Review: The Bear, "Focaccia" & "Caramel" | Season 5, Episodes 6 & 7

“I used to be a people hater, now I’m a people lover”

The transformation of Richie is the core of The Bear. He isn’t the show’s central character, but he is the person whose worldview has been most changed by the evolution of the show and its setting. Ebon Moss-Bachrach effectively won two Emmys for depicting his transformation, season two’s “Forks” the embodiment of the show’s belief that fine dining has the power to touch people’s lives. After watching Richie find a new sense of himself in the work of helping customers (and to crib from Moneyball): “How can you not be romantic about fine dining?”

As the show approaches its conclusion, though, there’s another question on my mind: “How can you not be cynical about The Bear?” This was a critical darling in its early seasons, and its near-sweep of the 2023 Emmys placed it in rarefied air among TV comedies. But whether because of the skepticism about that genre designation, or the way the show’s transformation came with an air of pretension, The Bear has fallen from grace. It won no Emmys last year, and it would be shocking if that changed in a few months’ time. As I write this, I can’t know what the tone will be for the reception of the show’s final season, but my gut says that there will be a strong sentiment the show ultimately overstayed its welcome—we became numb to its stylistic flourishes, and any hope of a fresh start was stymied by the claustrophobic timeframe covered by this final, real-time-esque season.

We can get to some of the specifics of “Focaccia” in a bit, but it’s really about clearing the deck ahead of “Caramel,” which extends its running time to show us the chaos of the overbooked service in full detail. It’s got everything we’ve come to expect from The Bear: close-ups of every dish, the cinematography and sound design working together to communicate the culinary dynamics of this process. It’s an episode where despite the chaos, there’s an intentional quiet in the kitchen, reinforcing the high stakes they’re operating under with “Star Man” seated for service. It’s an episode based solely on whether these characters believe in themselves. Does Sweeps trust his nose to be able to discern vintage on labelless bottles? Can Neil Fak manage the social interactions necessary to serve Star Man? Is Marcus able to keep his head on straight knowing his estranged father is solo at 7:30? Is Syd willing to put her own dish front and center when it matters most? Can Richie get everyone seated after refusing to cancel any reservations?