19 Chicago Food Spots I Tried From The Bear
The Bear
The first season of The Bear became one of my favourite TV shows almost immediately. Not because it made me want to become a chef (absolutely not), but because it made me want to book a flight to Chicago. I mean, I also loved Chernobyl and I didn't book a flight out there, but that show has Stellan Skarsgård and Jared Harris arguing about roentgen so...
Back to Chicagoland. The Windy City. Chi-Town. Second City. City of Big Shoulders.
Every episode ended with me opening my Beli app for Chicago and saving another bakery, sandwich shop, or neighbourhood restaurant that looked too good to ignore.
The show kind of lost its way and only became about trauma and yelling and watching people we loved lose the things we loved about them, but that's okay. Chicago was still the backdrop. I still went for the food and the coffee and the drinks. I got there and kept thinking innocuous silly things like "Wow, there goes the L Train just like the insert shots!" or "There's the parking lot where Ritchie smoked so many cigarettes!"
The city has always had one of North America's best food scenes, but The Bear reminded people that it goes far beyond deep dish and Italian beefs. It celebrated bakeries, coffee shops, delis, neighbourhood bars, and tiny family-run restaurants, just as much as it did fine dining.
Sure, the show slowly lost me, but the restaurants never stopped being exciting.
Originally, this was going to be a list of The Bear spots ranked. Then I actually visited them. Ranking them felt impossible. Not impossible, but...stupid. It's apples and oranges. It's Italian beefs and chocolate cakes. Every one of these places offers something completely different, and honestly, that's exactly what makes Chicago such an incredible food city.
Below are the 19 spots featured in The Bear that I visited while thinking of how the characters interacted with the food there...and also how Carmy totally screwed it up with Claire Bear.
Loaf Lounge
Loaf Lounge is where Marcus' chocolate cake comes from. I had the chocolate cake (for breakfast) but the breakfast sandwich was the standout for me (garlic maple sausage, runny egg, American cheese, and a herby mayo on a house made English muffin). I waited 45 minutes for it and ate it in 2 minutes. I would do it again.
Mr. Beef
Mr. Beef is the big one. The real-life inspiration for The Original Beef, the place that turned Italian beef into TV mythology. Yes, it's now a tourist stop. That's fine. It's actually great. Order the beef, figure out wet or dry (go wet), hot or sweet peppers (go both), and enjoy the fact that sometimes the obvious stop is obvious for a reason.
Kasama
Kasama shows up during Sydney's food crawl, and it might be the most famous restaurant on this list now. Filipino breakfast sandwich by day, Michelin-starred tasting menu by night. I went for the morning, lining up an hour before they opened. I was sixth in line. By open, the line must have been over a hundred people. That's why you put in the work people. And yes, I got the famous longganisa sandwich with a hash brown. The pastries were also fun and creative and delicious. We sat on the patio but if I had to do it again, I'd pick at everything on a walk up to Logan Square, taking Damen, admiring the homes of Wicker Park.
Lao Peng You
Lao Peng You is where Sydney eats dumplings in broth during her food crawl...so that's what I did. Not flashy. Just deeply comforting and very easy to love. It's in West Town, where I stayed, a giant area that's overshadowed by River North and Lincoln Park, but just as good, and maybe more interesting. It feels like their Brooklyn to their Manhattan.
D'Amato's
D'Amato's appears in the bakery montage, and it feels like the kind of place The Bear should love. Old-school Italian bakery. Bread. Cookies. Sandwiches. Pizza by the slice. Italian Ices. Nothing about it feels polished for TV, which is the point. It was packed, ordered a massive Italian sub, and tried the veal cutlet they were passing around because it was so busy at lunchtime. "Anyone want a piece of veal?!" I was the first to raise my hand. It felt courageous and embarrassing all at once.
Doma Cafe
Doma Cafe is where Sydney meets Chef Shapiro on the patio, which is where I sat and it's one of the coolest places to start a morning or maybe nurse a hangover. It's a River North café with Balkan food, coffee, pastries, and cevapi. Did I meet a faous chef here for a snack? NO, but I was hungover! I tried the breakfast sandwich, one I actually liked more than the one at Kasama. Slagel Family Farms pork maple sausage, Yuppie Hill eggs and American cheese, all on english muffin with Doma hot sauce.
Milli by Metric
Milli by Metric is more future-facing Bear lore than classic filming-location nostalgia. The show uses the under-construction Avondale space for Chef Adam's upcoming restaurant. In real life, they serve coffee, wine, pizza, and more. It feels very Chicago and in a city where every coffee shop seems like the best place to work out of, this was my favourite. I loved this spot and worked while listening to Kate Bush play over the speakers and the two loudest people on earth have their first date.
