Love ‘The Bear’? These Are the 10 Chicago Restaurants You Should Check Out

Without Mr. Beef, The Bear probably wouldn’t exist. The show’s creator, Christopher Storer, has been friends with Christopher Zucchero—who now runs the famous Italian beef, hot-dog, and cheeseburger spot that’s been open since 1979—since kindergarten. The pilot of The Bear was even shot at Mr. Beef, and Zucchero appeared in the episode, too. In a full circle moment, Zucchero and the staff from Mr. Beef even provided catering for the second season of The Bear.

Mr. Beef isn’t the only spot in Chicago to get one of the city’s famous Italian beef sandwiches. Johnnie’s Beef also appears in the show as part of a montage in the seventh episode of season 1, “Review.” Johnnie’s Beef is 18 years older than Mr. Beef, having opened in 1961. It has a few more options than Mr. Beef, too, as it sells Italian sausage, peppers and eggs, tamales, and hot dogs.

“Sundae” features Sydney eating her way across Chicago in what’s proven to be one of The Bear’s most celebrated sequences. She kicks things off at Kasama, a bakery during the day and then a fine dining restaurant at night. It’s also the first Filipino restaurant to get a Michelin star, and it was recently awarded a James Beard Award for Best Chef. Sydney consumes the breakfast sandwich from Kasama, which is full of the Filipino sausage longanisa and a crispy hash brown, while she also partakes in the mushroom adobo.

Another stop on Sydney’s sumptuous tour of Chicago cuisine, the shot of the hand-rolled dumpling served in broth undoubtedly made every viewer’s stomach rumble. Opened by brothers Daniel and Eric Wat, Lao Peng You serves noodle soups, sandwiches, lamb-cumin bread, pork dumplings, and dan-dan noodles, all of which will leave you feeling deeply satisfied. There aren’t many spots to sit and eat inside, and you’re unable to reserve, so you might have to wait a while to get a seat, but another huge plus is that it’s BYOB.

Avec played a key role in the development of The Bear, as its writers visited the restaurant several times to research the fine dining world and learn how it functioned. Sydney visits Avec during “Sundae,” while we’re also given a look at how the Mediterranean spot’s short rib hummus is prepared. Sydney then ruins relations by trying to steal some of Avec’s staff. Other restaurants that Sydney visits in this episode include butcher and sandwich shop Publican Quality Meats and Scandinavian spot Elske, where she experiments on her pasta-making.

The location for one of The Bear’s best-ever episodes, Ever, is where Richie works during “Forks,” as he finally realizes his calling. It was already one of the most popular restaurants in Chicago, boasting three Michelin stars. While Olivia Colman is unlikely to be working in the kitchen, many of the restaurant’s staff did appear in “Forks.” For an added bonus, After Lounge, which is next door to Ever, is also where the scenes of Marcus studying in Copenhagen were shot.

After you’ve eaten one or all of the dishes above, chances are you’ll want to satisfy that sweet tooth, too. Thankfully, The Bear has also given its fair share of decadent desert shots, too. Unsurprisingly, Sydney visits one such establishment in the repeatedly aforementioned episode “Sundae.” In fact, the episode gets its title from the sundae that she eats at the legendary ice cream parlor Margie’s Candies, which has been opened since 1921 and run by the same family since 1933.

Those of you who have ever been watching The Bear and just wish you could reach through your screen and grab hold of one of Marcus’ doughnuts are in luck. Loaf Lounge is run by Sarah Mispagel, who works as a consultant for The Bear. She even made the chocolate cake that Marcus perfects at the end of season 1. Loaf Lounge is also the home to various other cakes, as well as sandwiches, bread, and various other wonderful sweet treats.

As Marcus’ dreams of becoming a baker become more and more of a reality, he finds himself standing outside Roeser’s Bakery and day-dreaming about the deserts in the window. You too can just do that at its Humboldt Park location, which has been opened since 1911. It is regarded as Chicago’s oldest family-owned bakery and is the home to several sweet treats that will hit the spot.