The best sitcom bars and restaurants

If you’ve seen even just one episode of Friends, you’re likely familiar with Central Perk, the group’s main hangout spot and temporary place of employment for Rachel and Joey. From its oversized mugs to its iconic orange couch, we’d be just as excited to grab a cup of coffee at Central Perk today as we would’ve been in the ‘90s.

Though Central Perk is iconic, you don’t even have to watch an episode of Cheers to know it’s also the name of the bar where the show takes place. One of Boston’s finest establishments, Cheers acts as a second home for its regulars, and it earns its reputation as a place where everybody knows your name. 

When Frasier Crane moved to Seattle, he had to find another establishment just as homey as Cheers, and luckily, he found one across the street from the radio station where he works. Café Nervosa acts as a small beacon of intellectual conversation and epic insults between Frasier and his brother Niles and father Martin on Frasier. 

Cheers walked so It’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia could run (though being set at a bar is essentially where the similarities between the two sitcoms begin and end). Though the Päddy’s Pub gang ventures beyond the confines of their drinkery far more than Sam Malone and company, the Philadelphia pub is just as legendary as the Boston bar. 

Moe’s Tavern is an iconic television bar. Name another establishment that’s served Joe Frazier, Stephen Hawking, and Al Gore. Sure, they didn’t visit the joint, but their fictional presence is just as good a reason to highlight the bar as those men having a beer at The Simpsons' bar. 

Leslie takes plenty of her coworkers and friends to JJ’s Diner over the seven seasons of Parks and Recreation, regularly mentioning her love for its waffles and hiring the restaurant to cater her wedding. The Parks gang even bands together for an episode to save the restaurant, a crusade that ranks near the top of their various causes. 

Another Pawnee, Indiana specialty, The Snakehole Lounge, acts as the backdrop for one of the best episodes of Parks and Recreation. In “The Fight,” Tom invites everyone to The Snakehole Lounge to try out his new liquor, Snake Juice, and it’s responsible for one of the only fights between Ann and Leslie in the series, as well as one of the best hangover scenes in television history. 

Though he can’t remain a part owner of The Snakehole Lounge, Tom doesn’t stay out of the bar and restaurant game for too long. In the later seasons, Parks and Recreation’s resident entrepreneur opens Tom’s Bistro. This old-world Italian eatery serves some of the town’s most prominent people and actual celebrities like Ginuwine. 

The Office employees don’t stray too much from their place of work, but when they do, they head to Poor Richard’s. The Dunder Mifflin gang finds themselves celebrating St. Patrick’s Day at the bar after spending an extra-long day at work, and the bar is often name-dropped by regulars like Kevin and Meredith.  

The cops from Brooklyn’s 99th precinct often find themselves at Shaw’s Bar to either celebrate a major solve or lament the woes of being a detective in New York City. It’s also the location where the winners of the Halloween heists are crowned an Amazing Detective/Genius. The squad even finds itself drinking against the fire department for exclusive rights to the bar in one episode of Brooklyn Nine-Nine. 

If you’re envisioning your favorite episode of How I Met Your Mother, chances are you’re also envisioning the crew at their favorite spot in MacLaren’s. Many scenes in the show’s 200-some episodes were shot at this beloved bar, and MacLaren’s became as comforting as the show itself. It was as heartwrenching to say goodbye to the spot as it was to Ted, Barney, Lily, Robin, and Marshall. 

As much as we love Moe’s Tavern, we’d be remiss not to mention the true hero of drinking and eating establishments on The Simpsons: Krusty Burger. As far as television restaurants go, Krusty Burger is high on the list. It’s been featured in dozens of episodes of the esteemed cartoon, and it’s even got a location in Paris. The chain is just another reason Krusty the Clown is rollin’ in the dough. 

If the residents of the loft aren’t at home or their jobs, they’re at The Griffin. Major moments from New Girl happen at this bar, including Jess meeting Sam and Winston and Coach offering to loan Cece money for college. Longtime employee Nick eventually buys into the bar with Schmidt, his best friend and business partner, officially establishing the place as the show’s seventh main character. 

Take a moment to consider all the pointless conversations that were held at Monk’s Café. Though its interior was a set, the exterior of the Seinfeld hangout spot is Tom’s Restaurant, a real New York City establishment. Tom’s Restaurant still exists, so you, too, can patronize the eatery and have your own pointless conversation or two. 

Of all the locations in Schitt’s Creek, Café Tropical is the best. Granted, there aren’t many places to visit, but that doesn’t diminish the restaurant's uniqueness. Café Tropical acts as a much-needed respite for the Roses when they can’t be bothered to spend time at the motel or are hungry for food they can’t cook themselves. Unsurprisingly, the family is told they can’t patronize the restaurant until paying their long-running tab.  

Health codes be damned, we want a seat at Nemo’s Pizza. The Everybody Loves Raymond hangout has the decor of a quintessential Italian-American pizzeria, and eating pizza while enjoying the company of Ray (or at least overhearing his conversations with his friends) would make the uncleanliness of the joint a mere blip on the radar. 

Watching fans of AFC Richmond gather at The Crown & Anchor to cheer on their favorite football team are some of the most endearing scenes on Ted Lasso. And that’s saying something. The entire series is endearing moment after endearing moment. Though they’re consistently disappointed, The Crown & Anchor regulars teach us all a master class in team loyalty. 

If we could eat at any animated restaurant, it’d be Bob’s Burgers. The atmosphere, the prices, and the staff would make it an unforgettable experience. And who doesn’t love a good burger? In solidarity with the Belchers, you’ll notice Jimmy Pesto’s is not on this list. 

Though Bone Town hasn’t made many appearances in Abbott Elementary thus far, it’s already been the butt of one of the best jokes in the series, and it seems it’s going to become both a running joke and a secondary location for the Philadelphia teachers. We can only hope we see a real date between Janine and Gregory at Bone Town. 

It’s good business sense for a restaurant to allow a television series to use its exterior for shots in the show, especially when a show runs as long as The King of Queens. Unfortunately, Cooper’s bar, called Yerman’s Irish Pub in real life, no longer looks like it did on the sitcom, but you can still visit the Queens locale.