Metric Coffee
Metric Coffee appears through roasting footage. It's a serious Chicago coffee name without feeling cold or precious. Go for a proper coffee, beans to take home, and the feeling that you're doing your morning correctly. Not the flashiest Bearstop, and maybe out of the way, but it's a great place for quality coffee.
Pizza Lobo
Pizza Lobo is where Sydney grabs a slice and tries to recruit staff. In real life, it's a great patio pizza spot with slices, beer, frozen drinks, fire pits, and a neighbourhood hangout feel. Not deep dish.
Kasia's Deli
Sydney stops at Kasia's Deli during the food crawl, and later the show gives a look at where they are made. It's a Polish deli with a homemade feel. It's over the counter style at the food is fresh and extremely affordable. Great date spot, take home lunch spot, cater spot, whatever.
J&M Tap
J&M Tap doesn't get a huge scene in The Bear, but that perfectly fits the DNA of the show and the bar. Richie ends up here after another difficult conversation with Carmy, grabbing a beer in one of those neighbourhood taverns Chicago seems to have perfected. J&M Tap is a total dive, semi-famous for basically having no signage or indication that it's even there. Not a speakeasy, just a cool bar inside a building that could be anything, or even nothing.
Pequod's
Pequod's hardly needs The Bear to make it famous, but it's the spot Richie delivers pizza from to the family at Ever that had never tried deep dish. The caramelized cheese crust is unlike any other pizza in Chicago. Touristy? Absolutely. But it's great. Honestly, it's not really deep dish, in case you want that Instagram post to hit, but the trade off is that...it's just better.
Roeser's Bakery
Marcus visits Roeser's while chasing the perfect doughnut and this place has been quietly perfecting baked goods since 1911. Cakes, cookies, doughnuts and pastries fill every display case. It feels perfectly old-school, like walking into the kind of bakery your grandparents still insist is the best. Lovely people always working the counter.
Damn Fine Coffee Bar
Damn Fine Coffee Bar is exactly what the name promises. Small, relaxed, and completely unpretentious. It isn't trying to become Chicago's trendiest café. Grab a coffee, find a seat, and enjoy a slower morning.
Chiu Quon Bakery
Chiu Quon appears during the Season 3 food montage and has been a Chinatown institution for decades. The egg tarts are the obvious order, but don't stop there. Filled buns, sponge cakes and pastries cover the counters. It's a go to cash only spot with a line that moves fast and variety that feels worth it when you're up next. I grabbed the pork bun, something I always order, and am almost always disappointed by...but not here.
Green Door Tavern
Green Door Tavern is one of Chicago's oldest bars, and The Bear uses it as another reminder that neighbourhood history matters. Stop in for a beer, a burger, or a whiskey, then head downstairs to The Drifter if you're feeling adventurous. Every city deserves a bar like this.
Margie's Candies
Sydney finishes her famous food crawl at Margie's. Giant sundaes, hot fudge, banana splits and old-school charm make it feel frozen in time. Summer evenings practically demand a stop here, even if sharing one of the massive sundaes is probably the responsible move. Admittedly, I quickly grabbed one to go, but that was because it was the wildest, busiest place I had ever walked into. Human bumper cars but everyone is high on sugar or having an IBS ice cream emergency.
Publican Quality Meats
Sydney's visit to Publican Quality Meats highlights another side of Chicago's food scene. It's part butcher shop, part café, part neighbourhood market, scattered across town. Go to Meats for something to take home, the restaurant for an amazing happy hour (did that!) or go to the cafe for a very small but awesome cafe and bakery experience (did that too!)
Firecakes Donuts
Firecakes has become one of Chicago's best modern doughnut shops, with creative seasonal flavours alongside excellent classics. They even created Bear-inspired doughnuts after the show took off. Go early if you want the best selection. I stopped in here to get out of the rain after checking out the very trendy Crying Tiger...it didn't change my life, but the variety alone makes it worth checking out.
Beck's
Beck's only makes a brief appearance near Pequod's, but it's still worth mentioning. A classic sports bar with cold beer, famously good wings, and televisions everywhere. I had the wings while watching the World Cup, Canada vs. Morocco (damn), and loved it. Yes, then I went to the Bird's Nest for more wings. I love it there, too. Don't judge. They served equally delicious wings and the service was always great and they serve Molson Canadian, which is gross, but also cool when you're surrounded by Midwesterners and you're wearing a cute Canada hat watching the World Cup.
AUTHOR: Hogan short
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