People go wild for food trucks these days! From college campuses, county fairs, festivals, farmers’ markets, and other pop-ups, food trucks are taking over parks and parking lots across the nation, and patrons are coming out to sample the food and embrace the atmosphere. Whether you’re in Southwest Florida or other parts of the country, you’ll find that the food truck scene is more rampant than ever. 

If you’ve hit the food truck circuit in Southwest Florida, you know that typical fare includes hot dogs, pizza, tacos, burgers, fries, and donuts. And while many people enjoy these selections, finding something new and exciting is always a treat.
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At Fire & Rice, we offer award-winning paella in an interactive setting that’s fun and exciting for everyone involved. We have a unique twist on the food truck experience, and it’s something people remember for years to come. Many of our clients have traveled all over the world and say our paella is the best they’ve ever tasted. 

At Fire & Rice, we’re passionate about paella, and it shows! Whenever you see our Naples’ food truck, you’ll know there’s fun to be had.  Whether we’re working a private party, a farmers’ market, or another local event, you’ll see our chefs enthusiastically preparing delicious paella right out in front for everyone to see. We interact with the crowd and engage people in the paella preparation. It’s fun and exciting, and everyone wants to join in!
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Paella is a dish that is meant for sharing, and at Fire & Rice, we create an atmosphere that is warm and inviting.  During the paella preparation, delightful aromas fill the air, and it’s a sensual experience for all. The dish itself is beautiful, with its palette of primary colors, and people are drawn to the pans, connecting with others during the preparation process.  The camaraderie builds during the shared experience, and memories are created that will last a lifetime. And when people sit down to take their first bite of our authentic paella, this delicate dish will exceed all expectations.   

Using only the finest ingredients dating back to 16th-Century Spain, we combine chicken, sausage, and saffron with Bomba rice in large shallow pans for gentle flavors and textures that are simply divine. Meat can be swapped out or combined with seafood, and vegan options are also available, so there’s something for everyone to enjoy.
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If you’re looking for a fun and exciting Naples food truck experience for your next party or event, call us today at (239) 269-8857 or book your party online.  Also, make sure to check us out at the Naples’ farmers’ markets in early-November! 

Each September, as the snowbirds start to return to Naples, we get excited for the beginning of paella season.  During the summer months, we’ve been performing maintenance and staff training, and now we’re ready to hit the ground running. It’s time for the fun to begin! 

While the area’s not quite yet in full swing, we start to see a bustle of activity and excitement during shoulder season. People are ready to have some fun before the crowds arrive, and this is a great time of year to host a private party, community event, corporate lunch, or other affair.
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If you’re looking to cater a party or event in September or October but are tired of run-of-the-mill catering options, Fire & Rice offers a fun and exciting cultural catering experience that is sure to exceed expectations. By offering authentic paella in an interactive setting, we create a warm, inviting atmosphere and energy everywhere we go. 

The paella catering concept was first conceived when Fire & Rice founder, Paul Schmidgall, was stationed in the Europe with the US military many years ago and visited the Spanish island of Menorca. There, he learned the paella preparation process from an elderly woman and fell in love with the dish.  At that moment, he had a dream to bring paella to the US, and more than a decade ago, that dream became a reality. ​

Since then, paella catering from Fire & Rice has been spreading like wildfire through Southwest Florida. People can’t get enough of it, and whenever you see our chefs cooking up a batch of Naples’ original paella, you’ll know there’s fun to be had.
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​Using the only the finest ingredients dating back to 16th-Century Spain, our chefs prepare our award-winning paella right out in front for everyone to see.  By combining chicken, sausage, saffron, and vegetables with Bomba rice in large, shallow pans using a traditional process, the result is out of this world, like nothing you’ve ever encountered before.  The meat options can be substituted or combined with seafood, and vegan options are also available so there’s something for everyone to enjoy. 

​Our paella experience is interactive, and as people gather around the pans to watch, we encourage them to join in the preparation process.  It’s fun and exciting, and everyone wants to get in on the action!

