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Main Characters
The Original Beef in general
- Bunny-Ears Lawyer: Surprisingly averted. All the staff has been working for years, in some cases decades in kitchens, and know what they are doing.
- Commonality Connection: The staff don't have much in common besides working for Michael or being related to him. But this is enough for them to see each other as family.
- Four-Philosophy Ensemble: Richie is the Cynic, Marcus is the Optimistic, Tina is the Apathetic; and Carmen is the Conflicted.
- Intergenerational Friendship: The staff ranges from 20-somethings to 50-somethings.
- Jerk with a Heart of Gold: Everybody is a jerk except for Marcus. But if help is needed, they are there.
- True Companions: When push comes to shove, which often happens, they have each other's backs.
Carmen "Carmy" Berzatto
Carmen "Carmy" Berzatto
“We can’t operate at a higher level without consistency.”
Played By: Jeremy Allen White
A star cook who won awards working in fine dining, including the prestigious James Beard Award. He was the owner of The Original Beef after his brother's death, and later is the executive chef and co-owner of The Bear.
- Abusive Parents: From what little we've seen, Carmy's mother Donna was emotionally abusive. He never talks to his mother and when Tina mentions she came by during the past Thanksgiving, he tentatively asks if she behaved well; Tina tells him she was, mostly.
- Angry Chef: Mostly avoided. Since he worked under some angry chefs himself, he tries to be respectful, calm, and collected. But sometimes the stress consumes him, and he has an outburst for the ages.
- Animal Motifs: Bears, coming both from the "bear" sound in the surname BER-zatto and the volatile temper he unfortunately shares with Donna and Mikey. The series even opens with a short dream sequence of Carmy confronting a bear in a cage. When he's shut inside the walk-in fridge at the end of season 2, he behaves much like the caged bear, screaming and roaring as he fights to get out.
- Annoying Younger Sibling: What he thinks Michael saw him as. He is still puzzled as to why Michael left him The Original Beef.
- Be Careful What You Wish For: Wished for his whole life to work in The Original Beef, his family's restaurant. He inherits it after his brother committed suicide, leaving him to wish for anything else but this.
- Benevolent Boss: Treats his staff more like a family than his actual family. He's certainly not perfect, but he is generally patient and fair with the crew.
- Beware the Quiet Ones: He's much quieter than Richie, but when he does start yelling … watch out.
- Book Dumb: He mentions in AI-Anon that he barely managed to finish high school and couldn't attend college because of it. His poor financial management, while not as bad as Mikey's, is one of the reasons why Natalie comes onboard for the Bear.
- Broken Ace: He won numerous awards in fine-dining and is widely considered to be one of the best chefs de cuisine in the United States. However, he's haunted by a lot of unresolved trauma, and has nothing even remotely resembling a work-life balance.
- Clashing Cousins: With Richie. Weirdly enough, they aren't really related and just call each other cousin as a sign of closeness. Still, they clash every episode.
- The Cobbler's Children Have No Shoes: Despite being an excellent chef with experience at a gourmet restaurant, Carmy himself lives off of cheap, bare bones food at home, like PB&J sandwiches, soft drinks and frozen dinners. This appears to be one of many elements of Truth in Television within the show.
- Cynicism Catalyst: His brother did not allow him to work in the family business, which sent him into a spiral of hurt.
- Defrosting Ice King: In the beginning of the story, he is adamant to be professional and respectful with everybody. He starts to thaw around the time he hires Sydney, as he has a good feeling about her from the start, and sees Sydney as a partner to help him fix The Beef.
- The Determinator: Doesn't leave the kitchen even in the direst of situations—many manager/owners and especially chefs would have attempted to circumvent the disaster of episode 7's accidental and far too many orders, but Carmy simply decides to cook everything in the restaurant and do the best he can to meet the demand.
- Dumb Blonde: He says he never understood school lessons, and cooking is the only thing he is good at. Since we never see him outside the kitchen, this is more of an Informed Attribute.
- Though his hair is dark.
- Extreme Doormat: Was this in his old job, taking every abuse by his Mean Boss.
- Foolish Sibling, Responsible Sibling: He is the responsible to Mikey's foolish, running the Beef with greater efficiency than Mikey ever could. Conversely, he's also the foolish to Natalie's responsible, being overly ambitious with his goals and lacking her sense of financial management.
- Freudian Excuse: His scenes with his mother in "Fishes" go a long way to explaining why he's so committed to food and trying to make everything run smoothly.
- Good Is Not Soft: He's generally respectful in the kitchen, has a pretty thick skin, and serves as a mentor to both Sydney and Marcus. But he's not afraid to put his foot down and run the kitchen as he sees fit.
- Hair of Gold, Heart of Gold: He is blond and has his heart is at the right place.
- Hidden Depths: Outside of cooking, he appears to collect denim as a hobby (to the point where he has to use his oven as another storage site).
