About this vendor
You can bring the taste of Spain to your big day with Paella Time, a wedding catering company based in San Francisco, CA. Owner Ralph is a classically trained chef with over 25 years of experience serving great food to diners throughout the Bay Area. After spending many years working closely with a Spanish chef, learning all about traditional recipes and cooking techniques, Ralph became inspired to share his own take on Spanish paella with the world. Paella Time is the result and a tribute to tradition, family cooking, and exquisite flavor.
Ralph and his team specialize in full-service event catering, with every dish prepared and served within guest's view. Paella Time's event menu is a true celebration of authentic Spanish cuisine, from the tasty tapas to the delectable desserts. The jewel of the menu, Ralph's signature paella, is prepared using saffron stock, a traditional cooking technique passed down through generations. He packs every portion with fresh seafood, meat, and vegetables, ensuring you and your guests can taste flavor and quality in every bite.
Paella Time can cater your pre-wedding party, rehearsal dinner, or the big day itself. Ralph and the team will arrive at your event with everything needed to serve your guests Spanish-style, including tables, chairs, and dinnerware if required. If you'd like to bring a little more "Fiesta" to your celebration, why not add a sangria bar or flamenco entertainment to your catering experience? You and your beloved can enjoy a complimentary tasting session before your special day to become familiar with your event menu and Ralph's cooking style. The Paella Time team would be honored to give you and your guests a memorable "time" on your wedding day.
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4.7
out of 5.053 reviews
Review Summary
This AI-generated summary is a snapshot of this vendor's ratings and feedback.
Paella Time received glowing reviews for catering weddings, with reviewers praising the delicious food, professional service, and helpful staff like Ralph and Tiffany. Guests were impressed by the live cooking experience, the abundance of food, and the efficiency of set up and clean up. Many couples appreciated the customization options, assistance with logistics, and provision of linens and tableware, making Paella Time a highly recommended one-stop caterer for memorable wedding celebrations.Review photos
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We hired Paella Time to cater our wedding in Oakland, and everything about them was AMAZING. From the planning stages, Ralph and Tiffany were super responsive, helpful, and accommodating with our requests.
It's hard to write this review, because everything about Paella Time was just on point. From the food, to the friendliness of the staff, to the efficiency of set up/clean up. Help with cake cutting, serving, bar tending, really a one stop shop. I cannot stop hearing from guests how amazing the food was and how much they enjoyed it. It makes my (now) wife super happy that we chose Paella Time for our Big Day. I highly recommend anyone looking for a caterer to go with them. I'm actually trying to convince my company to use them for our events...thanks again for making our vision for our wedding come alive. I also really appreciated how knowledgeable they were with the venue since they're locals, so they offered some great suggestions. Oh and there was plenty for seconds and left overs!
I'm not one for writing many reviews, but Chef Ralph, Tiffany, and the entire Paella Time team did an amazing job catering our wedding. LOVED the food and service. Everything was exactly as promised. Absolutely recommend.
Paella Time catered our wedding (120 guests) and they were INCREDIBLE. The food was delicious and freshly prepared in front of our guests. Definitely NOT your typical bland, boring wedding food. We received so many compliments from our guests. Paella Time provided the linens, plates, flatware, and glassware. The staff arrived before our guests, and took care of all the set up, and stayed afterwards to clean everything up. Tiffany was so nice, friendly, and helpful. The price was also great. We would have paid double for what they charged us for this level of quality, service, and attention to detail. You will not regret hiring Paella Time.
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We love Paella Time! Paella Time did an amazing job. We were first introduced to Paella Time at a company function a few years ago. When we were discussing food for our wedding, we knew we wanted Paella Time. The live cooking creates a unique experience that no other caterer can match. The process from start to finish was so easy. And the food was better than we remembered. Thank you Paella Time for being part of our special day.