Paella is a dish meant for sharing, and when the dish is ready, guests comes together in a communal dining setting. The atmosphere is warm and inviting, and the camaraderie amongst the crowd is something to behold. When everyone sits down to taste the paella, they delight in the experience, as it exceeds every expectation.  Many of our clients have traveled all over the world and say our paella is the best that they’ve ever tasted. 

But don’t be fooled by paella vendors trying to imitate the Naples’ original paella!  Believe it or not, there are people out there pretending to be Fire & Rice, and we want to make you aware of the situation. This way, you can make sure you’re dealing with us from the start rather than get disappointed when someone else shows up at your event. If anyone tries to tell you they are affiliated with us in any way, it’s not the case, and if you’re responding to an online ad, just make sure you’re speaking with Fire & Rice. If there’s any kind of run-around, it’s not us!
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For an authentic paella catering option that’s fun and exciting, call Fire & Rice today at (239) 269-8857 or book your party online. We look forward to sharing Naples’ original paella with you! 

By January, all of the Naples’ snowbirds will have returned to beautiful Southwest Florida, but 25% of the seasonal residents will return earlier in September and October. If you fall into the early snowbird category, you’re ready to kick off shoulder season and catch up with friends you haven’t seen in many months.

To celebrate, you’d like to organize a welcome back party, but you’re tired of the typical catering fare you find everywhere you go. You want to do something really different this year, something memorable, though you don’t feel like fussing with a lot of details.  Where can you find a Naples’ catering company that you can trust to meet your expectations without a lot of planning on your end? ​
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At Fire & Rice, we offer a unique cultural catering experience that’s fun, exciting, and easy for the host. By preparing delicious paella out in front for everyone to see and interacting with the crowd in a communal dining setting, our parties are a hit every single time. We also make the process as easy as possible for the host. You just book your party, and we’ll take care of the rest. It’s really that simple!

When you hire a catering company for the first time, it’s reasonable to have a little anxiety about how everything will turn out. At Fire & Rice, we want your party to be a huge success, and we also want you to feel relaxed during the event and enjoy yourself. With that in mind, we’re here to share what to expect when we cater a party for you.
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Our chefs will arrive in a Fire & Rice food truck about an hour before the event. You just point us in right direction, and we’ll get set up and ready to go. We provide everything we need to prepare the paella and serve your guests so that you don’t have to worry about a thing.

When your guests arrive, they’ll immediately know that they’re in for a treat. Right out in front, our chefs will enthusiastically prepare our award-winning paella in large, shallow pans using a traditional process dating back to 16th-Century Spain. We’re passionate about paella, and guests will be drawn to the excitement as well as the beauty of the dish. As people gather around the pans, we encourage them to join in the preparation process.  It’s fun and exciting, and everyone will want to join in.
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Using only the finest ingredients, we combine chicken, sausage, and saffron with Bomba rice for a delicate flavor that is simply divine.  The meat can be swapped out or combined with seafood, and vegan options are also available.  Whether it’s Mixta Paella, Paella de Valencia, or Paella de Marisco, our paella will exceed all expectations.  Many of our clients have traveled all over the world and say that our paella is the best they’ve ever tasted.

If you’re headed back to Southwest Florida for the shoulder season and are looking for an exciting Naples’ catering experience, call Fire & Rice today at (239) 269-8857 or book your party online. We look forward to helping make your party a huge success! ​​

​If you’ve tried authentic paella from Fire & Rice at a party or event, you know it’s a wonderfully unique dish as well as a special experience.  Using the finest ingredients dating back to 16th-Century Spain, our award-winning paella is based in tradition. But what is the tradition behind paella, and how did this authentic dish find its way to Naples, Florida? 

The first paella dishes are thought to have been prepared by Valencian farmers, who gathered ingredients that were readily available to them on their farms, such as peppers, rice, and beans, to cook their lunchtime meals. Early paella dishes were often prepared with snails, as you could find them around the countryside or acquire them for a low price. For more festive occasions, rabbit and chicken were introduced, and later, seafood became part of the mix. 

