The Bear Season 3: What is the French Laundry?

The Bear Season 3 opens with flashbacks through Carmy’s career, including his relatively peaceful time in The French Laundry.

As the third season‘s first episode illustrates, there are plenty of reasons behind Carmy’s tortured soul in The Bear.

He constantly pursues perfection, his family is as volatile as it is loving, and he also suffered under the ever-seeing, abusive eye of Joel McHale’s head chef in New York (who returns to The Bear cast in Season 3 with other guest stars), before taking the reigns at The Beef.

However, after his brother originally knocked him back from the family restaurant, he started his culinary career at The French Laundry, learning the delicacies and joys of fine dining.

What is The French Laundry?

While featuring in The Bear Season 3, The French Laundry is also a real restaurant in California’s Napa Valley.

The French Laundry

It was opened by Sally Schmitt in 1978, spearheading Californian cuisine and going on to earn three Michelin stars. According to its website, it “commits itself to serving classic French cuisine with the finest quality ingredients, along with a similarly intense focus on impeccable guest service.”

Patrons have two choices: the Chef’s tasting menu and a “tasting of vegetables,” both of which are changed daily.

If you want to book a reservation, prepare your bank account: it costs $390 per person to eat in the restaurant, plus an extra $100 if you’d like to dine in the courtyard.

Who owns The French Laundry?

The French Laundry is now owned by Thomas Keller, who bought the restaurant from its founder Sally Schmitt in 1994.

Thomas Keller

Keller, whose restaurants hold seven Michelin stars, is a big inspiration for one character in the show; more specifically, McHale’s unnamed “NYC Chef” who whispers “f**k you” to Carmy and scolds every dish he plates.

“I was portraying chef Thomas Keller… he’s gonna be so happy I’m saying these things and poison me if I ever meet him. I don’t think he’s as awful as I was, but he does whisper at his employees,” the star told Seth Meyers.

Keller has never commented on The Bear or McHale’s performance, but his influence can be seen throughout the series. For example, Carmy’s “S.O.U” tattoo stems from Keller’s “Sense of Urgency” sign that hangs in The French Laundry.

Does Daniel Boulud work at The French Laundry?

He appears in flashbacks in The Bear Season 3, but Daniel Boulud doesn’t work at The French Laundry. It’s just a nod to his career as a chef, as well as his praise of the real-life restaurant.

Hulu

Boloud owns restaurants across the world – including New York’s Daniel, which holds two Michelin stars. He’s never worked at The French Laundry, but he cooked alongside Keller at NYC’s Westbury Hotel in the 1980s.

“We can eat well today in every city in every part of the country because of Thomas Keller. It might not be because he trained that particular chef, but that chef trained other cooks. Thomas Keller has made dining better across America,” he told 50 Best Stories.

When did Carmy work at The French Laundry?

Hulu

While The Bear doesn’t provide an exact timeline, Carmy began his career at The French Laundry years before he ended up at The Beef.

In Season 3 Episode 1, Chef Terry (Olivia Colman) asks Carmy where he worked before his job at her restaurant (believed to be based on Chicago’s Ever). “

In earlier seasons of The Bear, many fans presumed The French Laundry was the name of McHale’s character’s restaurant, given the Keller comparisons.

However, the opening episode takes viewers through Carmy’s career, following his ascent and shifting attitudes to cooking as he works alongside different chefs and travels to Copenhagen, before returning to the US.

You can watch The Bear Season 3 on Hulu and Disney Plus now. We’ve also broken down the meaning behind “keep the spoon” and how Mikey dies, and make sure you check out other new TV shows streaming this month.