- His Own Worst Enemy: While everyone in the main cast has shades of this, Carmy's is probably the most prevalent and most persistent. On most days, he's mentally hanging on by a thread (it's a miracle that he doesn't snap more), and his attempts to reform the kitchen are undercut by his poor communication with Sydney. At the start of Season 2, he hastily settles on a deal with Cicero that leaves The Bear with a tight deadline to make profit, and his budding relationship with Claire causes him to neglect his duties. It boils to a head on the Bear's opening night, where Carmy has a panic attack due to mistaking a customer for an abusive ex-boss, gets stuck in the walk-in fridge because he failed to get the handle replaced, and sabotages his relationship with Claire by expressing his belief that happiness isn't meant for him.
- Jerkass Has a Point: In the episode "Review" he yells at both Marcus and Sydney, causing them to walk out. But he wasn't unjustified: Marcus was playing around with donuts instead of doing his orders, and Sydney made an awful mistake with the to-go orders.
- Love Is a Weakness: During Season 2, Carmy's budding romance with Claire begins to get in the way of his preparations for The Bear's reopening. This comes to a head at the restaurant's reopening, when he ends up trapped in the walk-in cooler because he failed to call a repairman.
- Married to the Job: He has fully thrown himself to the job in order to be the best, at the cost of his entire personal life being nonexistent, which he lampshades in Braciole. While he does make an attempt to have a better work-life balance in season 2, he goes in the completely opposite direction, unintentionally shirking his duties at The Bear's renovation to focus on his budding relationship with Claire.
- Messy Hair: His hair is always sticking up in different directions from his habit of raking his hands through it.
- My God, What Have I Done?: Each time that Carmy's been pushed to his breaking point, he ends up saying something that he regrets almost immediately after.
- After yelling at Marcus for focusing on donuts instead of cakes and Sydney quitting on the spot for similar treatment, he picks up the donut sample he threw to the floor and takes a bite, seeing that it's delicious. He smiles bitterly to himself, realizing he drove away two talented chefs by treating them the same way he hated being treated by his old bosses.
- The outburst in the Season 2 finale is more tragic: on the opening night of The Bear, Carmy winds up stuck in the fridge because he forgot to get the handle replaced. While the night still goes smoothly, Carmy realizes how much he's failed to balance his personal and professional life. He vocalizes this and his belief that love isn't meant for him, not realizing that Claire is on the other side.
- Never Got to Say Goodbye: He hadn't talked to Michael in years before his suicide and didn't attend his funeral.Carmy: ...I lost track of time, and he died.
- Nice Guy: He's got his flaws and more than a few issues but Carmy is ultimately a kind, well-meaning guy who is genuinely trying his hardest to help everyone around him and create a good environment and to not make anyone else go through what he did.
- O.O.C. Is Serious Business: Oh, boy. Syd's to-go machine mishap in Episode 7 pushes Carmy over the edge. Even Richie stops talking back.
- Pint-Sized Powerhouse: Like his actor Jeremy Allen White, he's a 5'7" short king, but is an absolute beast in the kitchen.
- Poor Communication Kills: In Season 1, he fails to communicate effectively with Syd and Nat, frustrating them both. While he manages to resolve things with his sister relatively smoothly, things boil over with Syd in "Review" before he fixes things in "Braciole".
- The Quiet One: Outside of the kitchen, Carmy comes off as reserved and somewhat awkward.
- Real Award, Fictional Character: A winner of the prestigious James Beard Award, which not only marks him as a rising star in fine dining, but is also incongruous with the Greasy Spoon at which he works.
- Self-Made Man: He went by himself to New York and became a name in fine dining, partially to spite his brother Michael, who did not allow him to work in the family restaurant.
- Sibling Yin-Yang: His calm and reserved personality contrasts with Michael's charismatic, boisterous one.
- Sleepwalking: Nearly burns his apartment down in Season 1 by doing so, having put unopened boxes of frozen food in pots on the stove. It's implied that it's not the first time it's happened, either.
- Superior Successor: While his transition is not without hiccups, it's apparent that Carmy's presence at the Beef was a much-needed improvement.
- Supreme Chef: He is a force to be reckoned with in the kitchen and previously won major awards for his work in fine-dining restaurants.
- Unkempt Beauty: He is a good-looking man, but he is perpetually unkempt from a combination of grief and long hours in a hot kitchen.
Richard "Richie" Jerimovich
Richard "Richie" Jerimovich
"That fucking rips, actually."
Played By: Ebon Moss-Bachrach
The second in command at the Original Beef, Richie was Michael's best friend and business partner. He later becomes the maître d' of the Bear.
- The Aggressive Drug Dealer: He used to deal behind the Original Beef to supplement the income of the business.
- Amicable Exes: Richie is pretty good terms with his ex-wife Tiffany.
- Beautiful All Along: After staging at a fine-dining restaurant, Richie starts dressing in a suit.
- Breaking the Cycle of Bad Parenting: Grew up without a father, and tries the best he can to be involved in his daughter's life.
- Control Freak: Richie is always the first to complain about Carmy and Syd's attempts to change up how The Beef does things, mostly because it's the last thing he has to remember Michael by and sees the changes as an attack on his best friend. It's made ironic by the fact that Richie doesn't particularly do anything for the restaurant in an official capacity, but he is still very much a vital part of the team. He's able to channel it into something positive once he becomes maître d' of the Bear.
