Italian beef with giardiniera, the kind of sandwich sold at the Original Beef of Chicagoland
The food of The Bear is central to the storytelling and relationship-building on the series The Bear, an episodic television dramedy based the world of U.S. restaurants after the COVID-19 pandemic. The two main characters, Carmy Berzatto (Jeremy Allen White) and Sydney Adamu (Ayo Edebiri), are exquisitely trained, experienced, elite chefs who work together to save Berzatto family restaurant, a failing Italian beef sandwich joint, and launch a new high-end dining destination called The Bear. The show's culinary producer, Courtney "Coco" Storer, is an experienced chef and the sister of series creator Christopher Storer.[1] Executive producer and castmember Matty Matheson is also an experienced chef and cookbook author.[2]
Italian beefs came from Neapolitan immigrants who moved to Chicago a century ago. When a couple got married, the neighborhood held a "peanut wedding"—essentially a working-class wedding. At these gatherings, they needed an economical way to feed many people. Cooks would take a medicine-ball portion of beef bottom round, seasoned aggressively with garlic, basil, and oregano; roast it in a pan of its juices; then slice it so thin one could practically see through it. These meat shavings were piled onto a roll and topped with a spicy bricolage of pickled vegetables known as giardiniera (sometimes boiled sweet peppers), and the whole sandwich got dunked in the pan juices. Suddenly, 15 pounds of cheap beef would feed 50 people."[3]
Another description characterized it as sort of like a roast-beef sandwich, but also sort of like a French dip, because of the importance of beef broth, also known as "gravy or au jus".[4] It is a very regional, Chicago-specific sandwich, with significantly less fame with than a Philadelphiacheesesteak or a Cuban sandwich from Florida.[5] According to the Chicago Tribune, if you asked for your sandwich to be dipped, it "often comes out looking like a water-logged roll of paper towels."[5] On the show Marcus originally bakes the rolls in-house but in real Chicago, they are often ordered from Turano Baking Co.[5] Typical topping options include either sweet peppers (green bell, red bell, or Melrose peppers), or hot peppers, also known as the aforementioned giardiniera (described as "pickled mix of vegetables and chiles submerged in oil"), and in recent years "shredded cheese and tomato sauce have become increasingly popular."[5] Some of this food culture developed around Taylor Street in Chicago's Little Italy.[3] Famous Italian beef spots in Chicago, other than Mr. Beef itself (which inspired the show's Original Beef of Chicagoland sandwich joint), include Al's #1 Italian (originally opened in 1938 as a front for a gambling operation), Tony's Italian Deli & Subs in Edison Park, Johnnie's in Elmwood Park, the Portillo's chain, and the Buona chain.[3][5][6] Chris Zucchero's recommended sandwich order is "'hot, sweet, and juicy—that's the Italian beef sandwich with hot peppers, which is the giardiniera, sweet peppers, which is bell peppers, and dipped. That's the way to get it."[7]
A set of four index cards are taped to the bookshelf in the Bear office reveal the recipe for "giardiniera by Nonna."[8]Nonna means grandmother.[9]Giardiniera is the typical topping for an Italian beef sandwich.[10]
1⁄2 head cauliflower chopped into small florets 10 ribs celery diced 5 carrots diced 2 large bell peppers 1 cup sliced green pitted olives 4 serrano peppers sliced
Marcus' chocolate cake was created by the show's pastry consultant Sarah Mispagel-Lustbader, who served a version of it at her Chicago bakery Loaf Lounge.[11] The cake has a chocolate mousse filling and takes about 12 hours to prepare and chill for service.[12] Marcus' cake evolves over the season starting out with a more "rustic frosting job" that he refines into a "mirror glaze" by the season finale episode, "Braciole."[11]
Ebon Moss-Bachrach told an interviewer that his favorite story beat from season one is in this episode: "...when we shot it, I watched this happen and my heart just melted, and when I watch it on TV, I feel the same way...Richie and Carmy come back after the crazy birthday party. There's some cake and ice cream that Marcus serves up, and Richie and Carmy are so beat, and everyone is so exhausted. Carmy takes one bite of cake and says to Marcus, 'Chef, this is delicious,' and Marcus gives him this thumbs up. The thumbs up comes straight out of his heart. Maybe I'm just sentimental or something, but that encapsulated so much of this season for me."[13]