We met and fell in love in Spain. Paella Time created an experience that we could share with our family and friends. The paella was just as good as any paella we had in Spain. The sangria was delicious and the tapas were all excellent. The staff was friendly and attentive. Thank you, Chef Ralph, Tiffany, and team for a wonderful experience.
Paella Time catered our wedding, and did an excellent job. Good communication, reasonable prices, and AMAZING food. The entire process was quite simple. Paella Time provided us with many options. Definitely recommend.
Paella Time was just what we were looking for! The food was amazing. The service was friendly and professional. We didn’t have a coordinator, and Paella Time was able to help with much of the logistics. We needed tables, chairs, linens, and Paella Time took care of that too. We didn’t want boring food choices, and wanted something different and fun. Our venue recommended Paella Time, and from our first email exchange we knew we had found our caterer. To everyone on the Paella Time team, thank you for everything, the Huberts. HIGHLY RECOMMEND!
Good job catering our wedding for 150 guests. The paella and appetizers we’re excellent. Many of our guests never had this type of food before. Everyone enjoyed it. The cooking was fun. Thank you Paella Time.
The food that Paella Time provided for our wedding was great! We ordered vegetarian and chicken & chorizo paella, salad, and the cheese samplers for appetizers. We also hired Paella Time for bartending services (we provided our own alcohol), and for chairs, tables, and linens.
Unfortunately, the service leading up to and during the wedding was the most stressful aspect of our wedding planning experience. We asked several times over the course of a few months to schedule a call to go over questions, since email answers from Ralph and Tiffany were unclear, but they declined to schedule a phone call given their preference for written communication. The week-of, things became more challenging. We only received our final invoice two days before the wedding, and it was more expensive than we expected. First, tables and chairs cost several hundred dollars more than was listed on their website (which were the prices that they sent us multiple times), and when we asked to clarify, we were told that those prices were from pre-2020. Further, the original quote made the pricing look like it was $3 per person for a non-alcoholic drink package, when in fact, the cost was $3 per non-alcoholic drink serving (e.g. one cup of iced tea, cups priced separately). We paid our invoice, and then received an immediate email follow up strongly pushing that we pay gratuity in advance rather than after the event (despite it being optional), which we then did. Regardless, the bartender still had out a tip jar. After he was asked to put it away on behalf of the bride/groom, he did not. Finally, despite listing in our final detail submission that we wanted glassware at tables, Paella Time did not bring glassware, and so we had to spend the last few minutes before our ceremony working with our coordinator to find those lines in our final detail submission so that she could get Paella Time to bring glasses.
The stress of working through the rest of the details with our ‘full service caterer’ was much greater than it could have been.
We were looking for food for our ~60 person backyard wedding that was not only delicious & versatile for a range of dietary restrictions (e.g. gluten & dairy-free) but also unique & entertaining. Paella Time was the PERFECT choice.
Tiffany & Ralph were incredibly prompt & detail-oriented in the planning process. Chef Chris & the entire team day-of were phenomenal–on time, professional, friendly. Many guests commented about how lovely everyone was as well as the overall experience, especially getting to watch & interact during prep.
Another bonus? Paella Time can help with ALL glassware, tableware, chairs & additional rentals. This significantly streamlined the planning process and made it seamless for our ceremony/rehearsal set up & clean up.
We are already trying to figure out an occasion for our next Paella party! Thanks Paella Time!
We wanted something different for our wedding and when it came to selecting a caterer from The Lighthouse's list of preferred vendors, we immediately went to paella and thought it'd be a fun and unique experience for our guests to witness and partake in. Initially, and this was well over a year before our actual wedding date when we had signed the contract, we had a guest count of 50 and our contract reflected this. This headcount of course changed over time, and as the months progressed, so did the direction of our wedding. We upped our guest count to 94 and also decided to hire our own bartenders for speciality cocktails in lieu of the sangria that Paella Time was providing as stated in the contract. All of this was mentioned two months before our big day, which I thought would be ample time to relay such changes, but we received some disgruntled responses from Ralph. We didn't get any updates or check-ins either which would have been appreciated given that other vendors that we've hired did. We also inquired about a tasting; however, this was never attended to. Our inquiry was disregarded and a tasting never happened so we went into our wedding blindly with high hopes that the food would be great.