- Crazy-Prepared: He has a Glock and a megaphone in case he needs to break up a fight.
- A Day in the Limelight: "Forks" follows his week-long stage at Chef Terry's restaurant and the Character Development that comes from it.
- Desperately Looking for a Purpose in Life: The motif of Richie's character arc in Season 2 as he's left without a concrete role in Carmy and Sydney's vision for the restaurant relaunch. Luckily, he finds it after being sent off to learn how a Michelin-starred restaurant works "Forks" and finds he has a knack for running the front-of-house.
- Doting Parent: Tries to patiently tell his ex-wife not to upset their child, and talks to his daughter in a soothing manner to calm her down.
- Family Man: While he's divorced and lives alone, Richie is his best self when he's interacting with his ex-wife and their daughter.
- Fanboy: He regularly drops references to the works of Philip K. Dick. When they tell each other at family dinner what they are thankful for, he says "for Philip K. Dick.""What's up, you fucking Replicants?"
- Hidden Depths: Richie seems to be a bit of a bookworm: in addition to his above mentioned love of Philip K. Dick, there's a scene in "Beef" where he describes a novel he's reading, which is most likely Colorless Tsukuru Tazaki and His Years of Pilgrimage. In "Omelette," he also quotes Herman Hesse's Siddhartha when addressing the staff.
- His Own Worst Enemy: For the first half of Season 2. Richie's insecurity worsens into fear that he'll be among the elements of the Original Beef cast aside to make way for The Bear. Desperate to validate his presence, he tries to take control of the renovation efforts rather than be a team player, which combined with his questionable judgement earns him the frustration and ire of the team. Thankfully, Richie's staging experience helps him not only get out of his own way, but has him discover an area in which he excels.
- Ineffectual Loner: In a misguided effort to prove himself, Richie oversteps during renovations, which only frustrates the others. Once he comes back from staging, however, he's much more of a team player and much more effective.
- Innocently Insensitive: Calls Sydney "Sweetheart" upon meeting her, and is quickly corrected by Carmen to not call female chefs by anything other than their name. Or "Chef", of course.
- Instant Expert: He's sent off to spend a week seeing how things work at a Michelin-starred restaurant. In that short time, he picks up the intricacies of running both front-of-house and back-of-house and applies that knowledge to save the Bear from a potential service disaster.
- Jerk with a Heart of Gold: He's crass, grumpy and frequently obnoxious. However, he largely means well and looks out for his loved ones to the best of his ability. There are many moments in Season 1
- Manchild: Richie's emotional maturity during Season 1 is that of a frat boy: he's self-righteous, short-tempered, crass and petty. He also doesn't seem to recognize that bringing up a story of him out drinking at 6 in the morning would be a poor choice for a first date. This gets Subverted hard in Season 2 with "Forks", which has him finally come into his own skin.
- Military Brat: His father was in the military.
- New Job as the Plot Demands: He jumps in wherever he is needed in the restaurant, not having a concrete position. This is downplayed in Season 2, where he manages The Bear's front of house and steps in on opening night when the kitchen starts falling behind.
- Nice Mean And In Between: He is the mean to Marcus' nice and Carmen's in-between.
- Nostalgia Filter: Tries to run The Beef as if Michael was still around, and criticizes Carmy's changes every chance he gets. It is implied that this is his way of grieving Michael. He's also extremely resistant to changes around the neighborhood.
- Papa Wolf: Has a daughter with his ex-wife and is very worried how the separation and subsequent badmouthing of the mother will affect his child.
- Politically Incorrect Hero: He had a tendency to say a lot of outdated things towards the people he dislikes. He calls Sydney a cutesy nickname the first time they met, calls Cicero an asshole because he is Polish, and semi-jokingly accuses Syd of giving a reviewer sexual favors out of sheer jealousy. Part of his Character Development in season 2 sees him outgrowing these mindset, to the point where he berates Fak for saying an offensive term to Jewish people in "Bolognese".
- Significant Wardrobe Shift: After completing his stage in "Forks," Richie starts wearing dark suits at work as a sign of his newfound confidence and professionalism.
- Sir Swears-a-Lot: He's constantly cursing and swearing. He gets called out on this habit when he works at a Michelin-starred restaurant that maintains quiet decorum but he falls back into his habits at the much looser Bear.
- The Social Expert: Downplayed. He can be a colossal prick, especially to other Beef employees, but he's very charismatic when the time comes. Carmy correctly surmises that his demeanor would make him an excellent front-of-house employee.
- Took a Level in Badass: After staging at one of the top restaurants in the world, Richie goes from a crude manchild without a real place in the restaurant to a poised professional who is a master of the front-of-house. When Carmy locks himself in the freezer during The Bear's opening night, Richie demonstrates his new experience by masterfully leading the kitchen in his stead in a levelheaded manner. All the more impressive is that he accomplished this in under a week.
- Took a Level in Kindness In season 2, he goes from a majorly insensitive Jerkass to a mature leader. He apologizes to Sugar for all the crude comments he's made towards her in addition to trying to encourage a cleaner working environment.