Carmy's lemon chicken piccata and Sydney's étouffée stock
When Sydney enters the kitchen she immediately understands what Carmy is already working on and asks "Can I?" Carmy approves, so she begins hammering chicken breasts with a meat tenderizer while he makes conversation about having looked at her COGS, which are reports about "costs of goods sold."[14] Later, using the chicken in question, Carmy shows the cooks how to make lemon chicken piccata for the updated dinner menu.[15] This is "mom's chicken" that Sugar was making for dinner in episode two, "Hands."[15] Carmy uses the term monter (from beurre monté) and then switches to simpler language. Translated literally from the Frenchmonter means "to mount," but it's used in "culinary English" to mean "to thicken," specifically by slowly whisking in butter.[16]Piccata is the Italian word "for a very thin, usually flattened, slice of meat or fish."[17]Veal piccata was the original form, chicken piccata came later.[18]
The title of the episode, "Braciole," refers to a dish that Carmy tells his studio audience that Mikey usually made with beef. Mikey, with backup by Carmy, prepares braciole in the flashback scene in "Ceres." Per Food & Wine, braciola are "Italian-style roulade, a rolled and stuffed meat...also called involtini, or bruciuluni in Sicilian. The etymology of the word translates to a slice of meat rolled over coals. The meat—typically beef, veal, or pork—is pounded thin and stuffed with prosciutto, breadcrumbs, cheese, and herbs. It can be grilled, pan-fried, or braised in sauce."[21] Sydney's cola ribs also used a braising technique, which Carmy described in the pilot "System," when he told Richie, "The only beef I could get was bone-in, which you have to braise, alright? It takes two hours longer."[22]
Mikey also left behind a recipe for spaghetti sauce on the 3" x 5" index card that amounted to his suicide note,[23] which one recipe developer theorized was "inspired by two pretty iconic tomato sauces: Scarpetta's 'Spaghetti with Tomato and Basil, and Marcella Hazan's Tomato Sauce with Onion and Butter'."[24]
I love you dude. Let it rip
Family Meal Spaghetti
–10 Garlic Cloves –Basil Steeped in Oil –San Marzano Tomatoes 2 28 oz cans (the smaller cans taste better)
Sydney presents the cola-braised short ribs and risotto dish she conceptualized at the end of "Sheridan." Carmy rejects Sydney's proposed addition to the dinner menu as "not ready."[25] Short ribs are a cut of beef, usually derived the chuck and short plate cuts, which consists "of layers of fat and meat and contain pieces of the rib bone. They're very tough and require long, slow, moist-heat cooking."[26] According to Food & Wine, "On television and in real life, nothing is cozier than a Dutch oven filled with braised, fall-off-the-bone tender short ribs served over risotto. Here, per Sydney's creativity, classic wine and stock braising liquid get a surprising addition from cola, which balances the savory with a touch of complex sweetness to create a smooth, rich sauce."[27] Braising is a cooking technique in which meat is "first browned in fat, then cooked, tightly covered, in a small amount of liquid at low heat for a lengthy period of time" which develops flavor and makes the protein tender.[28] According to The New Food Lover's Companion, risotto is a labor-intensive, delectable, creamy "Italian rice specialty made by stirring hot stock into a mixture of rice (and often chopped onions) that has been sautéed in butter. The stock is added 1⁄2 cup at a time and the mixture is stirred continually while it cooks until all the liquid is absorbed before more stock is added."[29] Sydney's risotto recipe uses an étouffée stock as a flavor base; this is what she was working on in "Sheridan" when she asked Carmy to help her strain her stock.[19]
The real-life executive chef of Ever, Curtis Duffy, designed the "minty Snickers bar" dessert, which is "three-layer cake; on top, a layer of coconut cream set with gelatin, a middle layer of mint shiso, and, on the bottom, a chocolate sauce with a bit of caramel. A cracker on top adds a bit of crunch to the dessert that almost looks too good to eat."[30]
