F·R·I·E·N·D·S
I was introduced to Friends by my best friend, Mandy, way back when the show started in 1994. Last year I had the opportunity to throw her a combined birthday/Christmas party and the theme was the easiest decision ever made. I never got around to sharing this party - partly because it was the busiest time of year, but also because I didn’t hire a professional photographer. With the news of Matthew Perry’s passing last weekend, though, I wanted to go ahead and share it. I hope you enjoy.
The Theme
Usually my parties are built around a cake. But for this party, I did what has become one of my favorite ways to throw a party - eating our way through famous food scenes!
This requires a fair bit of planning and some movie building skills, but it’s a ton of fun. I start by making a list of the most iconic food scenes I want to feature. I break everything into courses. For this Friends party, we had an Appetizer course, Sandwich course, Main course, and Dessert. I string those scenes together in chapters and while guests are watching the compiled scenes from the show, I am setting out all the featured food out on a buffet behind them. Once that portion of the video ends, they turn around and all the food is ready to eat.
The One with the Appetizers
Charcuterie Board - I had a lot of fun with this one. In Season 7, Joey has to be “authentically Jewish” for an audition. Our charcuterie board included Bologna with toothpicks, olive loaf, various salted meats, mushroom caps, fruit roll-ups, and non-edible pink suede and silly putty!
Cheese was “Milk that you chew” from Season 9 when Chandler explores advertising as a career. Crackers are “because your cheese needs a buddy” and were served in a “Magic Hands” bowl, a reference to Brooke Shield’s character telling Joey that he had “magic, life-giving hands” as Dr. Drake Ramoray.
Crabcakes - Ross gets incensed that the waiters have a bet on how long he will stay after getting stood up by his blind date. He leaves, but still wants his free crab cakes wrapped to go.
Pigs in a blanket - In Season 2, Monica is catering Carol’s wedding and tasks the others with helping her. Joey struggles with the pigs in a blanket.
The One with All the Sandwiches
Leftover Turkey Sandwiches with Chanberries - I recreated the official leftover turkey sandwich with the “moist maker” and added a special layer of Chanberries.
Joey’s Italian Sub - when Phoebe is pregnant, all she craves is meat. Joey shows her what a real meat sandwich should look like.
“He’s her lobster” roll sandwich - I took a little artistic license turning this into a sandwich, but it was great!
Meatball Sub - don’t smell it too much, because half the taste units are in the smell and you don’t want to suck them out!
“Joey doesn’t share food” Fry buffer - Joey gets upset when a date tries to share food off his plate. On their second date, he orders an extra side of fries as a “buffer.
The One with All the Main Courses
Joey Special - It’s not a Friends party without the “two pizza” Joey special
“Joey is Disgusting” Fried Chicken - Joey takes pictures of his friends, eats chicken and then looks at them! But he only eats the skin, so the chicken’s up for grabs.
Rachel’s “worst date ever” chicken - Jon Lovitz shows up as Rachel’s blind date and serves up one of the funniest guest roles ever! Not sure if she actually ate her chicken, but this episode was too funny not to include.
Spaghetti ‘NOT’ off the floor - When you’re at Joey’s, you can spill your food on the floor and he doesn’t care, but you don’t waste it. It’s still food, so you have to eat it!
The One with All the Desserts
Nestlé Toll House - Phoebe’s grandmother’s “secret” cookie recipe isn’t that much of a secret!
Monica’s Candy - Monica makes “little drops of heaven” chocolate candies so she can get to know her neighbors.
Joey’s “Special Skills” Milk - Joey’s resumé claims that he can drink a gallon of milk in 10 seconds.
Rachel’s “Tastes Like Feet” Trifle - The most iconic dessert in TV history. I recreated the trifle exactly as in the show and peole actually tried it! Lady fingers, jam, custard (made from scratch!), raspberries, beef sautéed with peas and onions, bananas, and whipped cream!
As soon as the scene started playing, my guests realized they were going to be turning around to see this trifle on the buffet - the mix of horror and delight was the best part of the evening!
Mama’s Little Bakery Stolen Cheesecake - One of my favorite Chandler Bing scenes! He gloats after Rachel accidentally spills her half of the stolen cheesecake and they wind up eating it off the floor. We served ours on plates!
The Pivot Cake - There had to be a birthday cake, and for this cake I featured the iconic “pivot” couch which I made from Rice Krispie treats so it could balance on the side of the cake.
I rounded out our dessert buffet with incredible custom cookies from The Baking Neighbor.