Spaghetti al pomodoro. All images created by FDL with AI

Celebrate the climax of The Bear with these chef recipes

22 Jun 2026

Journalist

With the arrival of The Bear's final season, our favourite chefs share tips and recipes inspired by the show’s iconic dishes

As we prepare for the fifth and final season of unmissable Chicago restaurant drama, The Bear, released globally on 26 June via Disney Plus, all thoughts turn to how it will end for the potentially doomed fine-dining restaurant and its passionate, complicated team.

Going by the official trailer below, there are a couple of things we know for sure. Firstly, Sydney (Ayo Edebiri) is running the kitchen after Carmy (Jeremy Allen White) decided to step back at the end of season four, though he does appear to be back in the kitchen for the new season. And secondly, the business of running a restaurant continues to be, to put it mildly, challenging for all involved, with a flood this season, on top of all the usual financial woes and supplier issues, threatening the restaurant’s longevity.

Will The Bear survive? We’ll just have to wait and see, but however the show ends, we’ve all been gripped by the exploits of Carmy and the team (and too many chef cameos to mention).

We’ve also been inspired by the show’s delicious-looking food, created by culinary producers/chefs Courtney ‘Coco’ Storer and Matty Matheson, who plays Neil Fak, and a wider team. And so, to celebrate the climax of The Bear, we’re taking a look back at some of the show’s iconic dishes through the eyes of our favourite chefs, who have given us their opinions and their tips for how to recreate or elevate the dishes at home, or who’ve been inspired to provide a recipe of their own.

Warning: contains spoilers.

1. Beef sandwich

The dish that started it all. When Carmy arrives back in Chicago to take over his late brother Mikey’s (Jon Bernthal) sandwich shop in season one, the shop’s signature is a Chicago-style Italian beef sandwich (it also makes an appearance later on as a second revenue stream). The sandwich consists of jus-dipped, thinly sliced beef topped with a giardiniera (pickled vegetable) relish. The sandwich is then dipped back in the jus before being wrapped up. Watch Storer and Matheson recreate the sandwich in the video below.

How could the sandwich be elevated at home? “Use a nice, dried ciabatta instead of a soft Italian sub bread, so the sandwich has more bite. When the beef has been dressed in the jus, sprinkle with freshly ground, coarse black pepper and dried oregano. And finally, add two jalapeños without seeds to the giardiniera pickles,” says chef Ruben Mosquero of Madrid’s Emi restaurant.

2. Family meal spaghetti

Possibly The Bear’s most famous dish. It appears in season one, episode eight, ‘Braciole’, when Carmy opens a letter from Mikey only to find a simple recipe for ‘Family meal spaghetti’. The recipe is garlic cloves, basil steeped in oil and two small cans of San Marzano tomatoes (because “the smaller cans taste better”, says the note). Inspired by this, Carmy starts preparing pasta pomodoro for a family meal (the meal shared by the restaurant staff), but decides to elevate it by sweating onion halves in butter as a first step. He also finds a stash of cash in the tins of tomatoes, hidden by his brother. You can watch Storer and Matheson recreating the dish in the video below, although they slice their garlic rather than adding the cloves whole, as Carmy does.

“This is a solid recipe,” says chef Alex Prichard of Sara Dining in Berry, Australia. “I personally have never sweated off the onions, garlic and chilli in butter. I usually do it in olive oil… but I think this could be a vibe and I’m going to try it. I absolutely love that they made a point of cooking off the tomato paste. I feel this is the most crucial step everyone at home forgets when making a pomodoro sauce. You need the tomato paste to almost caramelise; the oil (or butter in this case) should turn bright red from it splitting. I think their recipe is actually perfect for home, although I would put 10 times that amount of Parmesan on the top of my pasta!”

3. Marcus’ chocolate cake

In season one, episode four (‘Dogs’), aspiring pastry chef Marcus (Lionel Boyce) works to perfect a layered chocolate cake to prove his worth. The cake, created by real-life pastry chef Sarah Mispagel-Lustbader, sandwiches layers of chocolate mousse between rich, fudgy chocolate cake, which is topped with a cocoa icing. It’s a classic chocolate cake that doesn’t need elevating or to be presented in a fancy way. But what would be the best way to serve this cake at home?

