Northwest Paella Fest

Paella Fest 2014 Sets a Record

$6,700 is Raised for Local Food Bank

On August 2nd, well over 200 generous and fun loving people gathered in the woods on a beautiful summer evening to make the 2014 Northwest Paella Fest the best fest yet. This year exceeded all expectations for fundraising with over $6,700 donated to Food for Lane County. Darrel Kau from FFLC declared that "this amount translates into over 20,000 meals for people in Lane County who need food." Gratitude and thanks to all of the participants, donors and guests for making this happen.

The success of this years Paella Fest can be attributed to a wide variety of individuals and supporting businesses:

The Paelleras

There were thirty-two chefs who gave their time, resources and passion to produce a remarkable variety of paellas. I don't have the words to describe them all so please see the photos from this year to get a sampling. It was good to have several new makers and to see the return of old friends. These people are the core of Paella Fest all coming together creating a synergy that is fun and exhilarating.

The Sponsors

We had the largest number of business donors yet. They generously supported the Fest in various ways. We want to acknowledge and thank:

• Dwight Collins from Newman's Fish Co. for providing fish and other seafood to any paella maker who asked.

• Claim 52 Brewing, Deschutes Brewery, and Ninkasi Brewing for providing an excellent assortment of northwest beers. 

• Angus James from The Broadway Wine Merchants for providing a case of wine.

• Steve Winston from The Spanish Table, a long time supporter of the Paella Fest, for donating a case of cookbooks (although due to a shipping mix-up they weren't available at the Paella Fest).

The Musicians               

The music was awesome this year! Through the many distractions of cooking, re-connecting and eating, the musicians persevered. A huge thanks to all of the musicians for providing a musical lineup that was deep, varied and full of talent. Pipes (Rick), Left Coast Sax Quartet (Mike, Richard, Rick and Amanda),  Fiddlin' Big Sue Band, (Sue, Tom and Janet), Tres Stefanos (Steve, Steve and Stephen, with Scott on percussion). 

Special Shout-Outs

• Mo and Eric, for everything they do from well before to well after the event. And for having such a great place and letting us all enjoy it.

• The one and only Stevie D. for once again organizing the musicians and sound equipment.

• The worker bees Lisa, Char, Steve, Dede and Dan for help in set-up and everything else.

• Kim, our web mistress for keeping the web page updated and looking great.

Next year, 2015, will be a milestone when we celebrate the 10th annual Paella Fest. Special events are in the works so check back to the web site periodically to see what's cooking.

In the meantime, keep those pans bubbling!

—Don