If there's one stressor I had in planning for our wedding, which for the most part, I've been really organized and stress-free, it was Ralph's way of responding. Ralph's style of communication is rather rough around the edges and it doesn't translate well via email/written communication. Even my wedding coordinator had the same sentiments. I flagged this over to The Lighthouse as I didn't want this to hinder our wedding day and the cooperation between Paella Time and the rest of our vendor team. On day of, everything seemed okay though which I was especially happy about.
Additionally, all communication and updates are to be relayed to Tiffany via email which does take a while to digest/respond to given the length of information. There's a lot of back and forth and details can easily get lost in the mix. If there's one piece of feedback to better your business, it is to invest in a platform that allows for form responses. Having to write down info in-line with the email, changing the font color, etc is a lot of work and time consuming for a client.
All in all, Paella Time delivered. They were prompt and set everything up according to plan. We tried the appetizers and they were all delicious! I personally enjoyed the meatballs (albondigas) and the ceviche - great tang though it could've benefited from a piece of bread or chip to soak and scoop up the fish.
In terms of the paella, the windy weather did hinder cooking time so it was delayed in serving. I knew weather was a gamble, but some guests did complain about only getting the burnt scrapings on the bottom of the pan, and getting uncooked grains of rice. I know you're not going to please everyone, but perhaps allowing all guests to be served before offering seconds would've prevented this in addition to serving the same amounts to each guest.
My husband and I got the mixed paella and loved it! The lemon complimented the flavors nicely and we got a mix of crisp and char from the bottom of the pan. We finished the little paella pan that was given to us. The salad was also dressed nicely and the artichokes were a pleasant add. We enjoyed our meal and also appreciated how your staff kindly served us and our parents/guests who weren't as mobile to go up to the paella pan for dinner.
Ralph and the Paella Time team are amazing. They are all friendly and accommodating. Ralph is willing to work with you and customize to your preferences. We had a lot of guests who have various food allergies, and made special paellas just for them. Even free mac 'n cheese for some of the pickier kids. On our wedding day he was there himself to make sure everything was done according to plan. The paella was AMAZING. Many of our family & friends said it was the best they've had. Loved ALL the tapas. They even saved us some while we were taking photos. Very thoughtful. HIGHLY HIGHLY recommend.
Paella Time catered our 150+ person wedding in Healdsburg and they were fantastic and did not disappoint! Our guests raved about the food, service was very professional, and the team also had a full catering staff and table settings which made set-up and service seamless. Definitely recommend.
THANK YOU PAELLA TIME for the DELICIOUS food, STELLAR service, and all around AMAZING experience we had with your company. Couldn't have been any easier.
Paella Time catered our backyard wedding earlier this year, and did an excellent job. They showed up on time, set up and cleaned up. The food was great. THanks Chef Ralph and team!
This wedding was a long time coming. Originally, planned for 2020, but rescheduled several times due to Covid, and Paella Time was there with us the entire way! So grateful to Tiffany and Ralph for answering are many, many questions, and being so flexible, accommodating, and easy to work with. Finally, after over 3 years of waiting the food did not disappoint. Everything was as good, actually better, as we had hoped for. The service was amazing. The Paella Time staff took care of all our set up and clean up. Thank you Paella Time team for a wonderful experience worthy of 5+++ stars!
Paella Time was the perfect catering option for our wedding!
Ralph was great in trying his best to communicate, handle logistics, host a tasting, and more during a very busy time and still in the thick of changing COVID precautions.
The on-site team was great (and handled everything from food, bar, and set up like true pros), the food was delicious, and the mix of tapas and paella were such a hit.
So many people commented on the fun concept and yummy food. We were very happy!
