Wimbledon champion Carlos Alcaraz visited the west London tapas restaurant Cambio de Tercio five times while competing in the tournament.
The Spaniard, 20, saw off Novak Djovovic in five tough sets to win the Grand Slam on Sunday, displacing one of the greatest players the sport has ever seen.
Unlike his Serbian counterpart, who maintains a strict, arguably restricted diet, Alcaraz says he eats whatever he likes, and on the days he didn’t take his family to Cambio on the Old Brompton Road in South Kensington, he ordered food from the venue to be delivered while in town.
Owner Abel Lusa, whom the Wimbledon champion has known for four years now, said the tennis star’s favourite dish is the restaurant’s Iberian take on sushi: crispy nigiri, made with Spanish vinegar, and served on chipotle mayonnaise.
Alcaraz, from Murcia in the south of Spain, is said to ask only for Lusa to “bring whatever’s good.”
Other dishes at Cambio include tomatoes cooked for eight hours in oloroso sherry, grilled gambas with aioli, sea bream with yuzu and chilli, and garlicky lamb chops.
The venue, half traditional, half modern, is a hugely popular restaurant with celebrities and sports stars, many of whom visit regularly to dine in the red and ochre dining room, replete with white tablecloths and fine service.
Rishi Sunak and his family have eaten there more than once, while Piers Morgan goes often, even choosing Cambio as his spot to be interviewed for the Financial Times’ Lunch with the FT feature.
As far as Wimbledon winners go, Alcaraz is in good company: Roger Federer, Rafa Nadal, and Andy Murray are all big fans of Cambio. It is fair to say then that there is a distinct link between tennis stardom and a little neighbourhood tapas restaurant in west London. Good luck getting a table now.
