Medway · England
Tapas Catering for Cooling Street events
Treat your guests to live paella at your event in Cooling Street. We cook from scratch on site, and serve it straight from the pan.
- Welcome-drink canapés
- Evening grazing
- Tapas starters
Planning an event in Cooling Street?
Tapas catering for your event in Cooling Street
We can add sangria and bar staff, for a complete drinks and tapas package. Popular choices include patatas bravas, Serrano ham and padrón peppers, and we’re regularly asked to cater birthday and anniversary parties and sharing boards for evening guests.
For a country party near Cooling Street, tapas and sangria set the mood. We serve straight from the pan, so it is hot and generous, and a queue moves quickly.
Working with your venue
Hosting a party at home? Send us a picture of the garden and tell us about access, and we’ll let you know if live paella is a good fit.
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.
Drinks receptions around Cooling Street
Cooling Street is about 4 miles north of Rochester, in Medway. Give us the address of your event in Cooling Street, and we’ll plan the journey and set-up. We cater in 68 places across Medway. We cook right across the region, from Cooling Street to London (26 miles away).
Guests travelling by rail: the nearest station is Higham station, about 2.2 miles south-west. If you are looking at a historic venue around Cooling Street, check its catering rules early, as many limit cooking.
Wherever your event is in ME3, we can cook for your guests, from busy streets to quiet lanes. Nearby, we also cater events in Cooling (1 mile north-east), Chattenden (2 miles south-east), Wainscott (2 miles south), Lower Upnor (2 miles south) and High Halstow (2 miles east). Larger places within reach include Gillingham (6 miles south-east), Chatham (6 miles south), Rochester (4 miles south), Rainham (7 miles south-east), Strood (4 miles south) and Luton (5 miles south).
A little further out are Huguenot Museum (3.7 miles south) and French Hospital (3.8 miles south). Not far away are Gad's Hill and Rede Common.
- Schools near Cooling Street include The Hundred of Hoo Academy (2.2 miles south-east)
Dietary needs and planning tips
With a little notice, every diet is easy. Our advice:
- Match tapas with Spanish drinks
- Collect dietary needs
- Label vegetarian and allergen-free dishes
- Label seafood clearly
Hot tapas are finished on site and served straight away.
Bar staff and sangria.
Nearby places to Cooling Street
Other catering in Cooling Street
Planning the cooking area
Safety and good cooking both depend on the spot we use. We need:
- The venue’s agreement to outside caterers
- Parking near the venue
- Space for a serving table or station
If in doubt, send us a picture of the spot and we’ll advise.
What we offer
- Albóndigas
- Chorizo in red wine
- Croquetas
- Tortilla española
- Manchego & membrillo
- Serrano ham
- Padrón peppers
- Gambas al ajillo
- Patatas bravas
- Olives & bread
Why live cooking beats a buffet
Sandwich buffets are forgettable. Tapas feel like a treat. Compared with a plated meal, live paella is frequently good value, because it needs no kitchen and fewer staff. Ask us for a quote.
Why us?
- Crockery and waiting staff if you need them
- A clear, itemised quote
- Separate pans for vegetarian, vegan, gluten-free and halal guests
- Served hot, straight from the pan
See How we price And Our guide to catering costs.
Dishes our guests love
Manchego & membrillo
Spanish sheep’s cheese with quince paste.
Croquetas
Crisp outside, creamy inside, frequently with ham or mushroom.
What happens on the day
It is a relaxed, well-organised set-up. Arrival and serving times are agreed beforehand, set up the pans and burners, and cook and serve without fuss. Evening receptions in Cooling Street stay light until about 8:50pm in late May and 9:20pm in late June, so canapés can go round outdoors on a summer evening.
- First, we check availability.
- You choose canapés, table tapas or both.
- We arrive and set up our station.
- Hot and cold tapas are served.
- Afterwards, we clear up.
How to prepare
- Make sure we can park close by to unload
- Name one person we can ask on the day
- Let us know the timings for the day
Ask for a quote
Send us the date, your venue or ME3 postcode and guest numbers, plus any dietary needs, and we’ll reply with a menu suggestion and a quote. Just use our quote form.
Planning help
Who books tapas catering in Cooling Street?
They’re the classic starter before paella.
If you are planning any of these, we can help:
- Evening grazing
- Engagement celebrations
- Work receptions
- Tapas with a paella main course
Nearby historic houses include Temple Manor (3.9 miles south) and Restoration House (3.9 miles south). For a drinks reception at a historic venue, canapé tapas can work where live cooking is not allowed.
What to look for in a quote
- The wet-weather plan
- Allergen information for each dish
- How many staff are coming, and for how long
- What the caterer needs from your venue
DIY paella versus live catering
Plenty of people try cooking paella for their own party. The usual problems are a pan too big for the burner, too much rice and stirring once the rice is in. If you’d rather enjoy the party, let us cook.
Not sure whether to cook yourself or book a caterer? Consider your numbers, your guests’ diets and your own time. Ask us for a quote and compare.
Questions from Cooling Street
Can you cater a reception after a service at St James' Church?
Yes, at a nearby garden, marquee or hall where we can cook. Churches rarely have space for live cooking, so the meal is usually elsewhere. Tell us where the reception will be.
Is Cooling Street close to London?
Roughly 26 miles from the centre of London.
Do you supply canapé staff?
Yes, if you want them. Canapés need staff to carry them round.
Do you provide drinks?
Sangria, yes. For other drinks, we can provide bar staff to serve what you buy.
How many different paellas?
Two or three is usual: a meat or mixed paella, a seafood paella and a vegetable or vegan one. We’ll help you decide the split.
Do you have vegetarian tapas?
Plenty are vegetarian, like tortilla and padrón peppers. We label each dish.
Can you cook in the rain?
Rain doesn’t stop us, as long as there is a ventilated cover. We’ll talk it through before the day.
Is halal food available?
We can. Let us know your halal numbers, and it is cooked separately.
- 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