Syd's omelette is based on a classic French omelette.[31][32] A French omelette is prepared differently than omelettes served in the United States, where the show is set.[33]
French omelettes are different from American omelettes in two primary ways. First, they are very thin, and they cook very quickly. American omelettes tend to be thick and fluffy, stuffed with toppings and add-ins, but a French omelette is thin and elegant. The second difference is the toppings. American omelettes include a bevy of options, but the French version traditionally only includes eggs, butter, and perhaps some cheese, but not always. The point of a French omelette is to highlight the creamy, perfectly cooked eggs without any distraction from other ingredients.[33]
According to restaurateur Abe Beame, Syd's omelette technique is "more or less flawless, although, if I may nitpick, the pan doesn't seem hot enough because the butter isn't 'singing' as it should when it first hits the pan, and she pipes a thin tube of Boursin onto the setting eggs, a major no-no (but almost certainly delicious, based on Ludo Lefevbre's omelet recipe). Extra point for rubbing butter onto the rolled omelet on the plate, and the textural chip crumble with chive garnish spoke directly to my Jewish palate. More food-based intimacy in season 3, please."[34][35][36]
Boursin is a so-called "Gournay cheese" invented by Norman cheese maker François Boursin in 1957.[37] It's a soft, creamy, spreadable cow's milk cheese—not dissimilar from mascarpone, goat's milk chèvre, or Brie—that was "inspired by the common French party treat called fromage frais."[38] The original flavor is garlic-and-fines herbes.[37] Chef Lefevbre recommends the cracked black pepper flavor of Boursin for an omelette.[39] Lacking Boursin, scallion-blend cream cheese from a bagel shop is a viable substitute.[40] Sydney used what were likely sour-cream-and-onion-flavor Ruffles-brand potato chips, since she mentioned using chips that have "ridges," but any crumbled-up potato chip would work.[40] One food writer commented that the use of crumbled potato chips recalled the use of potato in tortilla española.[41]
A key detail in "Tomorrow" is that we see Carmy creating and plating the paupiette of hamachi with blood orange sauce that is more than likely "the best meal" Sydney ever had, that she described in passing to both Marcus in season one's "Braciole" and Carmy's mom, Donna Berzatto, in the season four wedding episode "Bears."[45][46] The dish was a one-off, created on the pretext that the diner had a allergy, fennel soubise being a key element of the original plate, but Syd worked with various forms of fennel multiple times since joining the crew of the Beef, and thus almost certainly does not have such a food sensitivity.[47]
Sydney's Hamburger Helper beef bowl for T.J. and Chantel
The main dish prepared during the episode is an elevated but kid-friendly beef bowl made with the Cheeseburger Macaroni variety of Hamburger Helper.[48][49][50] According to The Today Show's food reporter Joseph Lamour, "Like previous seasons' standout dishes...this one combines haute cuisine with accessible ingredients."[49] All Hamburger Helper varieties are essentially a meal kit offering a "blend of spices and pasta...meant to be prepared with ground beef."[51] When interviewed by Rolling Stone about the episode, Boyce picked Hamburger Helper as his preferred "instant-comfort nostalgia food," specifically the beef stroganoff and mac and cheese varieties.[52]
Hamburger Helper became popular in American homes in the 1970s when, "strained by inflation and soaring beef prices, [people] looked to turn a pound of ground beef into an entire meal."[48] Ground beef is a comparably economical form of this protein, depending on which part of the cow it came from and the fat percentage: "The least expensive product is sold as regular ground beef or regular hamburger. It's usually made with trimmings of the less expensive cuts such as brisket and shank, and can contain up to 30 percent fat."[53]
