I had gotten tickets ahead of time, and it was a good thing that we arrived not long after the 11AM start because I heard that they sold out during the event. Upon entry we each received a wooden paella spoon and a rather heavy metal keychain shaped like a paella pan, both branded with "Paella Parade" and "El Coto de Rioja," which nice little mementos. The place was already somewhat crowded early on and became even more so later in the day. The Seaport Water Taxi Beach was a bit small for the event, and navigating through the canopied area with all the food offerings was a bit of a squeeze. Although we came around half-an-hour late and stayed for the entirety we were only able to try the offerings from 6 of the 10 restaurants and all 4 of the Rioja wines. Photos of some of the paellas can be seen below.
Paella from Meigas Restaurant:
Xicala Wine and Tapas Bar:
La Paella Tapas Wine Bar & Restaurant:
Socarrat Paella Bar:
Solera:
Not pictured are the 2 other paellas I tried, one which was an arroz negro from La Nacional and the other from 1492 Food. My favorite was the paella from La Paella Tapas Wine Bar & Restaurant in Norwalk, Connecticut. I didn't think I'd like the dollop of squid ink on the top, but it was fine. I read on an ingredient list that their paella included oxtail, and that must have been what put it on top for me.
At each restaurant table there were name cards that could be used to vote for favorites in the categories of Prettiest, Most Creative, Best Use of Ingredients, and Best Overall Taste. If I remember correctly, 1492 won for Prettiest, Xicala for Best Overall Taste, and the 2 others went to Don Pedro, the paella of which I did not get to sample. The winner announcement marked the end of the event, which if memory serves me correctly, was around an hour earlier than the scheduled 3PM. All the paella had run out sometime before then, and when I looked down on the beach from the South Street Seaport shopping mall later, I noticed one latecomer with a ticket who had come only to find that it was over.
After filling my stomach up with rice and wine at Water Taxi Beach I still yearned to taste more. I heard that Double Crown in NoHo (316 Bowery at Bleeker) had recently started offering an afternoon tea menu from 3:30PM to 5:30PM on the weekends. I enjoy having hot tea with a little snack everyday and wanted to try one of the afternoon tea offerings in the city. I ordered the sandwich and scone set which included tea. Since we were seated outside and it was warm, I decided to get a mango lassi, though hot tea would have been a much better choice to go with the scones. On paper the amount of food didn't seem like much, but it was a lot! There were 3 small sandwiches, a little pot of pickles, 2 scones, clotted cream, homemade preserves, a piece of spiced coffee cake, strawberry slices, and blueberries. I think the sandwich fillings were ham, smoked salmon, and curried chicken salad, which was my favorite of the 3. The scones were good, but I didn't enjoy the coffee cake so much. I was already pretty full from the paella, which I didn't realize until I started eating again, but I single-handedly finished every single edible in that set save for a sprig of watercress used as garnish and a little bit of the clotted cream and preserves.
Sandwich and scone set:
Scone with clotted cream and preserves:
Mango lassi:
Tea sandwiches:
It was quite the food-filled afternoon, and I was happy. If there is another Paella Parade as the describing words "first annual" suggest, I hope they can improve their serving system and find a better-suited venue. I'd like to go again. I'd really enjoy having afternoon tea at Double Crown again as well.
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