Paella Time did a fantastic job catering our wedding. All of the staff showed up on time and well-dressed for the day. We got several compliments on the tapas and paella.
The lead staff person, Sochi, was incredibly attentive to us and was thoughtful enough to set aside a plate of appetizers for us while we were taking pictures. She also prepared a salad and an individual pan of paella for our sweetheart table.
All in all, paella was a great choice for our special day and we wouldn't hesitate to recommend this unconventional dish for your wedding day. There are plenty of options to choose from to tailor the food to your dietary wants/needs. The cherry on top is that this is a full service vendor who made planning/invoicing so much easier.
Thanks again Paella Time!
Hi Ralph,
Just wanted to tell you that your staff and Paella were EXCELLENT! We couldn't have expected a better outcome for our celebration! Chef Daniel, Tiffany, Sheila and Maya were the friendliest, most knowledgeable and helpful group of people I've ever worked with - on time and efficient!
Compliments to everyone at Paella Time for making our day look and feel absolutely special! (good call on the plates and utensils btw. What was I thinking - paper plates and disposables?!)
All of our guests had wonderful things to say about the food, the tableware settings and your team. Needless to say many guests took leftovers and the business cards that were on the table! One guest asked if there was a restaurant where he can order from! :-)
Thank you!
Paella Time’s paella and tapas genuinely and authentically beats other flavors my family have tried around the Bay Area. Not only was the food tasteful, but the event staff was as well. We had a backyard wedding in Spring 2021 and Ralph and Tiffany could not have made it flow more seamlessly. I should’ve hired Tiffany as my wedding planner!
Paella Time is not just a caterer which is why we decided to go with them to cater our wedding. Besides the food (which was all incredible), they provided us with tables, chairs, all linens, plates, silverware, glasses... Our venue only provided the place, and Paella Time took care of everything else including the set up and clean up. Couldn't have been easier. A few emails is all it took. Thank you so much - Sunny & Dominic
Paella Time catered our small backyard wedding, and did a marvelous job. The tapas & paella we're excellent, and the service was courteous and professional. Definitely 5 stars all the way.
Finally Married!!! We had to postpone our wedding 3 times due to Covid. Thankfully, all of our amazing vendors were flexible, accommodating, and really worked with us to make this happen. We can't thank Paella Time enough for the incredible job they did. Thank you, Tiffany, for answering all our emails, and many, many questions. We couldn't have done this without you. Thank you, Chef Daniel, for absolutely delicious paella. Highly recommend.
Thank you Paella Time!!! Paella Time did an AMAZING job at our wedding. We had to change venues due to Covid-19, and Paella Time easily handled the changes for us. The new venue didn't offer tables or chairs plus we needed plates, glasses, tablecloths, someone to set it all up and clean up at the end of the night, and Paella Time took care of it all. Couldn't have been easier. Oh, and the food was incredible. The live cooking created and fun experience our guests are still talking about months later. The staff was friendly and professional. From first contact Tiffany and Ralph were a pleasure to work with, and were extremely helpful with the planning process.
Communication and emailed responses were weeks delayed, and scheduled phone calls were missed. Not professional on the communication front. surprise charges on the Invoice was given 3 days before the wedding when we requested it 3 weeks prior. Wish I can say it was a seamless interaction but it was not. Pretty stressful leading up to the wedding. Noticed that the potatoes we ordered made it to only half our guests.
We hired Paella Time to cater our backyard wedding. Thank you for the amazing service from the first phone call, and equally delicious food that we're still receiving compliments on. Tiffany and Ralph were super easy to work with, providing everything we needed including tables, chairs, linens, glasses, and their team was professional, friendly, and attentive. Loved the live cooking. HIGHLY recommend.
Highly recommend these guys for a smooth event. Tiffany and her team did an excellent job keeping everything on track for our daughter's backyard wedding, while staying flexible and communicating with us. It was fun to watch the cooking and everyone loved the food. The personal attention from the staff made it possible for us to focus on the special occasion that it was meant to be.
