20 Meals And Dishes From The Bear Season 2, Ranked
FX and Hulu brought real human stakes to the kitchen in Season 1 of the comedy-drama, "The Bear," not to mention the beautiful meals that were served that season. Fans of the first season will be pleased to hear that "The Bear" is back with more episodes and even more amazing dishes.
The season follows chef Carmen "Carmy" Berzatto (Jeremy Allen White) and his protegee, Sydney (Ayo Edebiri), as they attempt to transform the bones of Carmy's family sandwich shop into a new destination for fine dining in Chicago. Season 2 follows the frantic ups and downs of opening a restaurant, but also shows us a world outside the kitchen as well.
The best part of the latest season of "The Bear" is the sheer number of new and delectable meals we get to see. From amazing breakfasts to desserts that will blow your mind, these are our top 20 meals from "The Bear" Season 2 ranked from worst to best. We've based these rankings on how the chefs and diners in the episodes react to what they eat, as well as how good the dish looks or sounds. Bonus points if it is an actual dish from a restaurant that people have raved about.
20. Marinated radicchio with burnt grapefruit and pistachio
One of only two dishes in Season 2 of "The Bear" to get spat out by the chefs, this vegetable dish Carmy and Sydney whip up doesn't work out. In Season 2, Episode 3 ("Sundae") we see the two chefs in the process of creating a menu for The Bear. In doing so, they end up making this dish, but both spit it out because it's way too salty.
Conceptually, this dish isn't terrible. The radicchio and grapefruit veggie dish has plenty of flavor and texture and could make a great appetizer. Unfortunately, it isn't quite good enough to ever make the opening menu at The Bear.
19. Cheese stuffed pasta in brown butter with pesto
This one is ranked low because, once again, it is a dish that gets spat out. In a moment of crisis and culinary inspiration, Sydney makes this filled pasta dish with a brown butter sauce over pesto. Spoiler: It doesn't work out.
We've had some amazing stuffed pasta in brown butter before, so it's easy to see where Sydney was coming from with this idea. Evidently, though, the flavors don't really mesh here and this dish that the chef has been envisioning the whole episode is never revisited. Sometimes a good chef has a bad idea, but knowing which ones to hold on to and those to ditch is what makes a great chef.
18. Sydney's Donut
This dish began its journey in Season 1, but it eventually makes its way onto the menu at The Bear's friends and family night. Despite being named "Sydney's Donut" (after Carmy destroyed it like a little), this dessert is one of Marcus' (Lionel Boyce) creations for The Bear. The result is a deconstructed version of the cherry donut Marcus was working so diligently on in the first season when Carmy angrily reprimanded him and slapped it out of his hands.
This is most certainly delicious, but it doesn't rank as highly as Marcus' other creations due to it sort of appearing already in Season 1. It is another extremely personal and heartfelt dish, but it doesn't rank among the best of "The Bear" Season 2.
17. Mango tart
After Carmy ditches her to hang out with his new girlfriend, Claire (Molly Gordon), Sydney indulges in a field trip day. For a chef, this naturally begins with a big breakfast. During her savory order consisting of a monster breakfast sandwich and a mushroom adobo, Syd keeps glancing over at the sweet pastries, eyeing the bright mango tart. When she orders it she looks ashamed of her desire for something sweet, but the day eventually leads her to the inspirational sundae.
The mango tart that Sydney orders looks delicious, with fresh mango carved delicately before being placed in a pastry shell, but this sweet dish was hardly the highlight of her big breakfast. And compared to the other, elaborate desserts on the menu in Season 2, this simple tart just can't hold its own.
16. Mushroom adobo
Speaking of Sydney's inspirational foodie day, one of the dishes she orders during her breakfast at Kasama is the Mushroom Adobo. Described by the Kasama menu as soy braised mushrooms and a fried egg over garlic rice, this dish indeed is one of many tasty options at the Michelin Star-rated cafe.
This brunch dish is a Filipino comfort classic that is simple and scrumptious. Still, it only makes a slight appearance in the episode titled, "Sundae," and pales in comparison to some of the other meals we see this season. Don't worry, Kasama, you will get the praises you are due soon enough.
15. Hibiscus tea with small bites and a hibiscus cloud
While we never quite get a sense of what the "small bites" element of this dish entails, the rest of it is certainly ... one note. Regardless of your thoughts on hibiscus, you can't deny that this dish is flashy as all get up. The palette cleanser is served up at Ever, where Richie (Ebon Moss-Bachrach) stages in the seventh episode of the season, "Forks."
