Sheridan (The Bear)

"Sheridan"
The Bear episode
Chicago "L" train tracks in the gloaming (Sheridan station)
Episode no.Season 1
Episode 5
Directed byJoanna Calo
Written byKaren Joseph Adcock
Featured music
Cinematography byAndrew Wehde
Editing byAdam Epstein
Production codeXCBV1005
Original air dateJune 23, 2022 (2022-06-23)
Running time25 minutes
Guest appearances

"Sheridan" is the fifth episode of the first season of the American comedy-drama television series The Bear. It is the fifth overall episode of the series and was written by series creator Christopher Storer and directed by Joanna Calo. It was released on Hulu on June 23, 2022, along with the rest of the season.

The series follows Carmen "Carmy" Berzatto, an award-winning New York City chef de cuisine, who returns to his hometown of Chicago to run his late brother Michael's failing Italian beef sandwich shop.

Plot

To try to increase profits, Carmy and Sydney agree to create a new dinner menu. As they prepare to open for lunch, a toilet explodes and floods the dining area. Carmy calls Fak, Richie's friend, to fix it. Fak wants to be an employee but his informal interview with Richie culminates in a fight which Carmy breaks up. Fak reveals that Richie has been selling cocaine in the alley behind the restaurant; Richie explains that this got the business through the COVID-19 pandemic but agrees to stop. Marcus experiments with fermentation, but neglects his baking duties. As he rushes to catch up, he overloads the mixer and causes a fuse to blow. With the power out, the crew scramble to save their perishables. Richie and Carmy take food to Sugar's house, where Carmy and Sugar argue, but he shares that he's been going to Al-Anon meetings. When Fak informs Carmy it will cost over $5,000 to replace a damaged condenser, he asks Richie to get the money by selling cocaine one final time. Sydney saves the day by running an outdoor lunch service using a makeshift barbecue setup, causing her to reflect on her failed catering business.

Context

  • The malfunctioning toilet is a recurring issue, going back to Mikey's era at the Bear and continuing through multiple seasons.
  • Marcus is experimenting out of the Noma Guide to Fermentation book; actor Lionel Boyce trained for the role with Noma pastry chef Malcolm Livingston II.[2] (Livingston later appeared as himself in the season-three finale episode set at the Ever funeral.)[3]
  • "Say mattae" is a reference to the 1988 Jean-Claude Van Damme movie Bloodsport.[4]
  • Carmy is seen throwing an un-broken-down cardboard box into the dumpster, which becomes a recurring irritation in later seasons.

Tape

"Sheridan" is the first episode where Carmy demonstrates cutting tape (rather than tearing it). When Food & Wine writers were indexing Carmy's bookshelves for an article "our editor-in-chief...said on Slack when he saw the semi-incoherent shelving: 'Curious as to why Carmy obsesses over the perfect tape edges à la Sean Brock but not more rhyme or reason for his bookshelves.'"[5] An Eater writer speculated that Carmy uses 3M painter's tape; his preference for green is less common than the use of blue and is probably inherited from his old boss Chef David Fields (Joel McHale).[6] The New York Times' Wirecutter section surmised it was green FrogTape multisurface painter's tape.[7] Thomas Keller, of the French Laundry and Bouchon and Per Se, is known to prefer neon green tape.[8] According to Food52, some professional kitchens have strict tape rules, such as: "...the tape has to get cut with a pair of scissors in a straight line, with a small tab folded over for ease of removal. On it should be written the product name, date, and initials of the person who packed the container."[8] Precise taping is thought to promote mental clarity in the kitchen and attention to detail in the dishes prepared and served at the restaurant.[8]

Production

Development

"Sheridan" was written by Karen Joseph Adcock.[9]

Writing

BuzzFeed commented that the moment when "Carmy helped [Sydney] strain shrimp stock planted the seed for a hypothetical romance between them that many fans have been hoping for."[10]

Filming

The episode opens with what Collider described as a successful use of the "hip-hop montage" form of storytelling: "The opening sequence shows Sydney lying awake in bed, interspersed with swift cuts to a fiery beef roast and a chicken demi-glace. A woodfire grill burning shifts to fish, red sauce, and then a shot of an email notification from Greater Chicago Banking 'Dear Ms. Adamu, Thank you for your application with Greater Chicago Banking, however we regret to inform you that we are unable to approve you for th...' There is the ding of a cash register and a rapid succession of seafood shots."[11] More shots follow, including images of boxes labeled Sheridan Road Catering, and overall "in just under one minute, the viewer gets a more personal look into Sydney’s character, motivation, and history. This style of silent, third-person narration prevails as a beautiful storytelling device essentially immune to even the slightest prospect of cheese."[12] Syd's catering company was named for Sheridan Road, which is a major thoroughfare that runs along Lake Michigan into Wisconsin.[13] The road, which is in turn named for U.S. Army general Philip Sheridan, was proposed in the 1880s as a northward extension of Lake Shore Drive.[13] At the end of the episode, a similar montage outlines Syd's creative process in developing her cola-braised short ribs dish.[11]

Costuming

Syd wears the "hands"-themed "Peekaboo" design headscarf made by Mur by Ayca.[14][15]

Music

The songs included in the episode were "Wish I Was" by Kim Deal, "Da Doo Ron Ron" by the Crystals, "Sisyphus" by Andrew Bird, and "Impossible Germany" by Wilco.[16]

