Is this the best street food in Wimbledon?
Your chance to be a part of a short film celebrating Merton's 60th anniversary
Good morning, Wimblers — I hope that everyone is well and enjoying the last few days of August.
This week, we’ve got your usual news snippets, some fantastic recommendations for the weeks ahead and an adorable property of the week. For this week’s feature, we spoke to Aixa, founder of CulynArt: a local business bringing traditional Spanish food to the people of Wimbledon and beyond. Scroll down to read about what it’s like to start a business in SW19, lesser-known dishes from Spain and how quitting your job as an IT consultant can open doors you never thought possible.
CALL-OUT for readers: Next week, we’re shaking up our ‘Property of the Week’ section and are looking for some of the most historic buildings in Wimbledon. We would love it if our readers could send in their favourite historic buildings for inspiration! Drop me an email: zak@thewimble.com.
I think that’s enough teasing for now. Happy reading!
News snippets 🗞
🍾 Students across Merton received their GCSE results last Thursday — and celebrations are in order. While early figures show that national outcomes in English and maths have dropped this year, results show that Merton students are still performing well. In a press release last week, the council said, “This success reflects the dedication of teachers, school leaders and families, and the strength of Merton’s education system, with every school in the borough now holding good or better judgements from Ofsted.” Congratulations to everyone in the borough who got their results last week!
🍿 The first ever Free Film Festival in Raynes Park is launching next month! The volunteer-led team will be bringing you a week of new movies, classics, documentaries and short films for all ages. All screenings are free (though you probably guessed that from its title) and will be shown in restaurants, churches and even hairdressers. The Free Film network is already well-known and established in South East London, but this is the first of its kind in South West London. Although the screenings are free, some of the venues require people to book tickets due to their size, which you can do here.
🎾 In another attempt to block the All England Lawn Tennis and Croquet Club’s expansion plans, Save Wimbledon Park (SWP) has applied for permission to appeal the Court of Appeal. A statement from SWP read: “SWP’s decision to make this application has not been taken lightly. However, it has been advised that there is a realistic prospect of success.” A decision on whether it can appeal is expected in the next two to four months. Read more about it here.
🍻South Wimbledon’s Trafalgar Freehouse is once again under threat of closure. The pub is the last surviving building of its era on High Path and dates back to at least 1868. Developers want to demolish the Trafalgar and replace it with flats and a smaller bar, but Oli Carter-Esdale, who co-runs the pub, insists that the Trafalgar’s “intangible magic” cannot simply be replaced. Speaking to Newsquest London, Oli said, “It’s a community asset, and I know lots of people kind of throw those words around, but I think people forget what that really can mean.” Read more about the situation here.
🚨 A woman in her 20s was reportedly raped on Merton High Street in the early hours of Saturday morning. Officers were called to the scene at around 3.30am, Saturday 23 August. Forensics worked at the scene for a few days, and police are now urging anyone with information or who was in the area at the time to call 101 and quote 1269/23AUG. Read more info here.
🏚 In one of the first actions of its kind in the country, Merton Council has taken control of 18 rented homes after a landlord persistently failed to license the properties to ensure they are safe and suitable for residents. Council officers issued several notices to the landlord under the council’s Selective Licensing Scheme, all of which were ignored. Read the full press release here.
🌳 Outrage has broken out on Rustic Avenue, Mitcham, after a neighbour hacked into a century-old lime tree, which is now so badly damaged that it will have to be removed. Resina Chowdhury told the Local Democracy Reporting Service (LDRS) how her daughter witnessed the attack on 6 August: “She was doing a piano lesson with a neighbour at the time, and she saw the tree being cut with a chainsaw. I heard all this noise, and when my neighbour asked the man, he admitted that he had damaged the tree and that it was a spontaneous decision.” The resident later admitted that he had damaged the tree out of frustration caused by the tree’s resin dripping onto his car. Read the full story in MyLondon.
