How The Friends-Inspired Central Perk Cafe Honored Matthew Perry's Memory

Could we be any more excited? A real-life version of the iconic Central Perk from the hit NBC show "Friends" has opened in Boston. 

The cafe was set to open in October 2023, but they delayed the opening after the unexpected death of Matthew Perry. It got pushed back to November 14, 2023, and for opening day, they sweetly decided to make sure to recognize Perry, who memorably played the sarcastic Chandler Bing. Here's how they did it — all day on the first day, the coffees came with coffee sleeves featuring one of Perry's famous lines as Chandler — "Can I interest you in a sarcastic comment?" — according to People.

The coffeehouse has sleeves with quotes from all six of the main characters from "Friends," so it's touching that, for the first day, just a couple of weeks after Perry died, the establishment chose to honor only Chandler. We're guessing super fans may be saving those sleeves...

Boston's Central Perk doesn't look exactly like the "Friends" Central Perk set we know and love, but it's a modern take and it definitely has the feel of a place where you'd want to come and hang out. Of course, there's a big orange couch — three, actually. One is a larger, more modern version, one is outside, and the third is a replica couch from the show, with a neon sign behind it that reads, "The One With..." That's surely going to be selfie-central! There are also tributes to the show all around, from a black-and-white image of the fountain from the opening credits to artwork of the chick and the duck.

World-renowned celebrity chef Tom Colicchio helped create the menu, which naturally includes dishes inspired by the show, like "The 'Moist Maker' Turkey Sandwich" and "Joey's Meatball Sandwich." The specialty coffee blends, which can be ordered online as well as in-house, are also all named for moments from the show — "Pivot Blend," "We Were On A 'Coffee' Break," and "How You Doin'?"

While there's never been a permanent Central Perk before, there have been temporary pop-up Central Perk coffee shops, including at the "The Friends Experience," which has locations in New York City, Detroit, Amsterdam, Dublin, and Salt Lake City. Fans can take pictures sitting in the famous orange couch and visit the replicas of Monica's apartment and Joey and Chandler's apartment, complete with matching recliners.

Central Perk was a featured set on "Friends." With its big orange couch and Gunther brewing coffee behind the counter, the entire series started with the scene at Central Perk in which Rachel runs in wearing a wet wedding dress after having ditched Barry. It was where we first heard Phoebe sing "Smelly Cat" and it's where we learned that, "Joey doesn't share food!"

And the iconic coffeehouse also gave us the final punchline of the series. In the final scene, as the six main cast members are making their way out of Monica's apartment for the last time, Rachel says they should go for coffee, to which Chandler sarcastically says, "Where?" Matthew Perry wound up getting that last line on "Friends" after asking creator Marta Kauffman for the honor. Basically, "Friends" wouldn't be the same without Central Perk, much the way it wouldn't have been the same without Perry. And we're glad to see him being honored at the real-life Central Perk.