Thank you Paella Time for helping make our backyard wedding perfect. Fabulous paella and service from start to end. Many, many compliments on the food. Loved that you provided the tables, chairs, linens, and all of the set up and clean up, and we didn't need to involve our family and friends allowing everyone to relax and enjoy the day. Maria and Edgar
Due to Covid-19 our wedding venue, that was also providing the caterer, cancelled only a few weeks before our wedding. So, we down-sized our wedding, held it in our backyard, and found Paella Time to cater. Since I've been in the US, I haven't had a good paella. I can honestly say not only was this easily the best paella I've had here, but honestly one of the best I've had. Lots of great feedback from our guests. Besides the amazing paella, we also enjoyed sangria and an assortment of tapas - all delicious. Paella Time also provided tables, chairs, linens, plates... basically everything our venue was supposed to. We can't say thank you enough to Chef Ralph and his team for a superb job.
Paella Time catered a small backyard wedding for us. Originally, our wedding was going to be much bigger, but with current Covid-19 restrictions that wasn't an option with our venue. Working with Paella Time was very easy. Ralph was very accommodating, and easily modified all the details, do we could still have a beautiful wedding reception. Our venue was providing all the tables and chairs, but now we needed all of these items, and Ralph made it happen along with all the necessary linens, plates, flatware, glassware, and service staff. The service was great. His team arrived early, took care off all the set up, was very attentive during the day, and cleaned everything up before they left allowing us to really enjoy our day. Chef Chris put on a great show, and the paella was amazing! So many compliments from our family & friends. Thank you all!
Ralph the owner/chef made such delicious paellas and tapas for our outdoor wedding reception! Communication could have been smoother, but when it comes to things that really count - delivery of amazingly professional and quality service and food - we couldn't be happier! We would totally recommend Paella Time if you want delicious non-traditional wedding food at your event!
Paella Time is AMAZING! Our venue only provided the facility. Many of the caterers we contacted would only take care of the food, but didn't want to be bothered with everything else we needed like set up & break down, tables, chairs, flatware, glassware, linens, service staff... Tiffany & Ralph took care of EVERYTHING. What a stress reliever. They offer an unbelievable wedding package including all plates, flatware, & linens at no charge saving us over $2k! Everything from the food to the service was outstanding. Forget any other caterer, and contact Paella Time.
Paella Time to the rescue! Our other caterer bailed on us last minute, and Paella Time stepped in, and handled everything like they were there since day one. They took care of everything we needed, provided delicious food, and great service. Dealing with Ralph was super easy and straightforward. So so grateful. HIGHLY RECOMMEND.
We wanted something different than the boring, bland wedding food we've experienced at many of the weddings we've been to, and Paella Time was exactly what we were looking for. Everyone loved the live cooking. The food was fresh, hot, and full of flavor. Easy to work with, and responded to emails and phone calls promptly. Exceptional service on our wedding day. Couldn't have been easier. ABSOLUTELY 5 STARS, and HIGHLY RECOMMEND!!!
Paella Time catered our rehearsal dinner. We had a lot of family & friends from out-of-town, so we wanted to do something a little more laid back & fun. They provided everything needed, and made us fresh paella while we watched, sipped on sangria, and snacked on yummy tapas. Thanks Paella Time!
Ralph & the team at Paella Time are AWESOME. I highly, highly recommend them for your wedding. Our guests loved the food, the experience, and the amazing service they received. I cannot rave about them enough!
I'd give Paella Time TEN STARS if I could for making this such an incredibly easy experience. Tiffany and Ralph are amazing to work with: professional, responsive, and insightful. They both had great suggestions throughout the process, and took care of all rentals, staff, coordinating with the venue, set up, clean up... pretty much everything a bride-to-be could ask for allowing me to really relax knowing Paella Time had everything under control. At our wedding we were fortunate enough to have Ralph as our chef (Paella Time caters many weddings, and Ralph can't be at all of them). The paella was AMAZING. Better than our tasting, and I thought that was the best I ever had. Can it get any better??? We received countless compliments about the service, food, and uniqueness of the catering. Having the paella cooked right there from scratch in front of everyone creates a really fun experience for everyone. Many of our guests had never seen paella cooked live before, and really enjoyed the show. We can't thank the Paella Time team enough for really delivering as promised.
