People wait two hours to spend $25 on a cup of Tiktok-famous chocolate-covered strawberries

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.Va...