LA's Friendship Plot Hole
June 12-14
Malibu
Saturday
Surf Canyon Market
A Summer Kick-Off filled with local finds, delicious bites, and a little summer fun.
Saturday
Surf Outpost x BentPenny
Pour overs, freshly-roasted coffee, and cold brew at Malibu’s most beautiful RV park with an ocean view.
Santa Monica
Sunday
The Art of Conversation
Inspired by the New Moon in Gemini, The Art of Conversation invites you to slow down and reconnect with yourselves, one another, and the present moment.
Venice
Saturday
Rhythm + Flow
Spend a slow summer morning with energizing mat Pilates, a live DJ set, and a restorative sound bath. After class, enjoy coffee or matcha, explore wellness offerings, and connect with the community.
Mar Vista
Sunday
Sandwich Swap
Cook Club LA returns for a sandwich-themed afternoon of homemade bites, quick pickling, sweet collaborations, local raffles, and gathering with fellow food lovers.
West Hollywood
Saturday
2nd Saturday TRC Trading Post
Thunder Road Cafe’s monthly 2nd Saturday Trading Post returns with local vendors, vintage finds, good company, and sips in the back parking lot.
The Grove
Saturday
Lil Sweet Treat Grand Opening
Lil Sweet Treats is arriving to The Grove, first 100 through the door take home an exclusive lil sweet treat goodie bag.
Melrose Hill
Saturday
Collage Workshop
Glued to your phone? Put glue on paper instead! Cut & paste a collage using vintage magazines in a workshop led by artist Julia Walck in her art studio.
Hollywood
Sunday
About Last Night: Dating Disaster Stories!
Enjoy laughs as a handful of LA queers lay bare the best of their cringiest dates and one night stand stories.
East Hollywood
Saturday
Cafe Santo en Siphonophore
A slow morning of coffee, music, local pop-ups and good company.
Downtown
Saturday
Workshops & Community Crafts
An event created to give back to yourself. It’s a chance to set apart time and feed your inner creative soul through hands-on activities, whether you sign up for a class or if you have a project you’ve been meaning to work on.
Sunday
The World Grub
LA’s ultimate celebration of soccer, street food, and global culture.
Silver Lake
Saturday
Una Protesta del Corazón
A multidisciplinary fundraiser show consisting of an art reception, artists panel, & fashion show.
Echo Park
Sunday
Clay & Coffee
A wholesome coffee & clay morning with Cera Sera Studios.
Highland Park
Sunday
Vintage Fair
A limitless collection of vintage brought to you by 15+ sellers and brands hosted by Moonlight and Cheerio Collective at Cheerio’s beautiful space in Highland Park.
Frogtown
Sunday
Trunk and Lace
A morning of coffee, culture, cuisine, community, and vintage cars in collaboration with The Motoring Gallery at their gallery.
Lincoln Heights
Sunday
Chicken Sh*t Bingo
A full-on Waylon Jennings takeover for Chicken Sh*t Bingo packed with outlaw country tunes, cold drinks, good luck, and a whole lotta Waylon spirit.
Boyle Heights
Saturday
Salsamba World Club
Live music, dancing, drinks & bites and all the World Cup excitement.
LA’s Friendship Plot Hole
At this point, you've either found yourself on #NoFriends TikTok or come across the growing number of online articles unpacking social media's latest phenomenon: influencers openly documenting life with a smaller social circle than we're used to seeing online.
A quick recap to make sure we're all on the same page: these videos feature people spending weekends alone, going to dinner solo, navigating adulthood without a built-in Friend group or candidly admitting they're struggling to make Friends. And while the content might look like it's glamorizing isolation at first glance, that's not really the point. The appeal is that they're showing a reality that rarely makes it onto our feeds but is way more common than social media would have us believe. The conversation isn't celebrating loneliness, just removing some of the shame around it.
And it got me thinking: for decades, we've mostly seen one version of Friendship reflected back to us.
Just think about how many TV shows teach us that adulthood comes with a perfectly assembled group of Friends.
Carrie, Samantha, Charlotte and Miranda somehow found time to meet for a meal multiple times a week. Friends, Seinfeld and That '70s Show walked so How I Met Your Mother and The Big Bang Theory could run. Boy Meets World's Cory Matthews was never far from Shawn and Topanga. Entourage was literally named after the group itself.
And while Euphoria, 90210, Gossip Girl, The O.C. and One Tree Hill had the most chaotic Friend groups ever, they were Friend groups nonetheless. The generation that grew up watching it on Jersey Shore is now getting its fix from Bravo, whether that's Housewives, Summer House or whatever Friend group is currently fighting on a boat. And, of course, we can't forget the OG group: The Golden Girls.
Their Friends weren't just Friends on these shows. They were family. They lived down the hall, around the corner or somehow had unrestricted access to each other's apartments. They gathered at the same coffee shops, bars and kitchen tables week after week. Nobody spent three weeks trying to coordinate a dinner reservation or sat at home on a random Friday night wondering whether leaving the house was worth the parking situation.For generations, this has been the Friendship blueprint we’ve seen over and over again.
And now social media has amplified that image even further. We now open our feeds to find weddings with twelve bridesmaids, seasonal girls’ trips and rooftop birthdays every weekend.The internet would have you believe everyone in Los Angeles spends their days making group Laurel Supply runs, strolling the Malibu Country Mart with an entire posse and chartering Duffy boats in Marina del Rey with all 12 seats filled. And by night, they’re floating between dinner parties at Osteria Mozza, Gjelina and the Polo Lounge. Meanwhile, some of us spent Saturday afternoon reorganizing a bathroom drawer and debating whether leaving the house was worth the parking situation.
Which is exactly why this latest wave of "no Friends" content feels so refreshing. Not because it's aspirational, but because it's showing something we don't usually see.
The person who just moved to a new city and hasn't found their people yet.
The person whose once-tight Friend group naturally drifted apart.
The person who genuinely prefers a handful of close Friends over a packed social calendar.
The person spending a Saturday alone without feeling the need to apologize for it.
This online movement is for them.
Friendship can be the one person you call when something good happens. The Friend who sends you a meme at 11 p.m. The Friend who remembers your go-to cocktail because you've ordered it together a hundred times. The childhood Friend who feels more like family even though you only talk every few months. The long-distance college Friend whose voice notes take three weeks to answer but you always pick up exactly where you left off.
It also feels like the perfect reminder of what Like A Friend Said has always been about. One good Friend can make even a city as big as Los Angeles feel a little more like home.
Because Friendship doesn't always look like a cast photo from a television show. Sometimes it's one person who shows up. Who shares the best recs (we got you), advice or TikToks.
And while society has always celebrated the Friend group, these conversations remind us there's more than one way to belong.— Your Friend