THANK YOU PAELLA TIME!!! We used Paella Time to cater our backyard wedding this past July, and it couldn't have been easier. Paella Time is much more than just a caterer. Since this was at our home, we needed tables, chairs, linens, glassware, staff, set up, clean up.... and Paella Time took care of ALL of it. We had spoken to a few other caterers also before choisibg Paella Time, and none offered all the comprehensive services. Other catering companies offered to refer us to other vendors, but we would still need to deal with another vendor. Paella Time made it so easy. Tiffany & Ralph were both awesome to work with from the first contact. On our big day the staff took care of everything just as we planned. Our family & friends loved the idea. The food & service was all 5 star. Thank you Paella Time crew!
Paella Time was incredible! Paella was such a fun idea to serve because most everyone loves it, it looks beautiful and it was perfect for us because it made the vibe a little more casual which I liked. The staff was very nice also. I love that they are full service - they offer linens, table settings, bartending, etc. Some other reviews mentioned poor communication so I was nervous about that, however we didn’t have any of those problems. I felt like they were also reasonably priced. Not dirt cheap but cheaper than many other places. Around $55-$58 per person out the door with tip, tapas, salad and paella. The only down side that I will mention is for them to provide bartending services they have you premake all the cocktails and prepare garnishes. That wasn’t a big deal and is easy to do however it was a pain to find beverage bins to store the cocktails in and they weren’t at BevMo (as they recommended and we checked 2) and I couldn’t find anything at 2 other stores I checked either so I ended up just buying plastic storage bins which wasn’t ideal. Other wise - so fun and amazing and I would definitely highly recommend them!
We can't thank Paella Time enough for everything they did to help make our wedding live up to our dreams. Tiffany, Ralph are friendly, responsive, and EXTREMELY helpful. They both had great ideas from the very first email. Tiffany provided an detailed proposal listing all the costs. This was so appreciated. Other caterers we had spoken to had other charges not appearing on their quotes that would have been a surprise to us if we didn't ask. Ralph came to our home for a private tasting. We met in Spain, and Ralph's paella is one of the best we've ever had. And the tapas were ALL SO GOOD it made us really hard to choose. Both Ralph & Tiffany also met us at the venue to help us with the layout. The Paella Time staff took care of all the set up on the day of our wedding. We need to make some changes to the layout/timeline..., and the Paella Time staff as able to accommodate our needs on the fly. All of our family and friends had a great time, and LOVED the idea and the food. At the end of the night they took care of all the clean up. Everything was fantastic and couldn't have been easier. THANK YOU SO MUCH!!!
LOVE, LOVE Paella Time. They are more than just a caterer - they are a one stop, do-it-all savior. From the first email Tiffany and Ralph were AMAZING. We contacted many other caterers, and NONE offered the full services offered by Paella Time. Thank you Tiffany for answering my many, many questions over emails & phone calls. Ralph came to our house for a personal tasting, and then again met us at our venue to plan our layout - all included complimentary with his absolutely amazing wedding package. On our big day, the staff was as equally amazing. They set everything up, and at the end cleaned evrrything up. We didn't have to lift a finger. We received so much positive feedback from our guests. And the food... was OMG,... SUPERB! Many guests commented it was the best paella ever. Can't thank the Paella Time team enough for the excellent job done. From start to finish BEYOND our expectations. Mahalo, and aloha from Maui.