In 16th-century Spain, paella was often the main entrée at social affairs, which could be likened to a modern-day barbeque here in the US. Back in the day, men were competitive about their paella and debated the best preparation techniques. Since those early times, paella continues to be celebrated in Valencia and all throughout Spain at festivals and cooking competitions.
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Throughout history, there have been many paella variations, such as paella with chicken and sausage, seafood paella, and vegetarian paella, but two ingredients have always been elemental: Bomba rice and saffron. Bomba rice, which was plentiful in 16th-century Valencia, magnificently absorbs the flavor of each ingredient, and saffron, with its delicate flavor, is delightful to any palette. 

In Naples, paella is all the rage, and people can’t get enough of it. But how did paella make its way from Spain to Southwest Florida?  
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When Chef Paul was stationed with the US military in Europe, he visited the Spanish island of Menorca, where he met an elderly woman who was preparing paella. He was fascinated by the paella process as well as the beauty of the dish, which was rich with a palette of primary colors.  Even though they didn’t speak the same language, the woman engaged Chef Paul in the process, teaching him how to clean the fish, prawns, and shellfish, and later demonstrating how to combine the ingredients in a large, shallow pan.

At that very moment, Chef Paul felt such a connection with the experience that he decided to bring paella to Naples, Florida. With a culinary degree, MBA, and two military tours under his belt, Chef Paul opened his first paella location, right here in Naples more than a decade ago, and the people of Naples have been delighting in the experience ever since!

If you’re interested in a unique, exciting, and delicious catering experience, try award-winning paella in Naples from Fire & Rice. To schedule your event, give us a call at (239)-269-8857 or book your party online. It’s that simple!

Providing an exciting catering option is critical to running a successful event. If you’re in charge of planning a grand opening, open house, club meeting, or booking a food truck for residents in a community, you want that experience to be both memorable and enjoyable.  

With so many community events providing run-of-the-mill fare, you can make your event stand out from the rest by offering unique food options, but you need to make sure to hire a catering company that you can trust to meet your expectations. By choosing Fire & Rice, you can rest assured that your event will be a hit. While most food trucks offer familiar food options such as pizza, pretzels, hot dogs, and burgers, we prepare our award-winning paella in large pans right out in front for everyone to see.  It’s fun and exciting, and everyone wants to be part of the action! ​

At Fire & Rice, we’re passionate about paella, and whenever you see our Naples’ food truck, you can be sure there’s fun to be had! Our chefs prepare paella in front of the crowd, and people are drawn to our enthusiasm as well as the beauty of the dish. As people gather around the pans, they are encouraged to participate in the preparation process. Everyone comes together and shares in the experience, and even the wallflowers want a turn.

Using only the finest ingredients dating back to 16th-Century Spain, our chefs carefully fuse chicken, sausage, and saffron with Bomba rice, perfecting a delicate flavor and texture. Meat can be swapped out or combined with seafood, and vegan options are also available, so there’s something for everyone to enjoy.
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Paella is a dish that is meant for sharing, and as your guests come together in the communal dining setting and take their first bite or our delicious paella, they will delight in the magnificent flavors and feel the energy in the room.  Whether you serve our Mixta Paella, Paella Valencia, or Paella de Marisco, we create every dish with love and enthusiasm, and the result is amazing. Many of our clients have traveled all over the world and say that our paella is the best they’ve ever tasted.

If you’re a realtor looking to make a good impression on prospective buyers at an open house, a residential community director searching for the food truck of the week, or a local store manager organizing a grand opening, our chefs will hit the mark every single time. By offering unique and delightful catering options in an exciting communal atmosphere, Fire & Rice will exceed every expectation.

For a catering option that's new and exciting, call Fire & Rice at (239) 269-8857 or book your party online. Let our Naples’ food truck make your next event an affair that will be remembered for years to come!