Wimbledon’s strawberries and cream have been served at the tournament since it first started in 1877 and the dish proves to be popular year after year. The price took one customer by surprise
Wimbledon, the oldest tennis championship in the world and one of the four Grand Slam events, is currently taking place. It’s held annually at the All England Club in Wimbledon, southwest London, and is known for its traditional grass courts and strict all-white dress code for players.
While watching tennis stars like Emma Raducanu and Novak Djokovic in action is the highlight of the event, the refreshments are also a big draw and the one food item most associated with Wimbledon is strawberries and cream. This classic summer combination has been served at the tournament since it began in 1877 and every year, hundreds of people in the crowd are spotted tucking into this fruity delight.
The strawberries and cream alone are popular enough to make some spectators want to attend Wimbledon, like the TikTok user Sofia Petrillo.
In a video on the social media platform she confessed: “I don’t know anything about tennis. I’m just here for the strawberries and cream if I’m being honest.
“Apparently these are insane so let’s try Wimbledon’s strawberries and cream.” Sofia was met with a huge queue of customers waiting in line to try the iconic dish, leading her to remark: “I hope these are worth it.”
She was pleased to see that the queue was “moving pretty quickly” so she didn’t have to wait too long for her strawberries and cream.
Sofia couldn’t believe how much it cost. One portion is £2.70 which she thought was very reasonable, considering how high food and drink prices usually are at major sporting events.
She shared her first thoughts on the treat: “I’m not gonna lie, it’s not giving like any sort of aesthetic at all.”
Even though she wasn’t impressed with how the strawberries and cream looked, that didn’t stop her from tasting it to see if it is “worth the hype.”
Sofia tried her first strawberry covered in cream and couldn’t help but smile. She said: “Mmm, wait, that’s actually really refreshing. I feel like I would prefer it if it was just strawberries though.
“They’re really good and they were only like £2.70.” After eating some more of the strawberries and cream, she decided “they could definitely charge more, a hundred per cent.”
Although Sofia was amazed by the price, it has actually increased by 20p from 2024 and it’s also the first time the cost of the strawberries and cream has risen in 15 years.
The Wimbledon website states: “On average there are 200,000 portions of strawberries and cream enjoyed during The Championships!”
For many years, Wimbledon has sourced its strawberries from Hugh Lowe Farms, a family-run business spanning about 500 hectares near Mereworth, just 31 miles away.
Throughout the two weeks of the tournament, the farm delivers freshly picked strawberries to the grounds each morning.