THANK YOU SO MUCH!!! Thank you for making our wedding extra-amazing and taking care of us! We really appreciated you attentiveness and feel you really went above and beyond working with us. We really enjoyed the opportunity to sit down and get to know you. You really helped us with your insights and suggestions for the wedding. To this day everyone talks about how amazing your paella was!!! Thanks again for EVERYTHING!
Paella Time catered our wedding, and everything from start to finish was AMAZING. We had an amazing time, and everything surpassed our expectations. Working with Ralph was incredibly easy. To see planning for our wedding was a little overwhelming is an understatement, and Ralph made it SO SIMPLE. Paella Time is a full service caterer which made everything easy. Ralph asked us planning questions we hadn't even thought of. He was so helpful. We needed tables, chairs, set up, staff... pretty much everything, and Ralph took care of it all! The paella was DELICIOUS, the flamenco entertainment was so much fun, and the staff provided excellent service! Months later we're still receiving TONS of great feedback from our guests. Can't thank you enough for making our wedding a truly special and memorable experience.
We had been communicating with Paella Time for a few days about our 100 person rehearsal dinner and told them we were very interested in hiring them. They were communicating with us until the day we sent them our agreement. We were following up a few days later (since they never responded to us) asking where to send the deposit. A couple of days later Ralph and Tiffany told us they accepted a job from someone who was paying them more money. I was shocked they have as many positive reviews as they have but then Yelp removed a negative review my fiance wrote about them. So they are probably paying money to keep all these positive reviews. I wouldn't risk your special event, time, or money with this company.
From start to finish Paella Time was such a pleasure to work with. I was totally overwhelmed with the many things that needed to be done for our wedding. Our venue didn't provide tables, chairs, plates, glasses, or staff, and Paella Time stepped in and took care of everything. Whew! What a STRESS RELIEVER. At first I thought this was too good to be true. I had contacted a couple other caterers first (what a mistake, and waste of time, but who knew?) who basically told me that they would provide they food and some staff, but I had to figure everything else out on my own. One email to Ralph (Paella Time owner), and problems solved. He came over to OUR HOME for a complimentary tasting. LOVED all the tapas & paella. Really enjoyed the sangria. No other caterer offered to drive out to our home. We realized right away that Ralph is all about provided great service. The day of was fabulous. Their giant paella pans were set up nearby for the guests to see. We received great feedback from our guests. We even had a minute before dinner to jump in and act like we were cooking, and take a few action shots. Sooo much fun. Thank you Paella Time for creating a truly wonderful and memorable wedding day experience. Could not have been an easier.
Such a BIG THANK YOU to PAELLA TIME for catering our wedding. Stellar service from start to finish, delicious tapas, and without a doubt the best paella we've ever had. Thank you for living up to all of your fabulous reviews, and creating an amazing experience for us, our family, and friends.
Paella Time catered our wedding on Sept 3rd, and we absolutely recommend them!
Pros:
- Delicious food that offers something a little more unique for your event than your typical run-of-the-mill
- Visually appealing presentation; the chefs cooked in giant paella pans on the lawn during cocktail hour, which was cool for guests to see
- Paella is gluten-free, and the variety of paella they offer (vegetarian, seafood, meat, or mixed) made us confident we'd be able to offer something for each guest, even those with dietary restrictions
- Offers just the right variety of tapas, paella, salads, and dessert to customize for your event
- Included flatware, silverware, and tablecloths; much easier to go with a one-stop shop!
- Staff was extremely helpful and flexible, willing to go the extra mile on game day
Cons:
- Only thing keeping this from being 5 stars is the recommendation that they update their communications methods. Instead of sending long, text-based emails, it would be great to have a form to fill out online or some other more streamlined, efficient approach!
We were very pleased with Paella Time and felt that our money was well-spent for the food, service, and overall experience.
If you want a fool proof, fun, and unique catering idea, THIS IS IT!!! So so many thanks to Ralph and the hard working Paella Time team for helping to make our wedding exactly what we wanted. Ralph is beyond accommodating and easy to work with. He came to our home for a private tasting (free with his awesome wedding package) which was so cool and fun. Ralph helped us with set up ideas, and overall had great input. His experience really shows. The food was beyond amazing. We're STILL receiving compliments many months later. Thank you again for truly creating a great experience.