When Garrett (Andrew Lopez) drops the plate for this dish, it looks like a flower garden, blooming with purple. When asked how the guests are supposed to eat it, the waiter responds "That's my favorite part," before reaching in with chopsticks and melting the hibiscus cloud in the bowls of tea. It's an impressive accomplishment, for sure, but this might be the definition of style over substance. Especially since the most impressive part of the dish is dissolved before you can even start eating it.
14. Ice cream sundae
From the start of "Sundae" up until the very end of the episode, Sydney is attempting to find herself and her culinary voice by visiting a bunch of established Chicago eateries. At the end of the night, she winds up at Margie's Candies to indulge in a massive ice cream sundae. It isn't until this moment that inspiration finally hits the chef. Ultimately, though, the dish this sundae inspires Sydney to create isn't as good as the sundae itself.
This Chicago establishment has been serving up sundaes and banana splits for more than 100 years, which is perhaps why this sequence is so dreamy. Different globules of ice cream piled high with sweet sauces, whipped cream, and nuts. Who could resist the nostalgic temptation?
13. King's Hawaiian rolls with lamb ragu
When making pasta with Carmy, Sydney tells him the story of the worst day of her professional life. After making a beautiful lamb ragu, Sydney botches the fresh pasta that the host requested and instead serves it over King's Hawaiian dinner rolls. While it's a disaster for the young chef, it honestly sounds pretty tasty. The sweet, buttery bread of a King's Hawaiian roll is always a fantastic choice for quick and easy sandwiches and the perfect vehicle for Thanksgiving leftovers.
This dish loses points because we never actually get to see it in the show as it is only mentioned in Episode 2 ("Pasta"). It's not the most elegant thing Sydney has ever produced but there is an allure of comfort to the dish and the story behind it that have us convinced this was probably just as delicious as pasta.
12. Carmy's bolognese
At the end of Episode 8 ("Bolognese"), Carmy makes a bucatini bolognese for Claire, cementing his feelings and dedication to her. Regardless of the relationship limbo he's now in, there is no doubt in our mind that Carmen Berzatto would whip you up with one of the best bolognese sauces you've had in your life — especially if he was falling in love with you.
This meat sauce might be simple, but the flavor comes from letting it simmer and taking the time. Carmy chooses to serve it over bucatini (a fine cousin of spaghetti pasta known for its hollow interior) and Claire is obviously enchanted by the whole situation. As bolognese lovers ourselves, we can't deny the simple, rustic pleasure of this classic Italian American dish.
11. Mortadella and parmesan cannoli with caviar and pistachio
This savory cannoli is the boldest culinary invention on "The Bear" that we've seen yet. Not only does this dish wind up being a touching homage to Michael (Jon Bernthal), but it is also the first dish that is a full collaboration between Sydney, Marcus, and Carmy.
The cannoli in question is no dessert. Instead, it is a savory dish made of a parmesan shell and then stuffed with mortadella and cream, served topped with caviar. And of course, the whole thing comes dusted in pistachio as an homage to the cannoli that Carmy and Mikey's mom makes at their family get-togethers. While we can't quite tell if this would be good or not, we would definitely give it a try if anyone was ever bonkers enough to recreate this bold fictional dish.
10. Welcome broth
This dish is workshopped earlier on in the season, but it's not until the finale ("The Bear") that we get to see it fully formed. The beef bone broth with Concord grapes dish that Sydney and Carmy conceptualize becomes The Bear's welcome broth. We see it served in an intimate table-side setting when Carmy brings it out to Claire and her friend.
This broth is poured over frozen grapes and served in a teacup. It is an immensely creative dish, although we are not entirely tantalized by the description of the ingredients. We will just have to give in to astonishment a bit with this presentationally stellar dish and assume it tastes at least half as good as it looks.
9. Mom's Honey Bun
When you think about it, a honey bun is the perfect home-sweet snack for a restaurant called The Bear. Marcus's dessert is not only perfectly on theme, but its whimsical packaging gives it a rustic appeal that brings all the fine dining touches down to Earth. Most importantly, the icing and zest that tops this bun simply look to die for.
Named "Mom's Honey Bun" by Marcus, this dessert is actually inspired by actor Lionel Boyce's real-life mother. As a child, this was one of Boyce's favorite treats. Ultimately, it acts as an homage to the actor's mother while also emphasizing the character's connection to his own mother and her ailing condition in this season.
8. Mint gelée with marzipan and caramel cracker
When Marcus goes to work with Luca (Will Poulter) in Copenhagen, this is the dessert we get to see him learn to make. When he, at last, gets to try the finalized creation, Marcus describes it as a "minty Snickers bar." C'mon, that sounds magical and delicious.
