Carmy’s Daily Menu Changes on ‘The Bear’ Have a Deeper Meaning

Editor’s note: The below contains spoilers for The Bear Season 3.

Each season of FX’s smash hit The Bear has allowed viewers to explore Carmy Berzatto’s (Jeremy Allen White) journey as a chef. In Season 1, he inherits his brother’s sandwich shop, and, despite his fine dining background, works tirelessly to improve the establishment. Season 2 focuses on Carmy and his team as they face numerous obstacles in the rush to open a brand-new restaurant called The Bear. Despite his personal demons and his struggle to keep it all together, Carmy has always done everything he can to make his restaurant a success.

Season 3 of The Bear debuted last week, and the new restaurant is officially open for business. But none of the pressure has abated for Carmy and his crew, and the true battle to keep a restaurant open in this day and age has begun. The beginning of the season opens with Carmy feverishly writing out a list of “non-negotiables” that he has for his staff. This list of must-haves includes things Carmy wants everyone to focus on, such as “vibrant collaboration,” “confidence and competence,” and “no excuses.” It is also a list of demands that Carmy wants for the dishes (like “no repeat ingredients”). But the biggest, and perhaps most controversial item, on Carmy’s list, is “change menu every day.” Carmy believes that a constantly changing and evolving menu will lead to The Bear’s success (and to a coveted Michelin star). But will this non-negotiable actually lead to the team’s downfall? And what does it say about Carmy’s mental health that he’s so dead set on implementing it?

Carmy Needs Chaos To Thrive in ‘The Bear’

Having a menu that changes every day quickly proves to be a mistake. A lack of consistency is obvious throughout the front and back of house; both the cooks and the wait staff are frequently confused and unsure of what alterations have been made, which makes it super easy for errors to occur. Jimmy (Oliver Platt), the financial backer of the restaurant and Carmy’s uncle, is quick to point out that changing the menu daily is also a costly endeavor, leading to even higher operating costs for The Bear (which is not breaking even at this point). Even though Sydney (Ayo Edebiri), who is supposed to be Carmy’s partner, has expressed her serious misgivings about the menu process, Carmy is steadfast in his belief that this will be the only way the restaurant can live up to the extremely high standards he has set for it.

But there are many reasons behind Carmy’s menu decision that actually have very little to do with the restaurant. It’s clear that Carmy thrives on chaos. Any kind of frenetic, harried environment feels safe to him, and that’s most likely because of his upbringing. Episode 6 of Season 2 depicts a Berzatto family Christmas; the tension and huge emotions present (especially from Carmy’s mother) illustrate that he grew up in a home that was constant chaos. Carmy never really learned how to regulate his own emotions, so any type of calm environment feels abnormal, and even unsafe, for him. His training in several high-pressure restaurant environments (evident in the flashbacks he experiences in Episode 1 of this season) only further cemented Carmy’s need for chaos and pandemonium. Changing the menu every day continues to create a tumultuous vibe where Carmy feels most at home.

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“I’m gonna fix this place.”

The excitement and stress that come along with developing and perfecting a new menu filled with a variety of dishes every single day also allows Carmy to put blinders on. Because he can be totally consumed by creating the menu, he doesn’t have to think about any of the painful situations he’s avoiding. There is a huge financial burden associated with opening a new restaurant, his actions have resulted in the complete implosion of his relationship with Claire (Molly Gordon), and he’s still grieving the loss of his brother, Mikey (Jon Bernthal). But with the distraction of coming up with a fresh menu every day, Carmy doesn’t have to think about any of it. He can block out every excruciating and uncomfortable memory he’s trying to outrun, which makes it the perfect coping mechanism for him.

Carmy is also terrified of commitment, and he often seems unable to accept when positive things enter his life (most obviously his romance with Claire). A tried-and-true menu would only make Carmy feel trapped, so by giving himself an out every day, he can start over from scratch in the kitchen without ever feeling locked down. The process Carmy goes through in order to create a dish allows for mistakes. Carmy can beat himself up over those errors (demonstrated by the many dishes he slaves over, only to toss the entire thing in the trash), but they’re on a smaller scale. Carmy can self-flagellate, and then move forward in a vicious cycle of low self-esteem and fear of engagement with others. A new menu keeps Carmy isolated in his own world, but it also prevents anyone else from getting close to him. Carmy is so worried that any tiny amount of failure on his part will result in everyone leaving him, that he’s perpetually driven by his quest for perfection. This all works together to form a self-fulfilling prophecy; Carmy thinks he’s unlovable and will end up alone, so he pushes everyone away and then finds himself alone.

Season 3 ends with a lot of questions. What did that anticipated Chicago Tribune review actually say? Is the future of The Bear truly at stake? But the biggest question is: will Carmy be able to keep all of this up in Season 4? His mental health has been unraveling in a frightening way for quite some time now, which just furthers the point that the way he’s living his life is hardly sustainable. Changing the menu every day is just a symptom of his dysfunction and toxic patterns. Will he continue to self-destruct, or can he take some small steps to heal? Even just allowing Sydney to collaborate more on the menu or keeping the menu the same for a few days would take some of the immense pressure (both internal and external) off his plate. Because at the rate Carmy’s going, an ever-changing menu is not the answer to escaping the panic and grief that is threatening to consume him.

Seasons 1-3 of The Bear are available to stream on Hulu in the U.S.

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