SPOILER ALERT: This story contains spoilers for season 3 of “The Bear,” available to stream now on Hulu.
Season 3 of “The Bear” begins and ends with a funeral. But in the end, it’s a restaurant that’s mourned.
The episode begins with a quiet flashback to Carmy’s (Jeremy Allen White) first day on the job at the French Laundry. He’s cooking up some whole chickens when Thomas Keller, the real-life chef and owner of the ornate California restaurant, walks up and shows him a simple way to remove the wishbone.
It’s a sweet moment that contrasts with Carmy’s memories of New York Empire, where he was berated by an abusive boss (Joel McHale) who has been haunting his subconscious since Season 1. Here, Keller patiently explains why chefs call the back of the chicken “the pope’s nose” and gives Carmy a gentle speech about using food to nourish and leave a legacy in the kitchen.
Back in the present, Carmy meets Chef Luca (Will Poulter) at the funeral dinner of Ever, a Chicago dining institution. (Don’t worry: The restaurant isn’t closing in real life.) Chef Andrea Terry (Olivia Colman), who mentored Carmy, Luca and many others, has chosen to close the restaurant and retire, bringing together an impressive roster of celebrity chefs and Chicago culinary legends for one final celebratory dinner.
Back in the kitchen, Richie (Ebon Moss-Bachrach) reunites with the Ever employees who trained him in the memorable Season 2 episode “Forks,” while Carmy and Sydney (Ayo Edebiri) share funny and embarrassing restaurant anecdotes with other chefs. The consensus: Restaurants are brutal, but cooking for others is beautiful, and none of these chefs would trade their careers for anything.
As the chefs talk, Carmy glances over to another table and locks eyes with his former boss (McHale). Suddenly, Carmy has flashbacks of being told he’s not good enough and should quit, interspersed with nightmarish visions of negative headlines: “The Bear Is Worse Than Its Bite” and “New The Bear Restaurant Closes After Just Three Months.” (Earlier in the season, the Bear crew realizes that a Chicago Tribune critic has already stopped by the restaurant, meaning a potentially life-changing review could come at any moment.)
Then, suddenly, Chef Terry clinks her glass and gives a speech: “People often talk about restaurants and wonder what their history is? What is their impact? Who worked there before? What awards did they win? And their leader, I quote? I think what I’ve learned over the years, in all the places I’ve worked, is that people don’t remember the food. Sorry ! These are the people they remember. » (This will be important later.)
While everyone enjoys the food, Carmy is still obsessed with her ex-boss, eventually following him to the bathroom to confront him. It’s an awkward encounter: Carmy tells him, “Fuck you” and “I think about you too much” and “You’ve given me ulcers, panic attacks, and nightmares.” The chef is unfazed. Instead, he takes credit for transforming Carmy from “OK chef” to “excellent,” which gave her confidence and leadership. He leaves Carmy still visibly shaken and in tears.
Elsewhere, Adam Shapiro, Ever’s head chef, takes Sydney aside for a temperature check. Earlier in the season, he offered Sydney the position of head chef at a new restaurant he plans to open. As Carmy exerts more and more control over The Bear, Sydney has procrastinated on signing her deal to acquire the restaurant. She’s stuck, torn between a smarter career move and the family she’s chosen. Sydney tells Adam that she’s still thinking about it and plans to talk to Carmy soon, but it’s clear he wants to move on quickly.
After dinner, Chef Terry finds Carmy outside getting some fresh air. Carmy tells her everything he learned from her while working at Ever and asks for advice on his new business. “You have no idea what you’re doing, so you’re invincible,” Terry says.
Back in the kitchen, Sydney, Richie, Luca and the Ever staff silently stare at Chef Terry’s “Every Second Counts” sign, a mantra that has transcended his kitchen walls and helped define “The bear “. Adam takes down the sign and offers it to Terry, who says, “Let’s get the hell out of here!” »
So they do. Everyone but Carmy returns to an impromptu party at Sydney’s apartment to celebrate, where they’re joined by Bear’s crew. They sing, dance, raise caviar-frozen waffles. On Sydney’s refrigerator is a newspaper review of The Beef, the Italian sandwich shop she helped Carmy turn into a fine-dining establishment. Her mind’s eye flashes through images of Marcus (Lionel Boyce), Tina (Liza Colón-Zayas), Natalie (Abby Elliott), Fak (Matty Matheson), Carmy and the rest of the Bear family. No doubt Chef Terry’s words ring in her ears: “These are the people they remember.” Sydney goes outside and has a panic attack, hyperventilating over the decision she has to make.
Meanwhile, Carmy is walking alone when his phone rings with four missed calls from Uncle Jimmy (Oliver Platt), who is funding the bear but has been advised to cut his losses and stop the bleeding. In a previous episode, he couldn’t quite bring himself to tell Carmy how bad the restaurant’s finances had gotten. More importantly, there is a Google Alert from the Chicago Tribune. The review is here.
Carmy scans her phone frantically, focusing on words like “excellent,” “confusing,” “innovative,” “sloppy,” “brilliant,” “amazing,” “disappointing.” It’s mixed.
So what about our favorite restaurant staff? Little is resolved at the end of season 3. Sydney must still choose whether to stay at the Bear and fight for a Michelin star alongside Carmy, whose personal trauma has made him a toxic leader, or leave the ship and lead a rival. cooking with Adam. Will Carmy be able to overcome what he’s been through and become a true partner to Sydney, or will he continue to let the cycle of abuse infect him, pushing his confidante away?
Carmy has gone the entire season without contacting Claire (Molly Gordon) after she broke up their romantic relationship in the season 2 finale. And Jimmy might decide to close his wallet and sell or even close the Bear, since the restaurant is too expensive to be justified and faced considerable obstacles. A mixed review would only exacerbate these problems. To echo Carmy in the season finale, “Bastard!”