It's been over a decade since a city centre café inspired by the hit sitcom Friends opened its doors.
Back in 1994, Friends burst onto our screens and we were introduced to the fictional Central Perk in New York, where characters Rachel, Monica, Phoebe, Joey, Chandler and Ross would spend the next 10 seasons enjoying coffee and catching up. And nearly 20 years later, Liverpool welcomed its own Central Perk to the city centre in 2012, serving speciality coffee, cakes, American style deli sandwiches, pastries and more
Opening in Hatton Garden, the café was a homage to the hugely popular sitcom, from its interior design to replaying classic episodes on screens. Owned by Kane Russell, Central Perk was the region’s first branch of the coffee shop, which later had sites on Bold Street and in Chester.
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Prior to opening in May 2012, head chef Steve Trimby told the ECHO: "The whole venue is a carbon copy of the one from the show. Everything from the décor to what we have on the menu.
"I’m a massive Friends fan so when I heard about the café opening I jumped at the opportunity. I spent months watching every series, pausing every time it gets to a Central Perk scene and noting down every detail.
"The main menu is on the chalkboard, so we’ve incorporated all of that into our menu, as well as the dishes the characters talk about or specials you see them eating. I’ve been to New York a few times and I love the atmosphere.
"We wanted that laid back feel in Central Perk." In its early days, Hatton Garden's Central Perk offered 10 speciality coffees inspired by the blends featured on the show, including Long Island Cream, Central Jolt, 5th Avenue Blend and Empire Roast, as well as American branded soft drinks and Brooklyn Brewery Beers. They also had a deli offering American treats including Grape Soda, A+W Root Beer, Hershey Bars, Butterfingers, Twinkies, BabyRuths and Pepsi Cherry, as well as Central Perk merchandise.
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The team also hoped to host special events, like open mic nights called "Finding Phoebe." By September 2014, the latest in the franchise opened its doors on Bold Street. Many will remember visiting one of the Central Perks in the city over the years, from watching a Christmas film on the screens in December or choosing which tip jar to put money in – the team Ross on a break jar or the team Rachel not on a break jar.
Over the years, Central Perk also attracted a number of famous faces. Bold Street welcomed then-Everton footballer Jose Baxter, as well as actor Tom Hardy. In April 2015, Tom was in Liverpool filming Peaky Blinders when he popped in for a coffee and took a photo with staff.
The coffee shop tweeted: “Some guy visited Central Perk Bold Street today.. no biggy.. only TOM HARDY! Tom Hardy is a fan of Friends and Central Perk after paying our Bold Street store a visit today."
But by 2016, it was announced that all three of the loved Central Perk cafes were to close. On January 26, the ECHO reported how the chain had revealed their Friend-themed cafés in Chester and Bold Street had already shut down, with the Hatton Garden site due to close.
A post on the chain’s Facebook page said items from the cafés were to be sold off in a silent auction, including the original replicas of the famous orange sofas, neon signs and coffee machines. The message said: "We have had a blast and enjoyed all your visits and apologise notice has been shortcoming."
Bids worth hundreds of pounds were placed, the highest bid at one point being for the famous orange sofa, which the chain said had an original manufacturing cost of £3,000.
Later that month, it was announced that new cade Ameriesko was to open in both the former Hatton Garden and Bold Street Central Perk sites. Owner Steven Hesketh at the time said the new Ameriesko Liverpool brand combined American interior styling and flavour with a distinctly Liverpool personality.
Liverpool’s Joe Blacks helped create two unique coffee blends – The Brooklyn Blend and the Yankee Blend. And Dafna’s Cheesecake Factory was also on the menu.
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Both venues later became Love Thy Neighbour branches too. But many will still remember the days of heading to Central Perk for a hot drink and to catch an old Friends episode.
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