There’s been a Bear sighting in East Austin. No, not the wild animal or FX’s Emmy Award-winning dramedy either. Many Austinites and fans assumed FX’s The Bear was featuring Austin in its upcoming season after a pair of confusing signs went viral.
On February 6, a TikTok user shared a video outside of Austin’s Assembly Hall — an artsy events venue on East 7th Street — of signs labeled “The Bear” and “Crew” in front of the parking lot, which was blocked off for a private event.
Many users, along with some outlets, assumed that FX’s The Bear had plans to feature Austin in Season 4, which is expected to premiere this summer. Despite all the excitement to catch a glimpse of Jeremy Allen White in his chef coat, the rumors turned out to be a simple mixup.
The Bear, a local production company that films commercials and branded content, was behind the signs, as first reported by MySA. The Austin-based business, founded in 2017, was indeed filming something at Assembly Hall this week – just minus chef Carmy Berzatto and a collective stream of “Yes, chefs!”
Elizabeth Spiva, executive producer of the production company, confirmed the story to CultureMap. Spiva said the company is proud to have claimed the name first, and they have been dealing with this mixup for the last four years. Thankfully, they find it more fun than bothersome.
“People get their hopes up, and I don’t want to disappoint them by saying 'It’s just us, your friendly local production company,'" said Spiva.
The Emmy-award-winning dramedy — which some chefs have described as the most accurate portrayal of a chaotic restaurant kitchen — lets viewers see the not-always-pretty insides of a former Italian sandwich shop in Chicago struggling to transform into a fine-dining restaurant.
Austin did recently have a visit in November from chef Courtney Storer, culinary producer of FX’s “The Bear,” who gave a cooking demo at Austin’s 2024 Food and Wine Festival.
Now that Austin has its flowers from the Michelin Guide, perhaps it will attract some more stories about the fine dining industry. But until then, there's always Top Notch.