Sydney Adamu
Sydney "Syd" Adamu
"We are not good."
Played By: Ayo Edebiri
A young woman who went to the CIA* and, after her own catering business failed, applies for a job at The Original Beef to make some money. She is Carmy's sous chef and chef de saucier and later becomes the chef de cuisine of The Bear.
- Affectionate Nickname: Many people in the restaurant, such as Carmy and Tina, refer to her by the nickname "Syd."
- Control Freak: Makes her more similar to Richie than she would like to admit. She tries to push too many new ideas at once, not really thinking about how a restaurant has to cooperate as a team and frustrated nobody sees things her way when she also doesn't see things from theirs. This frequently puts her at odds with Richie, who is on the other end of the spectrum and throws hissy fits over The Beef changing. In between is Carmy, trying to change the restaurant for the better but understanding that proper change is slow.
- Deceased Parents Are the Best: Sydney's mom died when she was young. Both Syd and her father have nothing but good things to say about her.
- Dude, Where's My Respect?: It takes a while for the original Beef staff (well, mainly Richie and Tina) to warm up to Sydney, in large part because of her similarities to Carmy and her youth. While her professionalism earns her Tina's respect relatively quickly, the tension between her and Richie eventually boils over.
- Hoist by Her Own Petard: Every chef she ever worked for has the same criticism: she is too hasty and pushy and tries to implement all her ideas at once. This leads to clashes and tensions and, eventually, her unhappily quitting.
- Motor Mouth: Syd tends to ramble when she's nervous or unsure of things.
- Never Bareheaded: She is almost always wearing a bandana to cover her hair. When outside in the cold, she keeps the hood of her jacket up.
- Never My Fault: When quitting in Review, claims the mess is "not on her", when it is very much the result of her mishandling the options on the to-go tablet which itself was only implemented because of her pressuring Carmy over and over again.
- Screw This, I'm Outta Here: In "Review", she just walks out of the kitchen, after Carmy yelled at her and she had a fight with Richie that resulted in her accidentally stabbing him.
- Skilled, but Naive: She's probably the closest to Carmy in culinary skill, but has yet to develop his attention to detail. This is exemplified with her handling of the short rib dish.
- The Reason You Suck: She gives one of these speeches to Richie in "Review," but it is shockingly cruel and out-of-character for her. It displays that Sydney has a pretty vicious side to her beneath her soft-spoken and sweet exterior.
Marcus Brooks
Marcus Brooks
Played By: Lionel Boyce
A young man in his first culinary job. He is the chef de pâtisserie.
- Black and Nerdy: He totally geeks out about anything pastry and the culinary arts in general.
- Caretaker Reversal: Has a sick mother, whom he's caring for with help from his roommate.
- A Day in the Limelight: "Honeydew" is mostly about his time studying in Copenhagen.
- Gentle Giant: He is really big and muscular, but also the softest person in The Original Beef. He played college football.
- The Pollyanna: He is just happy to work in a restaurant, always having a smile on his face even with all of the insanity that comes with it.
- Screw This, I'm Outta Here: He excitedly tells Carmy he finally perfected his donut. Since he wasn't supposed to make donuts in the first place, Carmy gets mad and throws it to the ground, causing Marcus to walk out.
- Skewed Priorities: He was hired to bake the bread in The Original Beef. However, he soon asks if he could make cakes, which results in him getting obsessed with the perfect donut. This results in him spending almost the entirety of "Review" making donuts instead of the cakes ordered when the restaurant is getting tons of preorders, not understanding what the problem is when he shows his creation to Carmy. By the time The Bear opens, he's largely figured out how to balance things.
- Sweet Baker: Save for some snark here or there, he's the nicest person in the kitchen and one of the more welcoming towards Carmy's and Sydney's changes. Fittingly, he is also interested in baking and later becomes the chef de pâtisserie.
- Wide-Eyed Idealist: He loves everything about the culinary arts and, when Carmy tells him a story about a chef that was a perfectionist, is stoked about the level of dedication instead of taking it as a warning that a kitchen can be a toxic place.
Tina Marrero
Tina Marrero
Played By: Liza Colon Zayas
A woman who's worked at The Original Beef for over 20 years. She is chef de entremétier, and later the sous chef at The Bear.
- Affectionate Nickname: Her Verbal Tic of calling Carmy "Jeff" as a sub for chef evolves into her simply calling him "Jeffrey" as a nickname.
- Alpha Bitch: Starts out as this towards Carmy and Sydney, but comes around once she notices the changes they are implementing actually work and make everything much smoother.
- Foil: Tina serves as one to Richie in Season 1. Both are veteran employees at the Original Beef that are initially averse to the changing restaurant and dismissive of Carmy and Syd for their fine-dining background. However, Tina is won over by Carmy's talent and Syd's maturity, and recognizes the improvements in both the restaurant and her own ability. In contrast, Richie remains resistant, grows resentful from a combination of unresolved grief and insecurity: this comes to a head in "Ceres", with Tina taking Richie aside and confronts him for being disruptive.
- Hidden Depths: Has a lovely singing voice.