Property of the week 🏡
I do love a good Georgian cottage, and this two-bedroom one here certainly doesn’t miss the mark. Smack bang in the heart of Wimbledon Village, this property blends the city with the provincial. I’m also a big fan of having both a front garden and a rear courtyard (and just look at those black metallic panes framing the latter). But at £1.3m, it is a little on the pricey side. Check out more photos on Rightmove.
The Wimble’s to-do list
🎉 Wimbledon Quarter’s Summer Fête: This is fun for the whole family and a great way to spend the last weekend of the school holidays, with children’s rides, a bouncy castle & soft play, giant games, face painting, arts and crafts, and snacks. Some of these activities will be free of charge, while some may cost a small fee. The event is suitable for children up to the age of 10.
Where: Wimbledon Quarter
When: Saturday 30 August, 11am–4pm
♻️ Sustainable September: This autumn, Wimbledon is going green once more as Sustainable September returns. Love Wimbledon, Wimbledon Quarter and Go Inspire have collaborated once more to bring you four weeks of events designed to inspire and engage residents with the notion of circular living. Check out a rundown of the events here. There will also be a tour of Wimbledon Quarter’s Rooftop Farm on Saturday 6 September, which you can book here. Don’t miss out!
Where: Wimbledon Quarter (and other locations)
When: Saturday 6 September – Sunday 27 September
🩺 Talk on osteoarthritis at APPI: Mark Robbins, senior psychotherapist at APPI Wimbledon, is set to give a talk on osteoarthritis. This well-rounded update aims to move beyond outdated views and instead explore a multifactorial approach to managing the condition. Robbins will highlight the central role of exercise and strength training whilst also addressing other contributing factors. This is a free talk and is open to all — just contact 0208 879 7711 or email wimbledon@appiclinics.com if you’d like to attend.
Where: APPI, Wimbledon Village
When: Wednesday 3 September, 2pm
🦜 Early autumn bird walk: Join a local volunteer bird expert for a quaint walk on the commons to capture some local birdlife and hear their beautiful songs. As it’s London — and the walk covers different terrains — waterproof footwear is recommended. Binoculars are not provided, so bring your own if you can.
Where: Meet at the Ranger’s Office, Wimbledon Common
When: Sunday 7 September, 7.45–11am
🎨 Merton Moving Postcards printmaking workshop: Join illustrator Louise Hung and animator Olivia Wui for a printmaking workshop inspired by the rich natural and social history of Wimbledon Common and Caesar’s Well. You’ll have historical postcards for inspiration and explore the world of foam printmaking. And don’t worry if you haven’t got any experience; this event is open to people of all abilities. Contributors may also become part of a short film celebrating the borough of Merton’s 60th anniversary. Exciting! This is a free event, but booking is still required here.
Where: Wimbledon Museum
When: Saturday 6 September, 3–5pm
‘I’d never been a chef or worked in hospitality — I did it because I wanted to bring traditional Spanish food to Wimbledon and the rest of London’ 🇪🇸
This week, I spoke with Aixa, founder of CulynArt: a Spanish food and catering company that provides high-quality Spanish cuisine to the people of Wimbledon and beyond. Born in Barcelona and raised in Granada, Aixa worked as an IT consultant for most of her adult life. In 2019, she moved to Wimbledon and, before long, took a leap of faith and quit her job to start CulynArt. Many of our readers might already recognise Aixa and CulynArt from Love Wimbledon’s monthly market on the Piazza. But what does it actually take to start a business in Wimbledon? And what’s it like to spend countless weekends — come rain or shine — on the streets of SW19 selling your produce? I decided it was time to find out.
The Wimble: Tell me a little bit about your backstory. How did you end up in Wimbledon?
Aixa: I moved to Wimbledon six years ago now. Three years ago I decided to quit my job. I was an IT consultant working in the city — so very different from what I’m doing now. I was really happy as an IT consultant, but I felt that I didn’t want to stay in that job forever. I wanted to do something different. And that’s when the idea for CulynArt came to me. I’d never been a chef or worked in hospitality before. But I did it because I love cooking, and I wanted to bring traditional Spanish food to Wimbledon and the rest of London. There’s not really great quality Spanish food in London in comparison to other cuisines.
