Chicago is a place that is known for its food – deep dish pizza, hot dogs, popcorn and is full of cultural hubs like Greektown and Chinatown. Another thing the Windy City has to offer is their renowned Italian beef sandwiches, which are especially famous at Portillos.
The streaming platform Hulu highlights Chicago’s food scene in the TV show “The Bear.” This show is about a fine-dining chef who leaves his prestigious restaurant to run his family’s Italian beef sandwich shop in the city. The second season came out in late June and has had notable success.
I am still finishing season two, but so far I have really enjoyed this show. I love watching food networks, so I love that the show is set in a chaotic, fast-paced kitchen. The fast-cutting knives and the frantic movement of the chefs to make things run smoothly creates entertainment that makes you both stressed and curious to see what happens next.
The show’s main character, Carmen Berzatto, is played by Jeremy Allen White. White is best known for his role in the series Shameless as Phillip “Lip” Gallagher, but also has had smaller roles in shows such as Homecoming. His previous roles bring a lot of attention to “The Bear,” giving the show a recognizable face that draws viewers in.
Other people involved in the cast include: Ayo Edebiri, Ebon Moss-Bachrach and Liza Colon-Zayas. Ayo Edebiri voiced characters in the latest installment of the “Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles” and in “Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse.” Some recent roles Ebon Moss-Bachrach had were in the movies “No Hard Feelings” and “Tesla.” Liza Colon-Zayas had roles in shows “Law and Order” and “Sistah Supreme,” which she wrote, produced and starred in.
The reception of the show has been positive overall, for both the first and second seasons. Some of the reviews I read through, though, say that this show can often be too intense. I agree to an extent, but when you look at the preface of the show, it makes sense. The series depicts a dysfunctional family working with strangers to run a sandwich shop. The cast does a good job portraying the stress and events that occur behind the counter in the food industry.
IMDb gave “The Bear” an 8.6/10 and Rotten Tomatoes gave season two a 99%. Since I haven’t finished the second season yet, I don’t want to give it my final rating yet, but I will say that I agree with the reviews I’ve seen so far. This show might not be for everyone, but I think that it is definitely worth viewing at least the first few episodes to see if it is for you.
“The Bear” has been a good watch laced with deeper meanings and themes. I found it uplifting to see how each member of the kitchen does their best to make things work, despite all of the dysfunction and things that inevitably go wrong. It was inspiring how each character devoted themselves to the kitchen and one another to make their dream a reality.
Caption: Jeremy Allen White in “The Bear”.
Photo Credits: IMDb
