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Yes, chef! 

Emmy-winning hit “The Bear” returned for Season 4 on June 25 — and it puts chefs back in the spotlight. 

The awards darling Hulu drama follows Carmen “Carmy” Berzatto (Jeremy Allen White) as he takes over his late brother’s (Jon Bernthal) Chicago restaurant and wrangles his kitchen staff, including Syd (Ayo Edebiri), his volatile cousin Richie (Ebon Moss-Bachrach), line cook Tina (Liza Colón-Zayas), pastry chef Marcus (Lionel Boyce), and handyman Neil Fak (Matty Matheson). 

Now, several real chefs are weighing in, telling The Post what the show gets right — and wrong — about their profession. 


  Jeremy Allen White as Carmen “Carmy” Berzatto in Season 2 of “The Bear.” HULU Jeremy Allen White as Carmen “Carmy” Berzatto in Season 2 of “The Bear.” HULU

Emily Brubaker, 44, the resort executive chef at Omni La Costa Resort & Spa in Carlsbad, California, said that when she used to work in a 3-star Michelin restaurant, she saw her own experience in the show’s flashback scenes with Carmy and his cruel old boss (played by Joel McHale). 

“When Joel McHale is leaning over [Carmy], and people [in the kitchen] are saying times, like, ‘24, 13,’ and he leans in and says like, ‘you’re trash, and you’re never gonna be any better than this’ and things like that – my husband and I actually stopped watching [‘The Bear’] for a little while, because it was like PTSD,” she recalled. 

She added that the show’s flashback to Carmy’s fine dining work experience was “crazy because it’s just so realistic.” 


  Jeremy Allen White and Ayo Edebiri in a scene from “The Bear.” FX Networks Jeremy Allen White and Ayo Edebiri in a scene from “The Bear.” FX Networks

  From left: Jeremy Allen White, Lionel Boyce as Marcus and Ebon Moss-Bachrach as Richard “Richie” Jerimovich in “The Bear.”
 From left: Jeremy Allen White, Lionel Boyce as Marcus and Ebon Moss-Bachrach as Richard “Richie” Jerimovich in “The Bear.”

Brubaker, who is also a contestant on NBC’s cooking competition series “Yes, Chef!,” (which has its season finale Monday at 10 p.m.) added that when characters such as Andrea Terry (Olivia Colman) appeared in Season 3 of “The Bear” also rang true. 

“Last season with all of those amazing chefs popped in almost like mentorship…is a lot of what the industry is like,” she added. 

“You have these people you look up to who are like the unicorns of the business, and having them come in and give you advice or even critique what you’re doing is all taken heart. But, it sometimes can be really hard to hear,” Brubaker noted.


  Emily Brubaker said she saw her own experience in the show’s flashback scenes with Carmy and his cruel old boss. chefbrubs/Instagram Emily Brubaker said she saw her own experience in the show’s flashback scenes with Carmy and his cruel old boss. chefbrubs/Instagram

  Emily Brubaker is a contestant on NBC’s cooking competition series “Yes, Chef!” chefbrubs/Instagram Emily Brubaker is a contestant on NBC’s cooking competition series “Yes, Chef!” chefbrubs/Instagram

Thomas Vignati, 29, a private chef based in New York City, told The Post that the practice of everyone on the show calling each other “chef” is legit. 

“I keep in contact with my old bosses, and I call them Chef – not even their names,” he said. 

Before pivoting to private work, Vignati worked at restaurants, including Gramercy Tavern and Lilia. 


  Thomas Vignati said that the practice of everyone on “The Bear” calling each other “chef” is legit.  Brian Zak/NY Post Thomas Vignati said that the practice of everyone on “The Bear” calling each other “chef” is legit.  Brian Zak/NY Post

  Brubaker thinks “The Bear” has opened people’s eyes “to how dedicated we are to our craft, and the passion and the talent that goes with it.” Pief Weyman/NBC Brubaker thinks “The Bear” has opened people’s eyes “to how dedicated we are to our craft, and the passion and the talent that goes with it.” Pief Weyman/NBC

  Vignati said “The Bear” sometimes leans “too heavily on the suffering artist trope.” Brian Zak/NY Post Vignati said “The Bear” sometimes leans “too heavily on the suffering artist trope.” Brian Zak/NY Post

He added that he thinks the show focuses too much “on the obsessive nature of working in a restaurant kitchen. They make a point to show that it’s sometimes to the detriment of your personal life. I think that’s accurate in the sense that it requires a lot of sacrifice.”

