Fans of The Bear can definitely expect to see more tributes to Chicago’s real-life restaurant scene when season three of the hit FX show drops Wednesday, cast members said in a press conference today. The event featured all the major stars, from Jeremy Allen White and Ayo Edebiri, in a studio quality Zoom.
FX also announced Monday that the release of season three will be moved up three hours. Instead of binging near midnight, fans can now watch all of season three starting at 8 p.m. CST Wednesday, June 26, on Hulu. (Here’s everything we know about the upcoming season, from where they filmed in Chicago to plot points.)
The cast said Chicago restaurateurs were key to this round’s storyline.
“It’s intrinsic to the show. That is part of the lifeblood of the show, the Chicago restaurant scene, and I do think this season does reflect how important they are to us telling the story,” said Ebon Moss-Bachrach, who plays Richie, AKA “cousin.”
When asked where they ate around town while filming here this year, the cast gave shoutouts to Kasama, the Michelin-starred Filipino restaurant in Ukrainian Village that made a cameo in season two; Chef Stephanie Izard’s Duck Duck Goat; West Loop’s Viaggio; and Birrieria Zaragoza from chef Jonathan Zaragoza.
Ayo Edebiri, who plays chef Sydney and gave a shout out at an awards ceremony this year to soul food restaurant Oooh Wee It Is, added that the show cast and crew has formed tight bonds with a lot of people who work in Chicago restaurants, whether that’s local chefs who have helped be instructive to the show or let the series film at their locations.
went to Kasama (in Chicago) today & ran into Ayo Edebiri 😭💖
— ig: @yagirlaley👩🏾💻 (@yagirlaley) March 21, 2024
Jeremey Allen White was there too, but it’s just crazy to of ran into the cast of #TheBear while at the very restaurant the show put me on to 😭 pic.twitter.com/eDPAcm1kof
“It’s a beautiful relationship that we’re all very grateful for,” Edebiri said. Eight members of the cast were all together for the call, during which they joked with one another and their off-screen chumminess was apparent.
The kitchen drama was created by Chicago-area native Christopher Storer. Matty Matheson, who plays Fak, said Storer’s personal love for the city informs a lot of what happens on screen.
“I think we’re just showing that we love Chicago,” Matheson said. “I think more little tidbits are going to come out.
“I think showing and shining light on a lot of amazing things about Chicago in a positive way are definitely things that we love doing.”
The cast has also been making the rounds on late-night TV and recently Moss-Bachrach joked on Late Night With Seth Meyers that his sodium levels had skyrocketed after spending time in Chicago.
When asked about that quip at the press conference on Monday, Moss-Bachrach joked that “my sodium levels have returned to my normal when I’m at home and can cook for myself.”
“I love the food of Chicago, and I have a certain diet I like to eat there,” Moss-Bachrach added Monday. “I know that Chicago has a whole food diaspora, but I really lean into the kind of the … I don’t know what you’d call it …”
“The underbelly,” Edebiri offered.
“Yeah, the underbelly,” Moss-Bachrach. “The under pork belly.”
The show’s star, Jeremy Allen White, who plays Carmy, said what he loves about our city’s cuisine is the greatness found from fine dining to the fast-casual spots, like Italian beef or hotdog stands.
“You can find such beautiful food at every single sort of scale,” White said. “You can be impressed by something at every level, which I guess is true of a lot of cities, but I find it to be very clear and sort of in your face in the city of Chicago.”
Liza Colón-Zayas, who plays chef Tina, added that she digs Chicago’s Puerto Rican food scene.
The cast members did agree that working on the show has changed how they are as customers in restaurants — now, they say they are more conscious of wanting to help servers clear places or clean up after themselves.
“You just know how hard restaurant workers work,” said Abby Elliott, who plays Carmy’s sister Natalie, AKA Sugar.
Oh, and about those rumors that the crew was filming seasons three and four back to back?
“We did something like that,” White said.
“Yeah, a little version of it, sort of, but not exactly,” Edebiri added.
Elliott chimed in with: “You’ll have to find out.”
Courtney Kueppers is an arts and culture reporter at WBEZ.
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