
Sangria, yes. For other drinks, we can provide bar staff to serve what you buy.
How much does paella catering cost in Kemsing?
Every event is quoted individually, so you only pay for what you need. Tell us your date and numbers and we’ll reply with a price.
Do we need to provide equipment?
We bring the pans, burners and ingredients. You just need a suitable spot and access.
What space do you need to cook?
A level space for the pans, burners and a serving table, in the open air or a ventilated covered area, plus the venue’s agreement to cooking.
Can the paella be cooked in a hall?
Only in a suitable, well-ventilated area with the venue’s permission. Courtyards, doorways and terraces frequently work.
Can you bring crockery?
We can. Let us know what you have, and we’ll quote for the rest.
- 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