If you ask anyone who grew up in the 90s what they were doing on Thursday nights, chances
are they were watching Friends. So, stay tuned for The One With The Top 10 Best Food-Related
Friends Moments.
The One With The Meatball Sub
Would you do anything for your friends? Even jump in front of a bullet for them? Well,
Joey would, and he did just that. Well, almost. At least, that's what it looked like at first.
In the ride-along episode, Ross, Chandler, and Joey all tag along with Phoebe's then-boyfriend
Gary-the-cop during a routine patrol. After a car backfire is mistaken for a gunshot,
Joey is quick to lean over Ross to protect his dear friend. Everyone calls him a courageous
hero, which rubs Chandler the wrong way because why would Joey save Ross and not him? After
confronting him, Joey confesses; he wasn't trying to save Ross; he was trying to save
the sandwich that was next to him. Basically, Joey risked his life for his sandwich. Still
honorable, somehow, we think. Joey defended his actions by saying it was instinct and
that it was "the greatest sandwich in the world." Everyone knows that "Joey doesn't
share food," but as a way to show how much Chandler means to him, he offers him his sandwich
- well, just a bite, but still. It must be one heck of a meatball sandwich.
The One With Phoebe's Cookies
Chocolate chip cookies, in general, are amazing. But, when someone claims they have the best
recipe in the world? You simply have to get your hands on it! In the third episode of
the seventh season, Monica is determined to recreate the recipe for Phoebe's grandmother's
chocolate chip cookies - which had been used in her family for generations. After 22 batches
of cookies - not all edible - looking at you batch 16 - Monica is still unable to get the
recipe perfectly right. Especially after Joey eats the last of the model cookie. All hope
seems lost until Phoebe reveals that her grandmother got the recipe from her grandmother, Nestle
Toulouse. Ding, ding, ding! Nestle Toulouse, aka Nestle Tollhouse. This was the famous
chocolate chip cookie recipe Monica was trying to recreate all this time. Although, in her
grandmother's defense, Nestle Tollhouse cookies are pretty amazing, so... Anyway, the mystery
of Phoebe's grandmother's cookie recipe can finally be put to rest...and according to
Phoebe, it's because of stuff like this that she's BURNING IN HELL!
The One With "Ross's Sandwich"
Okay, let's be honest, we all felt for Ross a little during the heartbreaking moment he
realized his colleague had not only taken his sandwich but threw most of it away in
the trash. His beloved, highly anticipated Thanksgiving sandwich. After a divorce, sudden
homelessness, and trouble getting back on his feet, this sandwich was "the only good
thing going on" in his life, after all. His iconic outburst eventually cost him his job,
and he even ended up having to take a sabbatical because of it! But, his anger was kind of understandable;
he did put a note on it! We would be lying if we said we've never wanted to try the Moist
Maker at least once. Ross describes it with such passion; it's hard to imagine it’s
not exquisite. In season 5, we learned that, according to Ross, Monica makes the best leftover
turkey sandwiches - and of course, we believe him. Her secret? An extra slice of gravy-soaked
bread in the middle to make the whole thing, well, moist! Countless recipes can be found
online and in the Official Friends Cookbook to recreate the deliciousness of the Moist
Maker.
The One With The Whole Turkey
The Thanksgiving episodes are probably some of the greatest episodes of the whole series.
From the Geller Cup to heads stuck in turkeys, this holiday was never boring in Apartment
20. Every holiday season we were greeted with a crazy storyline, all involving some elegant,
appetizing Thanksgiving feast and some good old fashioned drama. There was that time Chandler
made the best cranberry sauce ever - from a can, or when the whole dinner was ruined
because Underdog got away from the parade, or when the "I hate Rachel Green Club" was
outed - the list is endless. But, one of the most iconic scenes was when Joey took on
the challenge of eating a whole turkey, in one sitting, by himself. Monica didn't want
to make a turkey for just three people, but Joey protested: "Thanksgiving without turkey
is like the Fourth of July with no apple pie or Friday with no two pizzas." So, after putting
on his "Thanksgiving pants" - or what the rest of the world likes to call maternity
pants - he gets started on the nineteen pound turkey. After Joey defeated the giant
bird, he did get the meat sweats, but surprisingly (then again, maybe not), he still had room
for some pie!
The One With All The Pizza
Spoiler alert - Joey loves food. Ok, it's no big secret and he's made his stand on food
pretty clear throughout the 10 years of the show. From chocolatey desserts to spaghetti
on the floor, nothing can stand in the way of Joey and food. But, there is one thing
he is particularly fond of. Something he could eat all day, every day. Heck, he even stole
one from the second floor once. Yes, you guessed it, it's pizza! Joey treats pizza like literal
royalty and even has a throne for it. And how could he not? Pizza seems to make an appearance
in almost every episode, and the majority of his diet appears to consist of the hot
pies. Usually, on a Friday night, only the true fans of Friends will know; one pizza
isn't enough, you need to order the Joey special; two pizzas! And one with extra anchovies,
please! Joey makes it clear that no matter how much you've eaten, there is always room
for more pizza. While Joey is the pizza expert, everyone else has had their own love story
with NYC pizza - whether it was on ladies' night while spying on George Stephanopoulos
or when Ross attempted to flirt with the delivery girl, pizza has practically been a character
on the show all by itself - as it should.
