Paella Time

nia, owned by [Owner’s Name], and I just had to give them a well-deserved shout-out. They prepared three large, impressive pans of paella, and of course I had to try a little of each—every single one was outstanding. The aroma alone was incredible and immediately set the tone for the meal. The paellas included: • A combination paella with seafood, andouille sausage, and chicken • A vegetarian paella that was full of rich flavor • A seafood paella that tasted incredibly fresh and perfectly cooked What really stood out was how authentic the dishes were—these were Brazilian-style paellas, prepared with care, tradition, and attention to detail. You could truly taste the authenticity in every bite. They also served an amazing sangria that paired perfectly with the paella—refreshing, flavorful, and the perfect complement to the food. I was genuinely impressed and would absolutely use Paella Time for my own celebration or special event. Highly recommend them to anyone looking for unforgettable, authentic catering. Owner: Ralph Tommasini Contact# 650.533.4353

th the bacon wrapped dates, patatas bravas or the mushroom with chorizo. The mixed paella was full of flavor. I’m not vegetarian but tried some of that one too and it was very good. And omg the staff were just amazing. Tim, JoAnne, Tiffany and Shelia were like the dream team. They went out of their way to make sure we all had a great time and didn’t have to lift a finger. They took care of everything from set up to clean up. It was really such a wonderful experience.  Pricing was good, however just know that taxes and catering fee are included at the end so the final invoice does go up. But it was so worth it. Can’t wait to use Paella Time again in the future! 

and the ham with fresh melon. For the main course, they served seafood paella, chorizo and chicken paella, and a vegetarian paella, and every single one was fantastic. To top it all off, dessert was the best tres leches cake I’ve ever had! The food presentation was beautiful and really elevated the experience. I highly recommend Paella Time Catering for any event! You won’t be disappointed.

times.  A really cool experience overall and I highly recommend!!

n't ask for more. Definitely recommend.

n extremely helpful questionnaire with details we hadn't even considered. Along with the itemized quote and deposit invoice he provided made the entire booking process very straight forward and simple. Finalizing details and final payment was just as easy. Now, let's get to the best part - THE FOOD. Everything, I mean EVERYTHING, was incredible. Definitely worthy of our big day. We love tapas and paella, and Ralph's is on par with the best we've ever had. And we got to keep the leftovers which we enjoyed with friends and family the next day. Thank you Paella Time for providing a completely stress free and easy experience.

agree with Ralph's business practices: it felt less like transparent business and more like a bait-and-switch. A reputable caterer provides clear, upfront pricing. If you value honest communication and knowing what you'll actually pay, look elsewhere. Additional details: Pressure Tactics: Initial emails used artificial urgency ("someone else is interested in this date") to rush my decision, which was likely a sales tactic. Communication Issues: Refused phone calls, insisted on email-only contact, sent extremely long and overwhelming emails. Hidden Costs: The invoice appeared straightforward until you read the fine print, which reveals: - 20% catering fee NOT included in the displayed total - Clause allowing price increases "without notice" - Fuel surcharges that can be added at their discretion - Various fees ($170 travel, sales tax, permits) listed separately I made the mistake of not going through the fine print and our final bill was almost 50% higher than the original quoted invoice amount. He throws in all these artificial promos to make it seem like you're getting a good price but then adds everything back in fees.

nd "regular" wedding food, this is it. Paella Time truly went above and beyond to make our wedding day perfect. The exceptional food, professional service, and unique live cooking experience made it a night our guests won't stop talking about. We highly recommend them for any event!

questionnaire we were thoroughly impressed with Ralph and his team on our day. Cooking the tapas and paella fresh at our wedding added a fun vibe, and everyone LOVED the freshly cooked and DELICIOUS - thanks to Chef Andrew! HIGHLY RECOMMEND!!!

ella Time, but had to switch venues, and our new venue has their own catering. But they don't provide tables, chairs, linens..., and they don't provide much guidance to handle these items. The owner, Ralph, was super understanding, and continued to help us with rentals and also other really helpful suggestions and insights even though we were not using his company. Besides the incredible service, Paella Time is an amazing value. Not the cheapest, but he has a wedding package including 20% off, and free plates, flatware, and linens which all was really convenient, and would have saved us over $1500 in rentals costs. We will definitely find another reason to use Paella Time.

ghly recommend!

ect. The food was absolutely delicious, and our guests couldn't stop raving about the paella and tapas. The sangria was a huge hit as well. Thank you, Tiffany, Ralph, and entire Paella Time team for making our day so special and memorable!

dreams come true! You helped create an experience that was perfect, and exactly what we wanted. Definitely hire Paella Time!

call, emails, the food, and service as all outstanding. Happy Holidays!

t you also provided all the rentals and linens. So happy we chose Paella Time. We really enjoyed working with you.

xactly as promised. Absolutely recommend.

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.

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.

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.

h many options. Definitely recommend.

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!

fun. Thank you Paella Time.

a 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.

& 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!

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.

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.

am also had a full catering staff and table settings which made set-up and service seamless. Definitely recommend.

any 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!

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!

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!

a 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!

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!

ll 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