Strawberries, Straw Courts & Silent Drama: Inside Wimbledon 2026
Come for the tennis, but stay for the Champions’ Room menu, where the only thing more exquisite than a Federer backhand is the joie de vivre found in a perfectly chilled glass of Bollinger.
Strawberries, Straw Courts & Silent Drama: Inside Wimbledon 2026
We were invited specially to the launch of A Taste of The Championships, an exclusive seasonal menu tasting celebrating the very best of Britain’s larder, thoughtfully sourced, sustainably led, and inspired by the diverse restaurant experiences that will define The Championships 2026 at Wimbledon.
It was, in essence, Wimbledon before the tennis began. A quieter, more gastronomic prelude to the controlled theatre of Centre Court, where precision is measured not only in serves and volleys, but in sauces, seasoning, and the subtle choreography of service. The invitation alone carried a certain electricity, the kind that makes even a well-bred Surrey morning feel vaguely underdressed.
In the Champions’ Room at the All England Lawn Tennis and Croquet Club, the evening unfolded with quiet confidence. Executive Head Chef Sam Morgan and the Wimbledon Food & Drink culinary team hosted the tasting, marking his fifth Championships at SW19 and his first in full command. He oversees nearly 350 chefs across the tournament, from Royal Box dining to public restaurants, with the calm precision of a man who has long since made peace with pressure.
At our table, chef Rishii Patel prepared each course before us, charming, composed, and entirely untroubled by the fact that we were watching him as though he were performing minor culinary miracles with tweezers and flame.
The menu itself was, quite simply, Wimbledon translated into flavour. A shellfish platter arrived like a maritime overture, its highlight a lobster so tender it yielded with almost embarrassing ease. Sweet, soft, and resting in its shell on a bed of glazed mayonnaise, it briefly silenced conversation, which at a Surrey dining table is never an accident.
The Tandoori Chalk Stream Trout croustade followed, confident yet restrained, offering spice with the politeness of a well-judged suggestion rather than a declaration. A chilled Isle of Wight tomato soup arrived next, crystalline and precise, reminding us that simplicity, when executed properly, is the most difficult luxury of all. Royal Parks venison provided depth and grounding, earthy and composed. And then, inevitably, strawberries and cream arrived, Wimbledon’s most famous ritual, delivered with the quiet certainty of tradition that knows it will never need reinvention.
A little-known fact, repeated each year with justified pride, is that over 2.5 million strawberries, approximately 55 tons, are consumed during the tournament, accompanied by roughly 13,300 litres of cream. At Wimbledon, fruit does not accompany tennis. It headlines it.
From this culinary theatre, we discussed the state of the world and the forthcoming tennis at Wimbledon, where the lush grass courts of SW19 await the summer’s most prestigious battle for Grand Slam glory.
The Wimbledon Championships, founded in 1877, remains the oldest tennis tournament in the world and the only Grand Slam still played on grass. It continues to operate with a discipline that feels almost monastic. Whites will remain white, lawns will remain immaculate, and for two weeks each summer, time will appear to behave differently.
At the heart of this tradition sits the All England Lawn Tennis and Croquet Club, guardian of etiquette and excellence, ensuring that modernity is admitted only after it has been properly introduced, and thoroughly vetted.
For those who wish to explore its heritage beyond Centre Court, the Wimbledon Lawn Tennis Museum offers a curated passage through time, where wooden rackets, sepia photographs, and championship relics chart the evolution of a sport that has never quite abandoned its sense of ceremony.
Looking ahead, the 2026 Championships will take place from Monday 29 June to Sunday 12 July 2026, and anticipation is already building with that familiar blend of hope, restraint, and national optimism that borders on ritual.
On home soil, attention will turn to Jack Draper, whose combination of power and composure suggests a game increasingly suited to grass at its most unforgiving. Cameron Norrie will continue to embody consistency and quiet determination, the sort of player who refuses to leave the stage quietly. In the women’s game, Emma Raducanu will remain one of the most closely followed British talents, while Katie Boulter carries both form and expectation with admirable poise.
Beyond British hopes, the international field will once again set the standard for excellence. Carlos Alcaraz (currently sidelined by a serious wrist injury) will hopefully bring explosive athleticism that seems almost engineered for Centre Court spectacle. Jannik Sinner will offer precision so consistent it borders on inevitability. On the women’s side, Iga Świątek and Aryna Sabalenka will continue to define the upper limits of modern power tennis, each meeting between them a study in controlled intensity.
Yet Wimbledon is never solely about those who win. It is about the pause before a serve. The collective intake of breath on Centre Court. The faint rustle of expectation that feels older than the game itself.
Even fashion will submit. White will not be a suggestion but a doctrine. Rain, if it arrives, will do so apologetically, as though briefly aware it has interrupted something important.
The magnificent museum there will continue to preserve all of this with quiet dignity. Less a collection of objects than a living memory of continuity, where every artefact contributes to a long fascinating narrative.
By the time we leave, the experience lingers with that familiar Wimbledon effect: a sense of legendary sporting history and culinary excellence.
