I have to remind myself to breathe while watching the hit FX show “The Bear.” No, it’s not as intense as watching the final minutes of a Denver Nuggets playoff game or the season finale of “Game of Thrones.” But somehow, the emotional weight of a disordered kitchen and the day-to-day worries of a fine-dining chef keep you on the edge of your seat.
“The Bear” – which some chefs have described as – dropped its third season on Hulu at the end of June. The Emmy-award-winning dramedy lets viewers see the not-always-pretty insides of a former Italian sandwich shop in Chicago that is struggling to transform into a fine-dining restaurant after Carmy Berzatto, a Michelin-starred chef in New York City, returns home to take over the family business due to the sudden death of his brother. “In ‘The Bear,’ Hulu’s new TV series dramatizing — and nailing — toxic restaurant culture, the main character recalls a chef berating him.
When I watched this part, I had to pause. I knew the show was fiction, but the scene could have been lifted straight from my memory. I used to work in Michelin-starred restaurants, and at the last restaurant I worked at, a sous-chef asked if I was stupid and if there was something wrong with me for not understanding what they were asking me to do.
I responded the only way I knew: ‘Yes, chef,’ ” For two seasons, I’ve been screaming at my TV, rooting for the success of a restaurant that hadn’t even opened yet. But even though The.
