Chef Paul Schmidgall has a passion for paella. He fell in love with the iconic rice dish and learned how to make it on a little island off the Spanish coast. His teacher was an 85-year-old woman who painstakingly made it every Sunday and wanted to pass on her knowledge to the next generation. Schmidgall, a U.S. Air Force veteran with a master’s degree in business administration from the University of Arizona and a culinary science and marketing degree from Johnson & Wales University, tapped both his culinary and business chops to create the aptly named Fire & Rice Paella.
His company caters all types of social gatherings. The team brings everything—ingredients, the fire, even dessert. “We set it up and prepare it on-site in front of the guests,” Schmidgall says. “It’s a great icebreaker. You get a drink then come over to where the pan is and watch how we make it. In about 30 minutes, it’s dinner time.”
Fire & Rice also sets up on Saturdays at the Third Street South farmers market in Naples and on Wednesdays at the Marco Island farmers market, if you want to taste the goods. Catering options include several paella variations, such as chicken, sausage, and shrimp, and an all-seafood version. Schmidgall has added jambalaya—paella’s Cajun cousin—to his repertoire as well.
For truly stress-free events, Fire & Ice provides appetizers and desserts, too. Add some tapas for premeal grazing and desserts such as Basque cheesecake, flan, or lemon yogurt olive oil cake. “Everything is made here in our company kitchen,” Schmidgall says. “We make the desserts, cure our own bacon, make our own butter, and are in the process of baking our own bread,” he says. “We want to help people gather together.”
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