“For me, a chocolate cake like this is all about generosity,” says Rachel Morgan of Edinburgh bakery, Twelve Triangles. “I’d serve it whole at the table and cut generous slices rather than trying to make it overly refined. One of my favourite tricks for chocolate cakes and desserts is to dip a sharp knife in very hot water, give it the slightest wipe, and then slice, repeating for each cut. It’s the easiest way to achieve those beautifully neat, clean cuts you see in professional kitchens. If you’re feeling indulgent, a spoonful of softly whipped cream is hard to beat, although a dollop of crème fraîche brings a lovely tang that cuts through the richness. In summer, I’d happily serve it with a big bowl of Scottish raspberries or wild brambles when they’re in season, as their sharpness provides the perfect contrast to the intensity of the chocolate.”

4. Sydney’s soft-cheese omelette

In the very ASMR clip below, from season two, episode nine (‘Omelette’), we see Sydney preparing a simple, three-egg omelette with soft cheese, topped with chopped chives and crushed potato chips for Natalie (Abby Elliott).

Inspired by this, we asked chef Hugo Chaise, of Paris’ My Fermentation, for his perfect omelette recipe.

“Break four eggs in a bowl and blend them until smooth. Melt a tablespoon of butter in a non-stick pan and wait until the bubbles disappear. Pour in the eggs and start stirring with a spatula. As soon as you can see the bottom of the pan, lower the heat, but never stop moving. Use both hands.

“When the pan is coated with a creamy layer of cooked eggs, take it off the heat and wait 30 seconds. Roll the omelette, then, like Sydney, brush it with butter – or better yet, miso butter. It should be creamy inside, shiny outside, with a pale yellow colour and simple enough to remind us that perfection lives in the details.”

5. Tina’s timed cavatelli

One storyline running through season four of The Bear is Tina’s (Liza Colón-Zayas) struggles to get a sauced cavatelli dish on the pass in under three minutes (good news: she does eventually crack it). This got us thinking – what’s a simple and tasty pasta dish that can be easily prepared at home, that looks high effort, but takes no time at all (although definitely longer than three minutes)? Answering our call, chef Jessica Rosval of Al Gatto Verde restaurant in Modena, Italy, has shared a recipe for ravioli with butter and sage. Buy high-quality fresh ravioli with a filling of your choice and then dress with this simple sauce, which will “highlight the quality of the filling without overpowering it,” says Rosval.

“To serve four, bring a large pot of salted water to a boil and cook 20 ravioli until tender, about 2-3 minutes,” continues Rosval. “Meanwhile, melt 80g of unsalted butter in a large pan and add 6 sage leaves, allowing them to infuse the butter until fragrant and lightly golden. Transfer the ravioli directly to the pan and add a ladle of the pasta cooking water. Gently toss everything together until the butter and water emulsify into a silky sauce that coats the ravioli evenly. Finish with a generous grating of Parmigiano Reggiano and serve immediately.”

6. Chicken piccata

In season one, episode five (‘Sheridan’), Carmy shows the team how to make simple chicken piccata, a classic Italian-American dish of pounded chicken breasts with a lemon, butter and caper sauce, to demonstrate the importance of foundational cooking techniques. But as a home cook, what’s a similarly straightforward recipe that you should have in your arsenal, especially for the warmer months, when much eating and socialising is done around the barbecue?

“Often, the savoury foods off the grill, sides and snacks take centre stage, leaving dessert as an afterthought,” says chef Ariel Schor of Beba restaurant in Montréal, Canada. “In my opinion, every home cook worth their salt should have an easy-to-prep dessert for these occasions. Coincidentally, summertime brings us berries of all kinds, perfect for a low-effort yet delicious dessert.”

He continues: “I love preparing a berry cobbler to serve along with some vanilla ice cream on a hot summer's night. Many cobbler batter recipes are available online, but insufficient emphasis is placed on the filling. A specific ratio helps us achieve a set yet moist berry cobbler; it only requires a digital scale and some quick math. 

“For my cobbler, I first wash, dry and weigh the fruit. I then season it with 20% of its weight in sugar and 5% of its weight in cornstarch. The sugar seasons, while the cornstarch will thicken the berry juices and provide structure. Once my fruit is seasoned, I place it in a baking pan and top it with the batter. After that, it goes straight into the oven for about half an hour. When it comes out of the oven, we get a golden pastry over baked berries in a thick, bubbly syrup. I usually make it in the morning, then let it sit at room temperature until serving time.

“Now you have plenty of time to prep dinner, set the table and slide down to your favourite ice cream shop for a pint of ice cream to serve with dessert.”