- Parental Substitute: She is incredibly supportive and protective of Syd, who lost her mother when she was young.
- Spicy Latina: Has little trouble giving people a piece of her mind.
- Token Minority: Was the only woman in the kitchen until Sydney came along.
- Took a Level in Badass: She attends culinary school in Season 2 and flourishes, leading to her becoming the Bear's sous chef and ably managing a brigade that has much more experience than her in haute cuisine.
- Verbal Tic: Carmy calls everybody "chef", which she first misheard as "Jeff." She when proceeds to call him Jeff and even accidentally uses it for Sydney once.
- What the Hell, Hero?: Delivers two of these over the first season: first to Richie in "Ceres" for being disruptive, and finally to Carmy for how he acted in "Review".
Natalie "Sugar"/"Nat" Berzatto
Natalie "Sugar" Berzatto
Played By: Abby Elliott
The middle sister of Carmen and Michael. She is part owner of The Original Beef and later the general manager of the Bear.
- Dude, Where's My Respect?: She's more than a little frustrated at Carmy not talking to her unless he needs something.
- Embarrassing Nickname: She got the nickname "Sugar" after using sugar instead of salt, creating a gravy that "tasted like Hawaiian Punch".
- Foolish Sibling, Responsible Sibling: Probably the most well-adjusted of the Berzatto siblings, and the only one with any real financial responsibility.
- Happily Married: Is the only person in the show who is married and happily so.
- Only Sane Man: She is the only sibling not working as a restaurateur, and is vocal about wanting to sell the place as it is a depressing money pit for the family. While she eventually comes around thanks to Carmy's overall better handling of the restaurant, she nevertheless remains a voice of stability and reason during the remodeling.
- Pregnant Badass: Is pregnant throughout Season 2, dealing with morning sickness in "Pasta". That doesn't stop her from helping in the redevelopment, or from stepping in during "The Bear" when the back of house falls behind.
- Speak Ill of the Dead: The only one who doesn't shy away calling Michael irresponsible and thoughtless.
- Team Mom: As she spends more time at the restaurant, she becomes this to the point where Richie and Fak actually refer to her as "mom" on occasion. She reciprocates, referring to Fak with motherly terms of endearment such as "sweetheart" and "my love".
- "Well Done, Son" Guy: From what little can be gleamed, Sugar is the sibling with the strongest emotional attachment to their mother. Sadly, she seems to have taken the brunt of Donna's emotional baggage.
Neil Fak
Neil Fak
"Here comes the Fak Attack!"
Played By: Matty Matheson
A longtime family friend of the Berzattos. He helps out around the restaurant as a handyman and eventually gets hired as a restaurant captain.
- Big Fun: He's big and boisterous and often tries to get everyone around him to cheer up when tensions start running high.
- Casting Gag: Fak is the only staff member at the Original Beef who isn't involved in the kitchen. His actor is a chef.
- "Eureka!" Moment: With the restaurant down to its last chance to pass its fire inspection, Fak realizes that Mikey must have tampered with the building's suppression system when he was thinking of burning it down for the insurance money. This leads to Fak finding the problem and repairing it in the nick of time.
- Get-Rich-Quick Scheme: In a flashback, he and his brother are shown trying to get into the collectibles business and keeps asking anyone who'll listen to loan them $500 dollars so they can buy a box of baseball cards and flip them in the hopes of a huge profit and paying back their benefactor $1,500.
- Jack of All Trades: He does everything in The Original Beef, from plumbing to maintaining the arcade machines. When Carmy mentions that he needs more cooks, he asks to work in the kitchen, as well.
- Last-Name Basis: Everybody calls him "Fak".
- Mr. Fixit: Fak does repairs around The Beef and the one to point out the right and wrong ways of renovating the restaurant in Season 2.
The Beef/The Bear
Gary "Sweeps" Woods
Gary "Sweeps" Woods
Played By: Corey Hendrix
One of the line cooks at The Original Beef. In Season 2, he moves to front-of-house and becomes one of the Bear's restaurant captains.
- Mysterious Past: It is hinted he played for the Chicago White Sox in his youth.
- Nice Guy: When he mistakenly believes that Marcus is homeless, Gary doesn't hesitate to reassure him and offer him a place to sleep.
Ebraheim
Ebraheim
Played By: Edwin Lee Gibson
A line cook at The Original Beef.
- Catchphrase: "I accept."
- Dark and Troubled Past: References being in a military brigade once where many people died. Later dialogue reveals him to be a Somalian refugee.
- Fan of the Past: While Ebra was accepting of Carmy's changes to the Original Beef, he ultimately wants to keep making sandwiches, and falls out of contact with the crew during the renovations to The Bear before agreeing to return at the sandwich counter. Justified, as he has arthritis and visibly struggles learning new techniques during his brief time at culinary school.
- Foil: To Tina, especially in Season 2. Both are veteran employees at The Beef, and are among the oldest crew members. However, while Tina welcomes the transition to fine-dining, Ebra is unable to adjust and ultimately takes a role similar to his original position.
