The Second Annual Battle of the Paellas was a night of fun and friendly competition as our five paella cooks competed to win the hearts of the guests and judges, Mayor Megan Barry, Cordia Harrington, CEO of The Tennessee Bun Company, and Pepe Núñez, of CAT Financial.

Taking home the judge’s prize was the team of Marisa Back & Joan Marc Mengual for their traditional paella fresh from Spain as they only recently made Nashville their new home. The guests showed their Southern roots when they chose Lisa Mays’ paella with their golden forks. Her paella took Spanish paella and added Southern flair with hot chicken and fried black eyed peas. The competition was hot, with other delicious paellas cooked by Vice Mayor David Briley, Alfonso Nieto and Santi Tefel making the judges’ and guests’ decisions difficult.

Gracias to our competitors, judges, guests and sponsors Southwest Airlines and Bridgestone Americas Trust Fund for making this event a great success. We look forward to seeing you for this fun competition again next year! Check out the photos from the battle here.