The owner of a restaurant in a building that served as the fictional home for the characters of Friends has lashed out at tourists for defacing its walls.
Joey Campanaro, owner of the Little Owl restaurant at 90 Bedford Street, New York where coffee shop Central Perk was set, spoke with the New York Post about how hordes of tourists have been causing havoc for his business.
“It’s annoying,” he said, describing how Friends fans have blocked roads as they take selfies and even graffitied on the walls of the building. “They’re behaving as if there’s zero accountability.”
He said he believed that “hundreds” of people have been visiting each day. “Over the weekends, it’s closer to 1,000.”
The 47-year-old added that the situation had worsened following the 25th anniversary celebrations for the show that took place in September.
He also revealed that he believes the graffiti may have been his fault, however unintentional. In 2011, one of his friends enjoyed a meal so much that he wrote “I love Joey” in chalk on the pavement outside, which has not washed away.
“I think a tourist thought that it was meant for [Friends character] Joey Tribbiani and not Joey Campanaro,” he said.
The anniversary marking 25 years since the first episode of Friends aired has been celebrated by the show’s former cast and their fans.
Jennifer Aniston, who starred as Rachel Green on the hit sitcom, recently (temporarily) broke Instagram after joining for the first time, and sharing her first post – a group photo of the entire original Friends cast.
See our definitive ranking of every Friends episode here.