Food

When Sydney enters the kitchen she immediately understands what Carmy is already working on and asks "Can I?" Carmy approves, so she begins hammering chicken breasts with a meat tenderizer while he makes conversation about having looked at her COGS, which are reports about "costs of goods sold."[17] Later, using the chicken in question, Carmy shows the cooks how to make lemon chicken piccata for the updated dinner menu.[18] This is "mom's chicken" that Sugar was making for dinner in episode two, "Hands."[18] Carmy uses the term monter (from beurre monté) and then switches to simpler language. Translated literally from the French monter means "to mount," but it's used in "culinary English" to mean "to thicken," specifically by slowly whisking in butter.[19] Piccata is the Italian word "for a very thin, usually flattened, slice of meat or fish."[20] Veal piccata was the original form, chicken piccata came later.[21] Chicken piccata is a family dish from the Storer household.[22][23]

The stock that Sydney asks Carmy to help her strain is an étouffée stock for use in her forthcoming risotto dish.[24][17] Per The New Food Lover's Companion, étouffée is a traditional "thick, spicy" Creole-cuisine or Cajun-cuisine stew made from crayfish and vegetables, usually served over rice.[25]

Critical reviews

Vulture rated "Sheridan" four out of five stars.[4]

Retrospective reviews

In 2024, the Hollywood Reporter ranked "Sheridan" 25th-best out of 28 episodes produced to that point, calling it "a solid episode, lost amid some better, similar episodes, not unlike 'Pop.'"[26] ScreenRant ranked "Sheridan" 19th out of the 28 episodes produced through the end of season three, calling it "one of the funniest" season-one installments, with an important "deep dive" into Sydney's backstory.[27]

In 2025, Vulture ranked "Sheridan," which it described as the "first somewhat Sydney-centric episode," as 30th-best out of 38 episodes of The Bear.[28]

See also

References

  1. ^ Foran, Chris. "Sprecher Brewing's root beer, Green River sodas have cameos in the new FX/Hulu series 'The Bear'". Journal Sentinel. Retrieved January 20, 2026.
  2. ^ Guzman, Dianne de (July 28, 2022). "Here's the Complete List of Every Cookbook Featured on 'The Bear'". Eater SF. Retrieved September 22, 2025.
  3. ^ Schwartz, Amelia (June 30, 2024). "Every Single Real-Life Chef in 'The Bear' Season 3". Food & Wine. Retrieved September 20, 2025.
  4. ^ a b Eakin, Marah (June 4, 2024). "The Bear Recap Rewind: Say Matte!". Vulture. Retrieved September 22, 2025.
  5. ^ Kinsman, Kat; Ram, Chandra. "We Hit Pause Over and Over So You Can Own Carmy's Library—Here's Every Real Cookbook Spotted on 'The Bear'". Food & Wine. Archived from the original on June 12, 2025. Retrieved September 2, 2025.
  6. ^ Makalintal, Bettina (June 28, 2024). "How to Shop 'The Bear' Aesthetic". Eater. Retrieved October 19, 2025.
  7. ^ "'The Bear' Is Back. Here's Every Wirecutter Pick We've Spotted in Carmy's Kitchen". The New York Times. June 28, 2024. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved January 10, 2026.
  8. ^ a b c Stephens, Leslie (February 2, 2016). "The Kitchen Habit Professional Chefs Can't Stand". Food52. Retrieved October 20, 2025.
  9. ^ "The Bear - WGA Directory". Writers Guild of America West. Retrieved January 9, 2026.
  10. ^ Ant, Aaron (July 5, 2024). "Syd & Carmy's Best Moments from "The Bear" Capture the Essence of the Service Industry". BuzzFeed. Retrieved September 22, 2025.
  11. ^ a b Sisti, Nicholas (July 24, 2022). "How 'The Bear' Tastefully Reinvigorates the Hip Hop Montage". Collider. Retrieved September 22, 2025.
  12. ^ Sisti, Nicholas (July 24, 2022). "How 'The Bear' Tastefully Reinvigorates the Hip Hop Montage". Collider. Retrieved September 22, 2025.
  13. ^ a b Ebner, Michael H. (1988). Creating Chicago's North Shore: A Suburban History. University of Chicago Press. pp. 106–107. ISBN 978-0-226-18205-6.
  14. ^ Kirsty (June 16, 2022). "The Bear: Season 1 Episode 5 Sydney's Hands Bandana". Shop Your TV. Retrieved October 18, 2025.
  15. ^ "Peekaboo Bandana". Mur by Ayca. Retrieved October 18, 2025.
  16. ^ Hough, Q. V. (June 27, 2022). "Soundtracks of Television: 'The Bear'". Vague Visages. Retrieved September 21, 2025.
  17. ^ a b Kerr (2022).
  18. ^ a b Messina, Victoria (July 29, 2022). "How to Re-Create Dishes From "The Bear," Including Season 1's Viral Spaghetti". Popsugar. Retrieved September 22, 2025.
  19. ^ Nash, Rob (May 2, 2025). "A saucy French recipe made us go the full 'monter'". www.thetimes.com. Retrieved September 22, 2025.
  20. ^ Herbst & Herbst (2013), p. 273.
  21. ^ Herbst & Herbst (2013), p. 570.
  22. ^ "Easy Chicken Piccata". today.com.
  23. ^ TODAY Food (November 21, 2025). How to Make Carmy's Chicken Piccata Recipe From 'The Bear'. Retrieved December 15, 2025 – via YouTube.
  24. ^ Fox (2024).
  25. ^ Herbst & Herbst (2013), p. 274.
  26. ^ Wigler, Josh (July 8, 2024). "Every Episode of 'The Bear,' Ranked". The Hollywood Reporter. Retrieved September 21, 2025.
  27. ^ MacArthur, Greg; Lealos, Shawn S. (June 30, 2024). "The Bear: All 28 Episodes, Ranked from Worst to Best". ScreenRant. Retrieved November 5, 2025.
  28. ^ Eakin, Marah (June 27, 2025). "Every Single Episode of The Bear, Ranked". Vulture. Retrieved October 9, 2025.

Sources

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