- Mellow Fellow: Despite the absolute chaos of working at the Beef, Ebra rarely if ever raises his voice. He tends to go with the flow even when things around him are going up in flames.
Manny
Manny
Played By: Richard Esteras
One of the dishwashers in The Original Beef.
- Gentle Giant: He's a big guy with a Baritone of Strength but he's timid about voicing his grievances. When he does he still remains incredibly polite throughout.
Angel
Angel
Played By: Jose M Cervantes
One of the dishwashers in The Original Beef.
- Never Bareheaded: Always seen wearing a baseball cap.
Family
Michael "Mikey" Berzatto
Michael "Mikey" Berzatto
Played By: Jon Bernthal
The older brother of Carmen and Natalie, who committed suicide four months before the series began. He was the owner of The Original Beef, inheriting it from their father.
- Addled Addict: Was addicted to painkillers, leading to erratic behavior.
- Animal Motifs: Bears, like his brother. Carmy's flashbacks during panic attacks to his screaming at Uncle Lee while attending a horrific family Christmas party years before his suicide are even distorted to mimic those of a bear's roars.
- Foolish Sibling, Responsible Sibling: He had no financial skills to speak of and was still living with his mother well into his thirties. A recurring challenge for his siblings throughout the series is cleaning up the mess that Mikey left behind, either through sloppiness or lack of foresight.
- Insurance Fraud: In Season 2, the restaurant crew realize that one of the ways Mikey tried to get out of his financial hole was an attempt to burn the Beef down. The "modifications" he made to the fire suppression system causes headaches throughout the remodel.
- Jerk with a Heart of Gold: Despite the positive memories everyone had of him, he could be quite the asshole at times. Part of that could be due to his drug addiction, and most of the time he seemed to mean well.
- Money Dumb: He quickly burned through his cash and through several failed business ventures, including a petting zoo and a miniature golf course. The Original Beef was another failing venture propped up by loans from Jimmy but Mikey mismanaged that as well and left a failing business and a mountain of debt for Carmy to handle.
- O.O.C. Is Serious Business: Tina noticed that, just before his suicide, Mikey had been uncharacteristically resigned, giving up on the idea that they'd be able to repay a vendor.
- Posthumous Character: Only shows up in flashbacks, having committed suicide a few months before the series began.
- Sad Clown: Has a reputation for being the life of the party but was clearly struggling with addiction, insecurity and depression, among other issues.
- Shrouded in Myth: Everybody who knew him calls him "[their] best friend" and has stories about him.
- Sibling Yin-Yang: He was the charismatic, boisterous one to Carmy's calm and reserved.
Jimmy "Cicero" Kalinowski
Jimmy "Cicero" Kalinowski
Played By: Oliver Platt
A close friend of the Berzatto siblings' late father, and the financial backer of the restaurant.
- Cool Old Guy: After Carmy accidentally dopes the children at a birthday party Jimmy is hosting, Jimmy is offering him coffee and doesn't mind.
- Deadpan Snarker: Quick to make a cutting comeback or insult.
- Honorary Uncle: He's a close family friend of the Berzattos and considered an uncle by Carmy, Sugar, and Mikey. However, this doesn't stop him from considering the cold, hard realities of financially backing the siblings' failing businesses.
- Jerk with a Heart of Gold: He absolutely loves antagonizing Richie and shooting him down, but in "Fishes," it's revealed that he offered Richie a job (after bluntly telling him earlier that he wouldn't) so that Richie wouldn't humiliate himself in front of Tiff or disappoint her. And as much of a Deadpan Snarker as he is and enjoys making potshots at the boys, he recognizes when Lee goes too far at the Christmas dinner and works to try to deescalate the situation. He also does show that he sincerely cares about Carmy and gives him genuinely good advice and guidance in his struggles.
- Only Sane Man: He's next to Sugar as the most grounded member of the Berzatto circle, always trying to find reasonable solutions to problems and being serious but fair to Carmy and Richie about the investment.
- Parental Substitute: Appears to serve as this for the Berzatto siblings and Richie. It's telling that both Carmy and Nat are closer to Jimmy than to their own mother.
- Reasonable Authority Figure: Jimmy is tough but fair regarding his investment in The Bear.
- Running Gag: "May I share with you a story of complete and utter failure?" He finally gets to tell this story in "Omelette," though Carmy misses the point.
- The Team Benefactor: He's the one providing the funding that allows the Beef to survive and for Carmy to transform it into the Bear. However, he's also intent on getting his money back and won't hesitate to seize the property and sell it off if necessary.
Pete
Pete
Played By: Chris Witaske
The husband of Sugar.
- The Friend Nobody Likes: While he's always happy to hang with his wife's family, the only person who seems to enjoy having him around is his wife. This is mostly because almost everybody else in the show has been exposed to abusive, unstable people, and they have a hard time accepting Pete is genuinely as good as he seems.
- My God, What Have I Done?: Has one in the season 2 finale when he mentions the baby to Donna, not realizing that Donna didn't know about Nat's pregnancy.
- Nice Guy: He's a genuinely sweet man, never having anything negative or passive-aggressive to say about anyone.