How has the reaction been to your food from customers and the general public?
It’s been great. It’s also been interesting. I think Spanish food outside of Spain is not that well known. Everyone knows paella, but that’s about it. And paella is not actually seen as traditional across the whole of Spain — it’s a dish from Valencia. When I started CulynArt, people kept asking me if I sold paella. I don’t [laughs]. I’m trying to bring new flavours from Spain. I want my customers to try things they’ve never heard of. We make this dish called Empanada Gallega (or Galician pie in English). It’s such a difficult dish to find outside of Galicia, and I’m really proud that we’ve been able to bring it to London.
You say that you don’t have a background in hospitality — do you work entirely alone at CulynArt? If so, do you find it difficult?
I started CulynArt by cooking at home. A year ago we realised that it was too much; cooking all of our food from our kitchen was impossible at a certain point. So we decided to find a kitchen. But prices are crazy in London. Luckily, we ended up finding a shared kitchen — we found this family that has been in the catering business for 25 years but only needed to use their space for half a day. So we’ve moved the production there now. And yes, it is mostly me doing all of the cooking. We recently hired another person to help out. Everything we do is homemade, but cooking in such large quantities has taught me a lot about planning and how to be more efficient.
Did you always want to sell your food at markets?
No, actually. We wanted our business to be 100% online at the beginning. But we realised that it would be very difficult. People value human interaction, and having a business entirely online goes against that. I didn’t know much about Wimbledon’s markets or markets in general. It was actually Jennifer from Love Wimbledon who encouraged me to join Wimbledon’s Piazza market. Markets aren’t really a thing in Spain, so I wasn’t aware of their setup. Jennifer said I should just give it a go, so I did. And I’ve been going to the market every month since, and from that, I’ve found other markets in South London. I’m still very grateful to Jennifer for encouraging me in the first place.
What are the highs and lows of working in a market?
The weather is a challenge [laughs]. I used to blame myself whenever I had a bad business day. I’d assume that I did something wrong, that I was the problem. But now that I’ve been doing markets for some time, I understand that every market is different and that you can’t predict how successful a day is going to be. We also need to understand that there is a huge financial crisis going on. Speak to the other market sellers that have been doing this for 15 to 20 years, and they will tell you that now is the worst time for businesses like ours. This is also why I’m so grateful that we’re doing well. I spoke to my husband the other day and said, “If we can survive in an economic time like this, just imagine how great we’ll be when things get better again.”
Wimbledon is perhaps our most successful market. I could move CulynArt to a market in Central London and make more money, but I really want to stay where I am. I want to preserve that community feeling you get from local markets like ours.
And now that it’s been six years, how would you define your experience in Wimbledon?
Wimbledon is amazing! I keep telling people how lovely Wimbledon is. It’s such a unique and beautiful area, and there’s a real community here in Wimbledon. There’s even a Spanish community here, which is crazy and exciting! But it also makes me question why there isn’t a single Spanish restaurant around here. I find that really weird. I think it’s because Spanish people don’t have as much of a culture of setting up businesses abroad — at least not in the way that other Europeans do. But to answer your question, I love it here. I call Wimbledon my home. It is my home.
CulynArt will be at the Wimbledon Village farmers’ market this Sunday as well as the market on the Piazza next Sunday. You can also check out their online catering services here, a calendar of their upcoming markets here, as well as their Instagram here.
Question of the week 🔍
Last week, I asked you when the Black Lamb opened in Wimbledon. The answer: 2022.
Q: On the 18 February 2025, 4,000 litres of WHAT was released into the River Wandle:
You’re up to date 👋
Thank you for reading this week’s edition. If you enjoyed it, share it with your friends! If not, share it with your enemies! Do keep getting in touch with ideas: zak@thewimble.com. Other than that, have a great rest of the week, and we’ll see you next time.
Lots in this weeks edition, especially like the story of Culynart ❤️