Paella catering in South Florida with Taste of Paella runs $26 to $45 per person for individual paellas ordered à la carte, or $35 to $41 per person for a full event package (50+ guests) that adds appetizers and dessert on top. Every price tier — à la carte or package — already includes a generous portion of paella per guest plus salad and bread; packages simply add courses around that same core. For comparison, general wedding catering across Florida averages $30–$150+ per person depending on service style — plated multi-course service alone typically starts at $45 per person before rentals, staff or bar service are added. Live-cooked paella catering sits at the accessible end of that range while still delivering a chef-led, restaurant-quality experience.
What’s included at that price
Every Taste of Paella booking — whether it’s a single à la carte paella or a full package — includes a private chef who cooks the paella live, on-site, in front of guests, a generous per-person portion (not a small sample size), Mediterranean salad and Spanish bread. That base is identical across every price point. What changes with the Standard and Premium packages (for events of 50 guests or more) is that appetizers and dessert get added on top:
| Package | Price per person | Includes |
|---|---|---|
| Standard | $35 | 2 paellas, 1 appetizer, 1 dessert |
| Premium | $41 | 2 paellas, 2 appetizers, 2 desserts |
Paella choices across both packages: Seafood, Mixta (chicken & seafood), or Campera (chicken & chorizo). Appetizer options include Spanish tortilla, gazpacho, shrimp cocktail and charcuterie skewers; dessert options include Spanish flan, strawberry flan, tres leches, rice pudding and choco flan.
A note on splitting your two paellas: packages include two paella choices, and guests can split the two however they like — an even split (e.g., 25/25 for a 50-guest event) or a lean toward one option (e.g., 30/20). We can accommodate splits up to roughly 60/40 (30/20 on a 50-guest count) at the standard per-person price. Heavier splits — 70/30 or more, especially toward a premium option like Lobster & Seafood — go beyond what the per-person price is built to cover and may need a small adjustment on the quote. Mentioning your preferred split when you request a quote helps us confirm pricing upfront with no surprises.
À la carte paella pricing (under 50 guests or single-dish events)
Each price below is per person and already includes a generous paella portion, Mediterranean salad and Spanish bread — no separate charge for those.
| Paella | Price per person |
|---|---|
| Farm Vegetable Paella (vegetarian) | $26 |
| Paella Campera (chicken & chorizo) | $27 |
| Chicken & Seafood Paella | $29 |
| Paella Campera with Shrimp | $29 |
| Seafood Paella | $31 |
| Lobster & Seafood Paella | $45 |
Tapas and add-ons
Tapas are priced individually and work well as a starter course or cocktail-hour addition: Spanish tortilla, gazpacho and shrimp cocktail run $5 each, Spanish potato salad (ensaladilla rusa) is $6, and garlic shrimp is $12 for 6 pieces or $22 for 12. Charcuterie and cheese boards are priced per guest at $6 each, with a 20-guest minimum.
What actually moves the price
Five factors change a quote more than anything else:
Guest count. Per-person pricing drops once an event crosses the 50-guest threshold and qualifies for the Standard/Premium packages, since a single live cooking station serves more people per chef-hour.
Event type. Weddings and corporate events typically add appetizers, dessert and sometimes a second protein option — corporate bookings also tend to add invoicing/setup requirements that a straightforward birthday or quinceañera doesn’t.
Location within South Florida. Taste of Paella serves Fort Lauderdale, Boca Raton, Broward, Deerfield Beach, Parkland, Pembroke Pines, Oakland Park, Plantation, Wilton Manors, Cooper City and the wider Miami-Dade/Broward area — travel distance from the base of operations can factor into a final quote for events further from the core service area.
Menu selection. Lobster & Seafood Paella at $45/person is nearly double the Farm Vegetable Paella at $26/person — choosing one premium protein-heavy dish over a vegetable or chicken-based one is the single biggest lever on a per-person quote.
How you split two paellas in a package. Packages let you pick two paellas and split servings between them however you like — up to about a 60/40 split (30/20 on a 50-guest package) at the standard price. Bigger imbalances, especially leaning heavily toward a premium option, may require a small per-person adjustment.
Sample budget: 75-guest wedding
A 75-guest wedding booking the Premium package ($41/person) for the main course runs $3,075 before bar service, rentals or staffing add-ons outside the paella station — well under the $85–$250+ per-guest full-service catering range reported across Florida more broadly, since the live paella station replaces a traditional multi-course plated service with one dramatic, all-inclusive centerpiece.
How paella catering compares to traditional catering
Traditional Florida wedding catering averages around $8,000 total for a wedding of roughly 135 guests (about 23% of the total wedding budget), with plated multi-course service alone commonly starting at $45 per person before staffing, rentals or bar service. A live paella station folds the “show” (chefs cooking to order in front of guests) and the meal into one line item, which is part of why it tends to land below plated full-service catering on a per-person basis while still functioning as an event centerpiece rather than a background buffet.
Getting an exact quote
These are Taste of Paella’s real, published 2026 menu and package prices — an exact quote still depends on guest count, date, and any add-ons. Request a free quote or see the full package details.