However, he believes “The Bear” exaggerates it. 

“There’s the trope of the suffering artist that gets pulled in. People who work in restaurants are normal people who have lives and can find work/ life balance,” Vignati insisted, adding that he feels “The Bear” sometimes leans “too heavily on the suffering artist trope.”


  Ronny Miranda said he enjoys “The Bear” but also thinks that it “glorifies” the “toxic chef” stereotype.  ron_the_cook/Instagram Ronny Miranda said he enjoys “The Bear” but also thinks that it “glorifies” the “toxic chef” stereotype.  ron_the_cook/Instagram

  Vignati recalled a scene in the first season that “made me roll my eyes” because it was not realistic. Brian Zak/NY Post Vignati recalled a scene in the first season that “made me roll my eyes” because it was not realistic. Brian Zak/NY Post

He said scenes in the show that have irked him are moments where “they sprinkle things in to make them seem like an authority on kitchens.”

Vignati recalled a scene in the first season when Syd unnecessarily name-drops “a cartouche,” saying it “made me roll my eyes” since it didn’t ring as realistic for what a chef would say and seemed to be there just “to show that Sydney knows what she’s talking about.” 

But, he said, “On the other hand, it’s cool because it does give [regular people] a lexicon of food terms. For instance, Vignati recalled that even when he’s working privately, he notices that some clients “definitely watch the show.” 

When one client was walking behind him in the kitchen, they called out “behind,” which is “a real thing that happens in [professional] kitchens,” Vignati said.


  Ronny Miranda on the NBC cooking competition series “Yes, Chef!” Pief Weyman/NBC Ronny Miranda on the NBC cooking competition series “Yes, Chef!” Pief Weyman/NBC

  Ronny Miranda in a May 2025 Instagram photo. ron_the_cook/Instagram Ronny Miranda in a May 2025 Instagram photo. ron_the_cook/Instagram

He noted that he finds it “funny” that people add that language to their home kitchens after watching “The Bear,” but said, “That’s an interesting dynamic” and noted that the show “is fun to use as a tool to explain what life is like.” 

Ronny Miranda, 42, who is the conference lead chef at the Culinary Institute of America’s campus in Napa Valley, California, told The Post that he enjoys “The Bear” but also thinks that it “glorifies” the “toxic chef” stereotype. 

“It fixates too much on the harsh realities of our industry – like Carmy perpetually dangling on the edge of sanity,” he said.


  Ayo Edebiri and Jeremy Allen White in “The Bear” Season 3. FX Networks Ayo Edebiri and Jeremy Allen White in “The Bear” Season 3. FX Networks

  Miranda said that “The Bear” gets a lot right. “It’s hard to be a chef. A lot of times, it’s a lonely task.” Brendan Meadows/NBC Miranda said that “The Bear” gets a lot right. “It’s hard to be a chef. A lot of times, it’s a lonely task.” Brendan Meadows/NBC

  Vignati, who is a private chef, has noticed that some clients “definitely watch the show.”  Brian Zak/NY Post Vignati, who is a private chef, has noticed that some clients “definitely watch the show.”  Brian Zak/NY Post

He explained, “And that’s tragically true and accurate for a lot of chefs in the industry. But they’re not showing the passion that he has. When they do show passion, it comes out in these weird, angry ways instead of showing the joy of cooking.” 

Miranda, who was also on the NBC competition series “Yes Chef!,” revealed that the show “gets a lot of stuff right: it’s hard to be a chef. A lot of times, it’s a lonely task.”


  Emily Brubaker on “Yes, Chef!” Pief Weyman/NBC Emily Brubaker on “Yes, Chef!” Pief Weyman/NBC


  Vignati said the show “is fun to use as a tool to explain what life is like.”  Brian Zak/NY Post Vignati said the show “is fun to use as a tool to explain what life is like.”  Brian Zak/NY Post

Miranda noted that most restaurant kitchens are “absolutely more supportive than it shows on ‘The Bear.’ They’re showing the harshness of the industry and the negative aspects of being a chef when they could be showing Carmy growing.” 

Brubaker said that when she first told her parents she wanted to be a chef, they thought that was “insane” because it meant that she would have to work holidays and “the craziest hours.” 

“The Bear” and other chef-related movies and TV shows “have really shown that we do it because we love it. It’s because we’re artists,” she added. “You’re never going to tell a painter that they paint too much or that they disappear from the world because they’re working on a project.”

Brubaker said that she thinks “The Bear” has opened people’s eyes “to how dedicated we are to our craft, and the passion and the talent that goes with it.”

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