“Refire the bolognese, double check the chit, and I need hands right now.” Confused? Here’s a guide to the kitchen lingo used in The Bear.
For those of us who are not familiar with what happens in the kitchen, The Bear is a fascinating, utterly entertaining, and for certain people, a stressful and traumatising binge. The chaos of running a restaurant certainly makes for good television, and especially for those who have no idea about the culinary world, it’s entertaining to get a glimpse of how things work. However, there might be times when you feel lost because you don’t exactly understand what they’re saying or why they’re saying it. Why do they have to yell “behind” so much, why are they called a “brigade” and not “staff”, and why is everybody calling everybody “chef”? Here’s a handy guide to the kitchen lingo of The Bear.
The kitchen lingo of The Bear: A guide
“Chef”
This doesn’t seem to need an explanation but you may be confused as to why everybody, whether it’s the kitchen brigade or the people working in front of the house, is called chef. Carmy explains in one of the early episodes of the show that it denotes unity and respect. It takes a while for the kitchen to get used to but by Season 2, everyone’s calling each other “chef”.
“Corner” or “Behind”
Like the kitchen in the show, kitchens can be small and crowded so the likelihood of bumping into someone else while carrying ingredients or a really hot dish is really high. This callout is meant to tell others where you are. For example, when coming up to a corner, you yell “Corner” to avoid any collisions with anyone who might be there.
“Hands”
Yelled out when an order is ready to be served.
“Fire”
Not to be confused with the corporate jargon meaning to remove someone from their job, “fire” in the context of the kitchen simply means to start cooking. You can hear Carmy and Sydney yelling this out continuously during the chaotic episode “The Review”. You can also probably work out what “refire” means. Yep, it means recook.
“Heard”
A simple acknowledgement letting the person know that you heard what they were saying. In an environment where every second counts, there isn’t really any time to make eye contact while someone is telling you something so you just say “Heard”.
Chit
“Check the chit.” No, the chef isn’t saying that you check your stuff. This is kitchen slang for the order ticket
Kitchen Brigade
Others will commonly refer to them as the kitchen staff but a “kitchen brigade” implies a hierarchy, which is exactly what Carmy implements in Season 1 much to the staff’s chagrin. That meant everyone now had a specific part to play and people to report to, like Carmy being the chef de cuisine and Sydney being his sous chef.
Stage
Richie and Marcus do this in Season 2. It’s when a person goes to a different kitchen to learn the ropes. Marcus already had some experience but Carmy wanted him to expand his horizons while Richie discovered what makes a kitchen so exciting when he staged at none other than Olivia Colman’s kitchen.
All three seasons of The Bear are available to stream on Disney+ Hotstar. The show’s third season currently holds a rating of 8.98 on IMDB and 93% on Rotten Tomatoes.
‘The Bear’ Season 3 Review: Tender Moments Amidst Chaos Form The Ethos Of This Dramedy
Everything We Know About ‘The Bear’ Season 4
This article first appeared on Lifestyle Asia Bangkok