- No Social Skills: He can't ever seem to read the room, not to mention a bit of a bore.
- Tagalong Kid: Despite being an adult, this is how he's generally treated by Carmy and Richie.
Donna Berzatto
Donna Berzatto
Played By: Jamie Lee Curtis
The estranged mother of the Berzatto siblings.
- Abusive Parent: Of the emotional variety. Sugar seems to have gotten the worst of it.
- Alcoholic Parent: Man, could this woman drink.
- Attention Whore: Donna tends to make a scene at family gatherings, as seen in episode 206.
- Berserk Button: Being asked if she's okay. As "Fishes" makes it abundantly clear, she hates that question, seeing it as demeaning. Pair that with Nat's well-intended concern and... well, you can fill in the blanks.
- Heel Realization: In "The Bear," she recognizes that her entering the restaurant will only ruin things for Carmy and Nat and decides to leave instead.
- Hidden Depths: Beneath her mental illness and volatile demeanor, Donna is aware of the harm she has caused her children. In addition, Donna is the only Berzatto besides Nat shown to explicitly respect Pete.
- I Want My Beloved to Be Happy: Of the maternal variety. She chooses not to attend The Bear's opening night, knowing that it would take away from her childrens' success. When Pete catches her outside (as she was unable to resist checking on the restaurant itself), she makes him promise not to tell Nat or Carmy.
- Narcissist: The episode "Fishes" is basically an illustrated checklist of symptoms of narcissistic personality disorder.
- Troubled Abuser: Seemingly suicidal, and likely has some sort of emotional disorder. Hit her breaking point in episode 206, which led to her driving her car into the living room.
Lee Layne
Lee Layne
Played By: Bob Odenkirk
Donna's on-and-off boyfriend.
- Armor-Piercing Response: When tensions between him and Mikey start to boil over, Mikey starts throwing forks at him at the dinner table. After a few retorts which Mikey shrugs off, Lee delivers a scathing "The Reason You Suck" Speech that hits Mikey's insecurities and shuts him up.
- Beware the Nice Ones: He puts up with a lot of shit from Mike with a smile but when Mike finally goes too far, Lee pushes back and shuts him down, giving him a devastating verbal dressing down.
- Honorary Uncle: Downplayed. While Nat seems content to call him "Uncle Lee", Carmy scoffs at the idea. Mikey couldn't stand him at all.
- Jerkass Has a Point: As rude as it is for him to point it out, Lee isn't exactly wrong that Mikey's business ventures have a low success rate, nor that he has a tendency to repeat the same stories.
- Tempting Fate: His constant goading of Mikey is part of what leads to the chaotic ending of "Fishes."
Michelle
Michelle
Played By: Sarah Paulson
Carmy’s cousin who lives in New York.
- Cool Big Sis: Recognized the stress Carmy lives in with his mother and offers to let him stay with her in New York for a while.
- Nice Girl: She's very kind and understanding of Carmy's struggles and tries to help however she can.
Stevie
Stevie
Played By: John Mulaney
Michelle’s boyfriend.
- Deadpan Snarker: Tends to react to the madness around him with snarky derision. He is played by John Mulaney so it'd be weird if he wasn't this.
- It Amused Me: Gives the Fak brothers $500, not because he believes they’ll be able to turn it into $1500 like they said they would, but because he has the money to lose and he’s amused by the stupidity of the plan.
- Jerk with a Heart of Gold: He enjoys messing with the Faks and razzes Pete over the fish but he has just as many Pet the Dog moments, comforting Sugar after a violent moment with Donna and trying to diffuse the tension at the table with a heartfelt speech.
- Mistaken for Gay: Much to his denial.
Tiffany Jerimovich
Tiffany Jerimovich
Played By: Gillian Jacobs
Richie's ex-wife and the mother of their daughter.
- Amicable Exes: Aside from having him as "Richie Bad-News" in her contacts, it doesn't look like there are any hard feelings between her and Richie. When she appears in "Forks", she's gentle in breaking the news that she's getting remarried, and they end the call with a Platonic Declaration of Love.
Emmanuel Adamu
Emmanuel Adamu
Played By: Robert Townsend
Sydney's father, whom she lives with after the failure of her last business venture.
- My Beloved Smother: Downplayed. He's not... pleased with Sydney's career choices although he tries to respect them. Understandable, given that her catering company failed and she's been living with him ever since.
- The Teetotaler: Implied. He doesn't drink at all, to the point Richie leaves fermented cherries off of his dessert.
Other Characters
Claire
Claire
Played By: Molly Gordon
A childhood friend of the Berzattos.
- Affectionate Nickname: "Claire Bear".
- Character Shilling: Fak, Richie, and everyone else who meets her constantly mentions how great she is. Justified, since most of them grew up with her, they're actively trying to get Carmy interested in her, and she's very much a Nice Girl.
- Deadpan Snarker: She's sarcastic and sharp-witted, which is clearly part of what attracts the quieter, more anxious Carmy to her.
- Forgotten Childhood Friend: She was close enough to Carmy as a child to consider his close friends and family as her own, but he struggles to remember her name when they first reunite.
