Finally! Central Perk is opening in SoHo, New York City!
The pop-up shop, which is a replica of the same coffee shop featured on hit 90s TV series "Friends", will start serving free coffee on September 17, Wednesday, which is actually today.
"In a collaboration between Warner Bros and Eight O'Clock Coffee, Central Perk will open its doors to the public on Wednesday, September 17 and stay open until October 18, giving fans plenty of time to grow out their Rachels and find their most '90s outfit," Time said.
The establishment showcases items that have been actually used on the "Friends" set from way back, lending the place an ambiance and look that stays true to the one where Ross, Rachel, Phoebe, Joey, Monica, and Chandler hung out. They include "Monica's (Courteney Cox) V-neck peasant shirt and calf-length skirt train wreck, Rachel's (Jennifer Aniston) belted grey schoolgirl skirt and black boot ensemble and Joey Tribbiani's (Matt LeBlanc) henley-flannel shirt combo."
The New York Post said that the pop up shop, which has been set up to commemorate the show's 20th anniversary, will welcome its first customers at 8 in the morning Wednesday. "Festivities include contests, giveaways and musical homages to Phoebe's "Smelly Cat" until the cafe's run ends," the publication added.
Aside from all that, the sitcom's "tortured" barista Gunther, played by James Michael Tyler, will be present at the shop (but not all the time, though).
In his recognizable platinum-colored hair, the actor said that he had his hair done "specifically for the event." He told NY Post that he was a real-life barista before he joined the NBC show.
"I kept that barista job for four years while doing 'Friends,' " he revealed. "60 cups of coffee per hour, eight hour shift. That's 480 cups of coffee I would have served a day on the show."
Will they get any one of the main lead "Friends" stars to make an appearance, too? That remains to be seen. No announcement has been made regarding this.
The big orange couch, on which sat the "Friends" cast, will however be in the pop up shop. Tyler recalled that his character sat on the familiar furniture only once.
There also will be other memorabilia in the place, such as signed scripts and behind-the-scenes photos and candid shots of the cast on set.
Can't wait to get to Central Perk? Head over to 199 Lafayette Street (at the corner of Broome Street) in New York City to start immersing yourselves in a "Friends" experience.
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