It’s berry nuts.
New Yorkers are waiting as long as two hours in the cold for a $25 cup of strawberries, chocolate and pistachio cream.
At the bustling Bryant Park Winter Village, the Strawberro booth is drawing huge lines for its berry desserts. It’s flagship offering is the $25 “Dubai Chocolate” with berries, melted Belgian chocolate, a pistachio cream imported from Italy, chopped pistachios and crunchy bits of kataiki pastry — crispy phyllo dough that’s popular in Middle Eastern desserts.
It has “the perfect balance of sweetness and freshness” with a “a contrast of liquid and crunchy elements,” said Vasily Malyshev, 33, who started the booth with his wife, Anna, 32.
It’s the first holiday season for the Strawberro booth, after debuting for a few weeks at the Bryant Park spring market, and it’s been a huge hit after going viral on TikTok and Instagram.
“It’s been absolutely amazing,” said Vasily, who also works in software. “We definitely did not expect all the virality.”
The booth, which is the only location for Strawberro, is tucked away on the market’s south corridor, next to the carousel and the Gnocchi on 9th stall, which is also quite popular.
The average wait time is about 40 minutes according to the couple, but on weekends it can stretch two hours. A sign declares “Strawberro line starts here, sorry for the wait,” and the trail of hungry visitors curls around various stanchions, much like the security line at JFK on a hellish day.
Around midday last Thursday, a crowd was waiting about 40 minutes for cups of chocolate and berries. Aside from the “Dubai chocolate,” the menu also includes simpler options such as the $15 “dark choco” (berries and dark chocolate) and the “ruby dream,” also $15 and featuring Belgian chocolate made from pink cacao pods that impart a slightly sour flavor.
People rushed past, noted the line and muttered “is it worth it?” and “it’s just strawberries” under their breath. Vasily observed a woman brazenly walk up to those at the front of the line and offer to Venmo someone who would place an order for her. He said they’ve also had people offer Strawberro’s workers $60 in cash to skip the line.
Taylor Sciandra, an 18-year-old college student from Buffalo, said she didn’t hesitate to try the Dubai chocolate — despite the wait and price tag — after seeing it on social media.
“It looked so good,” she said. Her verdict? “I like the crunch.”
Sammy Kramer and Evelyn Kuroski, both 15, also said it was worth the hype after trying it.
Rachel Clair, a 52-year-old from Niagara Falls, Canada, waited over an hour. “We came just for this,” she said.
The Malyshevs, who live in Bergen County, wouldn’t say what their profit margin is on the $25 cup of strawberries. But Anna noted that the Winer Village takes a significant portion of revenue and that ingredients such as berries and chocolate have seen huge increases in cost due to supply issues.
“We just use the best ingredients,” said Anna, who has long worked in food and also has a booth dedicated to whoopie pies.
Strawberro is part of a larger “Dubai chocolate” craze.
Sarah Hamouda, the founder of Dubai-based Fix Dessert Chocolatier, is credited with inventing the trend, which has been reinterpreted by sweets purveyors around the globe.
UAE-based influencer Maria Vehera posted an ASMR video of herself eating one of Fix’s pistachio cream-and-kataifi-filled milk chocolate bars to TikTok in December 2023. It’s since attracted more than 100 million views.
TikTok and Instagram each have over 147,000 posts with the hashtag #dubaichocolate.
In the city, the Nuts Factory, which has various locations in Manhattan and Brooklyn, also sells Dubai chocolate. A pack of two large bars goes for $49.99 on their website, and they also do a cup of strawberries for $17.99.
Both have been quite popular. “It’s been amazing,” a spokesperson for the store told The Post.
After their stint at Bryant Park ends on January 5, the Malyshevs are looking at opening a brick-and-mortar Strawberro in SoHo, the West Village, Chelsea Market or Hudson Yards. But first, the young couple, who have a new baby at home, needs a moment to catch their breath.
“It’s been an absolutely crazy couple months,” said Vasily.