Can't say enough times "THANK YOU" to Paella Time for catering our wedding. Our venue only provided the space, but Paella Time pretty much everything else - tables, chairs, linens (all included free with their awesome wedding package), set up, breakdown. How easy! The food was amazing and plentiful. The paella might be the best I've ever had. Tons of compliments from our family and guests for such a brilliant idea. Thanks so much!
PAELLA TIME IS THE BEST! They do it all. We had a backyard wedding at my parents' house, and needed someone who could come in, and basically do it all. Paella Time took care of just about everything: tables, chairs, linens, plates, glasses, staff. From the first contact the owner, Ralph, was super easy to work with, and impressed us with his attention to detail. It was so cool & fun for him to personally come over to our home for a private tasting. On our big day Chef Gerry and team showed up, and handled everything as planned. Ralph's staff was professional and friendly. They set everything up (including our ceremony), and at the end of the night cleared everything away as if a wedding for 200 never happened. My parents couldn't have been happier. TOTALLY recommend Paella Time for a wedding or any occasion. Thank you so much for everything.
We booked Paella Time because our venue (the amazing Shelldance Orchid Garden) had them listed as a recommended vendor. We figured we both like paella, and it could be a cool thing to have for our wedding, so we figured, why not? We booked a tasting, which was great -- everything was delicious, and Ralph (the owner) seemed cool.
Then, over the next couple weeks and months, Ralph became intense to handle. Yes, he is organized, he is diligent, and he takes care of a lot of the details, but my (now) wife and I found him very stressful to deal with. Every time we would make even the smallest suggestion or adjustment, we would get so much pushback -- it was like PULLING TEETH to get what we wanted!
BUT, luckily, none of that carried over to the wedding day itself... mostly because Ralph wasn't there! Everything went smoothly, the food was great, everyone loved the paella, the servers and bartenders were awesome, and all the details were completely taken care of. The only (not so minor) issue was that after the wedding Ralph apparently 'scolded' our wedding coordinator over the phone over something that completely wasn't her responsibility. Not cool.
TLDR; if you can minimize the amount of time and energy you have to spend dealing with Ralph, everything else Paella Time offers is awesome and you should have a great experience!
Can't say THANK YOU enough to Ralph and the entire Paella Time team for creating an experience our family & friends are still talking about today. From beginning to end Ralph really took great care of us, and made everything so easy. He came to our home for a private tasting (so fun!), and really helped us with the planning. We didn't have a wedding planner, and his insight and experience was extremely helpful. Our venue only provided the facility, and it was up to us to source tables, chairs, linens, plates..., and Ralph handled it all making this so simple. On our wedding day the Paella Time team came in and set up EVERYTHING. We were so busy talking with guests that we would have missed out on the delicious tapas, but Ralph hand delivered a platter of tapas right to our table when we did finally sit to eat. So thoughtful. The seafood paella was FULL of fresh seafood, and the vegetarian paella was LOADED with veggies. The churros for dessert was the perfect ending to an amazing meal. Thank you so so much. 5 stars is not enough.
Our wedding has gone down in the books as the 'amazing paella wedding'. Ralph was the most professional and thoughtful chef we could have asked for.
He set up a tasting a month out from our wedding date and we were not disappointed with the tasty paella and caprese/citrus beet salads. He provided ALL of the linens, glassware and flatware- so convenient. His staff was professional and fun. Our family and friends could.not.get.enough of the seafood paella. Fortunately, we had plenty leftover and folks were happy to take home another feast! There were more pictures of the paella than the cake....it was truly a memorable presentation and the dinner made the day! Ralph makes this a no-brainer one stop shop. We couldn't have done it without him.
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ALL Northern California, San Francisco, CA
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