- Hospital Hottie: She's a beautiful doctor at a hospital.
- Manic Pixie Dream Girl: Personality-wise, she's an inversion — instead of a plucky woman drawing a meek man out of his shell, she offers a calm and low-key change of pace from Carmy's hectic professional life and loud, aggressive family dynamic. Her function is still the same, chasing after her love interest, opening Carmy up to the social life he missed when focusing on his professional growth in his twenties, having a character almost solely focused on her love for him, and even telling him that he should never apologize to her or anyone. Even when he vents about their relationship getting in the way of his professional goals while stuck in the walk-in, unaware she's on the other side of the door, all she can muster is a crestfallen reply that she's sorry he feels that way. Unfortunately, she ends up being something of a deconstruction when she pulls Carmy's time, presence, and attention away from the restaurant opening so much that he strains his relationships with his colleagues, who are depending on his leadership.
- Nice Girl: Extremely sweet and charming to everyone.
- Satellite Love Interest: She spends almost all of her scenes flirting with Carmy or supporting him, and outside of being a doctor and a supportive friend, she has little characterization otherwise. Even mutual friends do little but talk her up to Carmy about how he she's perfect, and he needs to make things work with her.
- She Is All Grown Up: Apparently viewed as rather plain when she was younger. When Carmy returns home after several years, he's bombarded with comments about how attractive she's become.
- Stalker with a Crush: Downplayed. After Carmy self-sabotages by intentionally giving her the wrong number, she hunts him down by having a mutual friend provide the correct number so that she can badger him about why he lied to her.
Carmy's Old Chef
Carmy's Old Chef
Played By: Joel McHale
Carmy's former Executive Chef from when he worked in New York.
- Disproportionate Retribution: He gives Carmy a "The Reason You Suck" Speech about how he is an awful chef and should be dead over another chef breaking sauces.
- Drill Sergeant Nasty: Of the cooking variety. He treats those working under him with mercilessly high standards and will verbally annihilate them if they make even the slightest mistake. Think Terrence Fletcher but with cooking instead of music and a chillingly calm tone and you've got this guy.
- Evil Is Bigger: He's played by 6'4 Joel McHale and is a cruel taskmaster who enjoys mistreating those working under him.
- Four Eyes, Zero Soul: He has thick black glasses that cover his eyes as he peers down on Carmy.
- Icy Blue Eyes: He has pale, cold blue eyes and is a stoic, cruel bastard.
- Insistent Terminology: He curtly corrects Carmy to call him "Chef."
- Jerkass: He appears for barely a minute, and spends that time berating and belittling Carmy.
- Large and in Charge: He towers over all his subordinates and his height is just another way he intimidates and bullies them.
- Lean and Mean: He is tall and skinny, which he uses to tower over Carmy as he berates him, and even taunts him for having a "short man complex."
- Mean Boss: He's verbally and emotionally abusive to his staff, with Carmy even recalling that he told him to kill himself over the mistakes of a subordinate. He also hijacks the pass while Carmy is running it, confusing the chefs and disrupting the kitchen's flow all while continually berating Carmy.
- The Perfectionist: He tears into chefs with sadistic verbal abuse over any mistake.
- Sadist Teacher: Hr is Carmy's mentor and unloads horrifying psychological abuse on him that he is still dealing with the effects of years on.
- Sir Swears-a-Lot: He curses at Carmy multiple times while scolding him.
- Small Role, Big Impact: While he never appears in person save for a flashback and a stress-induced hallucination, he's left Carmy with a lot of emotional trauma and Carmy determines that he is exactly the kind of chef he is not going to be like.
- Soft-Spoken Sadist: Aside from him calling out the orders, he speaks to Carmy in a soft but icily menacing whisper.
- Tranquil Fury: When he sees a chef had broken a sauce, he repeatedly questions her with a calm "Why?" until she admits that it's her fault before firing her and proceeds to tear Carmy down in the same tone of voice.
Luca
Luca
Played By: Will Poulter
A Copenhagen-based pastry chef whom Marcus stages under.
- Always Someone Better: He tells Marcus about how he was cocksure about his skills and had a huge ego. Then Carmy came along and blew him away without even trying. Luca says that learning that there were natural talents whom he could never even dream of matching gave him perspective and took a lot of the pressure off, allowing him to simply enjoy cooking without worrying about being the best.
- Book Dumb: Like Carmy, he admits he wasn't much of a student in school and it was only through cooking that he found any real purpose and direction.
- Former Teen Rebel: Luca's introduction to the kitchen was being forced to wash dishes after an attempted dine-and-dash.
- Nice Guy: Luca is a humble, kind, and patient guy, who gets along quite easily with others and is nothing but respectful and encouraging to Marcus while the latter learns under him.
- Stern Teacher: He's direct in both instruction and feedback, but he readily answers any question Marcus has for him, is happy to give praise when Marcus does something right and generally treats him well and respects him as a fellow chef, even bonding with him over their unconventional paths to cooking.
Terry
Terry
Played By: Olivia Colman
The chef of a very famous upscale restaurant in Chicago where Carmy once worked. Richie works on her restaurant to learn about service.