The One With All The Cheesecake
What wouldn't you do for a good slice of cheesecake? A creamy, soft, and fluffy cake that's perfect
no matter what the occasion. Now, how would you react if one day that said cheesecake
magically showed up on your doorstep? Would you find, and then return it to its rightful
owner? Or would you do like Chandler and Rachel and eat the whole thing because it was "an
honest mistake?" Obviously, they felt bad about keeping the cake for themselves instead
of giving it back to Mrs. Braverman downstairs, but apparently not guilty enough to refrain from
eating a second one that has also been wrongly delivered. With delicious food sometimes comes
bickering, and the two "thieves" begin fighting over the gooey cake, splitting it into two
slices. Well, the inevitable happens and both slices end up on the hallway floor. Most people
would just call it quits and pick up the mess, but not them. There is nothing like watching
a desperate Chandler and Rachel scrounge around for crumbs of cheesecake on the ground, still
squabbling and protecting "their side." Then, of course, Joey being Joey, walks by, pulls
out a fork from his shirt pocket, and gets ready to dig in ("alright, what are we having?")
Well done, Mama's Little Bakery in Chicago, Illinois. Well done.
The One With ‘Fried Stuff With Cheese’
By now, it's pretty clear who likes to eat the most on Friends. Why, it's Joey Tribianni,
of course! He's proven time and again that a little extra food never hurt anybody - like
that time he ate everything that was in the fridge because it broke - even whatever was
in that brown jar. It's also pretty clear who the best cook is - Monica. As head chef
of Javu's, she knows a thing or two about good food. It makes you wonder: how come the
biggest food lover and the best chef didn't end up together? It sounds like a match made
in heaven, right? Well, while Monica married Chandler and Joey had, well, a new chick and
duck, that possibility was still explored briefly in season 7. And the results are just
about as catastrophic as you would expect. In the episode, while imagining what her life
might look like if she married Joey, Monica pictures a morbidly obese Joey waddling into
the room in time for dinner. Foodie plus professional chef equals a lot of food being prepared.
And since Joey doesn't really believe in salads, what would Monica make the most? Fried stuff
with cheese, his favorite. "And lots of it." While it never came to that, it certainly
would've been interesting to see just how far Joey's love for food could've gone had
he ended up with Monica.
The One With All the Candy
If you're a fan of Friends, then you know just how great of a chef Monica is. Everything
she cooks always seems so appetizing and tempting; we can sometimes forget that it's all for
show. You probably also know she can be a little competitive, and sometimes a little
bit of control-freak - but that's alright! It's all part of her charm! While she's notorious
for her Moist Maker, her Christmas candies are also pretty hard to beat - at least, according
to her very impatient neighbors - and Joey. She originally made these "little drops of
heaven" in an effort to get to know the neighbors better and get into the holiday spirit. But,
it quickly backfired. The demand became overwhelming, and she had to stay up all night to feed the
sugar-rushed, restless, candy beggers outside her door - and Joey, again. Now dubbed the
"candy lady," Monica was on the verge of a breakdown and she even got a death threat
slipped under the door (thanks for that one, Joey) But, because of Monica's stubbornness,
this only pushed her even more and motivated her to keep going, until Chandler, her knight
in shining armor, intervened. Perhaps, next time she'll stick with the good old Christmas
cards. If you were hoping to try out these famous TV treats, the recipe for these chocolate
truffles can be found online.
The One With The Trifle
Rachel, Rachel Rachel - she came to us a spoiled runaway bride and left as a mother and executive
at Ralph Lauren. Her character grew tremendously over the years, but there's one thing that
never really took off for her - her cooking skills. That's okay, though; it's not everyone
who has the talent to cook delicious meals like Monica. However, she did try her best
to make the finest Trifle for Thanksgiving dinner, all by herself. She wanted to prove,
not only to Monica but also to herself, that she could do this one on her own. The truth
is, it would've been quite a success had she followed the recipe faithfully. You see, the
recipe called for ladyfingers, jam, custard, raspberries, banana, whipped cream - which,
she made from scratch - and well, funnily enough, beef sautéed with peas and onions.
A little suspicious, to say the least. Well, it turns out this epic fail was due to the
pages of her cookbook being stuck together. As a result, Rachel made a dessert that was
half a trifle and half a shepherd's pie. Needless to say, "it did not taste good." It tasted
like feet, apparently. Actually, there is one jolly fella who quite enjoyed the miscalculated
treat; Joey. "What's not to like? Custard, good. Jam, good. Meat, good!" He even went
around and collected everybody else's "mysteriously missing portions." To each his own, right?
The One With The Mockolate
There's no argument here: chocolate is delicious. No matter how you eat it or in what, it has
the ability to give any recipe that extra level of sweetness. Now, of course, we're
talking about real chocolate here. Nothing can replace chocolate, not even Mockolate,
a fake chocolate substitute introduced on the show. Monica always puts her heart and
soul into everything she cooks, but that doesn't mean that everything is going to be a success
- especially if the ingredients are questionable. Remember that episode where Monica landed
a job creating recipes for ‘Mockolate?' The company wanted Mockolate to become Thanksgiving's
new official ingredient - and we're all thankful it didn't, because yikes! Mockolate is a horrible,
potentially dangerous type of food product. Needing the money, Monica pretended to love
it and created 3 Thanksgiving themed desserts: pumpkin pie with a Mockolate cookie crumb
crust, Mockolate cranberry cake, and Mockolate chip cookies. Despite the very small amount
of Mockalte used in the recipes, let's just say it wasn't a big hit with the others. According
to Phoebe, "This is what evil must taste like." After not getting FDA approval (surprising),
the Mockolate project was scrapped. Obviously, we can't leave out the other product the company
wanted her to work on, Fishtachios - which taste "exactly like pistachios but are made
primarily of reconstituted fish bits. But since Monica's allergic to cat hair, she needed
to decline. Weird connection? Yes. But surprising? Not really.
Got a favorite Friends moment? Let us know.
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