According to Edebiri, "Sydney's canonically bad with kids," but she manages to connect with T.J. through the process of constructing this dish.[54] Syd (with help from T.J.) adds double-concentrated tomato paste, diced yellow onion, shredded cheese, toasted panko bread crumbs, and replaced some of the milk with heavy cream "for a richer sauce."[51][55] Food Republic's Cara J. Suppa said Syd's cheese looked like it was probably white cheddar or mozzarella, but recommended substituting Parmigiano Reggiano for maximum umami, and suggested that ketchup works as a substitute if tomato paste is unavailable, with the sugar in ketchup adding another flavor dimension to the dish.[56] Other versions of Syd's dish used an aged Irish cheddar,[50] and added finely minced fresh parsley, oregano, and basil to season the sauce and to finish the dish.[49] Chantel intended to add hot sauce.[51][57]
The Hamburger Helper beef bowl that Sydney made for T.J. and Chantel in "Worms" in The Bear (2025)
The Kitchn's Perry Santanachote replicated Syd's amendments and determined that the resulting dish "looked like something I'd expect to be served at a restaurant—or proudly offer to guests at my own table. And once I dug in, it was every bit as satisfying: deeply savory and beefy, creamy and comforting. The tomato paste brought a hit of umami and mellowed the artificial yellow from the powdered cheese, making the dish look more natural. The real cheese added a tangy edge, but it was the parsley and panko that were my favorite additions, adding a fresh, green note and satisfying crunch."[55]Today food correspondent Lamour also made a version and reported, "This is the very first time in my 42 years of life that I have eaten Hamburger Helper—and I am officially a convert. Each spoonful was rich, but not not too rich. The herbs gave it a fresh bite and the panko added a buttery crunch...Plus, the dish is attractive. You could make this for a dinner party and get compliments from people who would have no idea that a glove with eyes was involved in its creation."[49] (Hamburger Helper's advertising "mascot," named Lefty, is a puffy white glove with a face on its palm.)[48]
The inclusion of Hamburger Helper in the series was not a paid product placement.[48]
The title of the episode, "Worms," refers to favorite-treat gummy worms that Syd buys at the market.[58]
Donna's red roasted peppers and tonnato memory, and Carmy's French Laundry roast chicken
Donna described a dish of roasted red peppers that she was served while vacationing in Italy with Carmy's dad. Carmy identified the accompanying sauce as tonnato. Per Donna, it looked disgusting but was delicious.[59]Tonnato "refers culinarily to dishes that are somehow prepared with or accompanied by tuna. The most well-known preparation is vitello tonnato, which consists of cold, sliced, roasted veal accompanied with a sauce of puréed tuna, anchovy filets, capers, lemon juice, and olive oil."[60] Most common in the Piedmont region, "smooth, creamy, beige" tonnato is served cold and is summer-suitable, often as a topping for cooked vegetables like tomatoes, asparagus, and green beans.[59]
Carmy makes a whole roast chicken for Donna, the way he was trained by Thomas Keller at the French Laundry in Yountville, California. In the Bouchon cookbook, Keller recommends brining the chicken for restaurant prep but not for home cooks. Key steps are patting the chicken completely dry, and trussing the chicken with butcher's twine. The trussing stage is where the pope's nose comes in to play.[61][62] Per Keller, season the chicken generously with salt and black pepper, face the breast up and the legs to the back of the oven, and finish by adding fresh thyme leaves to the pan, "and baste the birds several times with the juices and thyme leaves."[63] Roast for 10 minutes per 1 pound (0.45kg) at 475°F (246°C).[63][64]
Donna told Carmy he should wash the chicken first; he replied that washing chicken just splashes salmonella all over the kitchen sink.[65] Under the we-listen-and-we-don't-judge headline "Our Science, Your Choice," the U.S. Department of Agriculture states that "the best practice is not to wash poultry...washing, rinsing, or brining meat and poultry in salt water, vinegar, or lemon juice does not destroy bacteria."[66] Poultry needs to be cooked to an internal temperature, checked by meat thermometer, of 165°F (74°C) to destroy pathogenic bacteria.[66]
↑ Kindelsperger, Nick (July 29, 2020). "20 Best Italian Beefs". Chicago Tribune (Part 1 of 2). pp.5–1. Retrieved 2025-10-05. & "Beef" (Part 2 of 2). pp.5–11.
Kindelsperger, Nick (July 29, 2020). "20 Best Italian Beefs". Section 5: Health & Lifestyle. Chicago Tribune (Part 1 of 2). Chicago, Illinois. p.1. Retrieved 2025-10-05. & "Beef" (Part 2 of 2). p.11.
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