This elegant dessert actually appears to be a tower of different gelées, one of which is the mint gelée that Marcus worked so hard on, and a layer of marzipan. This is all topped with a thin crisp caramel cracker. It's an amazing example of how a great fine-dining dessert can transform childhood favorites into an elegant and nostalgic treat that leaves you impressed with the meal as a whole.
7. The Bear bucatini
We admit that we never quite caught what was in this pasta dish, despite getting a pretty good look at it and seeing them come out of the kitchen every 12 seconds in the Season 2 finale. We hear the constant call for bucatini and see it on The Bear's menu, so we figure it earns a spot pretty high on this list. Considering the dish contains the same noodle that Carmy made for Claire, we have to assume this is even better than his bolognese.
From the look of it, this bucatini is served in a cream sauce potentially with meat or seafood. Pasta-making runs through the second season of "The Bear" and all of it culminates in this dish, which is the most mouthwatering of all the pasta we watched in the 10-episode run.
6. Copenhagen sundae
This is the first dish that Marcus conceptualizes for the opening night menu at The Bear. He begins work on it when he is still in Copenhagen, but by opening night he has created what we will admit to calling the most impressive dessert on the show.
The plating is beautiful, especially the floral dishes that the sundae is served in. In it, a white scoop of gelato is topped with caviar and sits on top of an orange sauce. Inspired by the flavors of Copenhagen, this dish also calls back to the third episode of the season, "Sundae," and Sydney's inspirational ice cream expedition.
5. Breakfast sandwich with longanisa and hash browns
The clear winner of Sydney's big breakfast, this sandwich has gone viral and is back to being one of the best things you can eat in Chicago. We even get to see into the kitchen, getting access to the sizzling hash browns and Longanisa sausage. Topped with egg and cheese on a simple Martin's potato roll, this sandwich proves the best things in life just require a little love.
The best part of this sandwich is knowing it is just as good as it sounds. The longanisa adds a spicy, sweet element that is similar to, but distinct from, Spanish chorizo. Stacked with all of the other tasty components, this is truly the sandwich supreme at Kasama.
4. T-bone steak
The centerpiece for opening night at The Bear, this T-bone dish looks truly magnificent. Anyone who loves a good steak was surely jealous imagining what kind of amazing steak dish these genius culinary minds would come up with.
The plating of the T-bone alone is enough to make our mouths water. The meat is cooked to what looks like a perfect medium rare and sliced off the bone, which sticks up vertically on each of the hundreds of plates. Even when Tina (Liza Colón-Zayas) presents an undercooked plate of T-bone to Sydney, we have to admit that the dish looks ready to eat, even when it was a little on the rare side.
3. Pequod's pizza
There are a handful of pizza places in Chicago that locals will claim have the best deep-dish pizza. While Lou Malnati's and Giardano's are big names, there are just as many Chicagoans who will tell you Pequod's is where you go when you want a thick and hearty deep-dish pie. Its iconic caramelized crust of mozzarella along the edge of the pie is the kicker that puts this already great pizza over the top.
When Richie frantically stumbles into the door and is greeted by a "What's up, dude?" from the bro in the Pequod's, the vibe of the joint is captured perfectly. So yeah, Pequod's is already an award-winning national favorite that we've already rated as one of the best pizzas in the country. However, that doesn't mean we aren't a little upset that the wait times for pizzas will double now that it's been featured on one of TV's best shows.
2. Boursin omelette with potato chips
This omelette is perhaps the dish made with the most love in the entire season. When Natalie "Sugar" (Abby Elliot) gets a pregnancy craving, it is Sydney of all people — not her immediate family — that is there for her when she requests this dish. What Syd whips up is one of the best omelettes we've ever seen.
The perfectly cooked French omelette is filled with creamy Boursin cheese before the chef tops it with chives and, best of all, sour cream and onion chips. It sounds like the perfect breakfast, and Natalie's reaction assures us that Sydney truly went above and beyond with this one. Culinary producer of "The Bear," Courtney Storer, actually revealed that Ayo Edebiri cooked this omelette herself, perfecting it after many on-camera attempts.
1. The feast of seven fishes
By far the most significant dish on "The Bear" Season 2, this Berzatto family tradition is a glorious meal to behold. Introduced during the flashback episode sharing the same title, the feast of seven fishes is a meal that features a variety of fish and seafood prepared in seven different ways. It is an effort of love, that is the only way to make this dish.
When Carmy eventually serves an upscale version of the seven fishes at The Bear, we see a different preparation of whitefishes like Branzino, lobster, oysters, and other shellfish all brought together in one elegant plate. And yet somehow it doesn't compare with the way his mother's feast envelopes the Berzatto dining room table. In a single dish, and the different ways it's presented, we can see this family in all its order and chaos.