Film & TV · 19 places in all
Sitcom New York
The real diners, bars, shops and stoops behind Seinfeld, Friends and How I Met Your Mother.
Seinfeld, Friends and How I Met Your Mother all take place in Manhattan, and all three were made on sound stages in Los Angeles. What New York gave them was a handful of exterior shots, the real places their writers knew, and a lot of shops, bars and streets named in the scripts.
So this is a walk through the places behind the sets: the diner that stood in for Monk’s, the corner building that played the Friends apartment, the soup shop that inspired an episode, and the Midtown pub the How I Met Your Mother writers drank in. We give the episode for each one where we could confirm it.
Most stops are working businesses or people’s homes. Buy something where you can, take photos from the pavement, and don’t expect any set inside.
2 ways to do it
EThe editorsSeinfeld’s New YorkMonk’s diner, Jerry’s street, the bagel shop, the Soup Nazi and the NBC pitch, from Morningside Heights to 59th Street.10 placesA full day2 freeUptownMidtownUse this list →
EThe editorsFriends and How I Met Your MotherThe Friends building, MacLaren’s real-life model, Ross’s museum and the places the gangs name, Village to Columbia.10 placesA full day2 freeVillage & DowntownMidtown & FlatironMidtownUse this list →Questions people ask
Were Seinfeld and Friends filmed in New York?
No. Both were shot in Los Angeles studios. New York appears in exterior shots, such as Tom’s Restaurant for Monk’s and 90 Bedford Street for the Friends apartment building.
Is MacLaren’s from How I Met Your Mother a real bar?
Not as such. It was a set, but the creators based it on McGee’s Pub at 240 West 55th Street, where they drank while writing for David Letterman. The show never filmed there.
Is the Soup Nazi’s shop real?
Yes. The episode was inspired by Al Yeganeh’s Soup Kitchen International at 259A West 55th Street. It trades today as The Original Soup Kitchen.
Can you go inside the Friends apartment?
No. 90 Bedford Street is a private apartment building and nothing was filmed inside. For the sets, The Friends Experience at 130 East 23rd Street has full-size replicas and a working Central Perk.