Diksha Sundriyal
Running a business is difficult, but running a restaurant is a different ballgame. FX’s ‘The Bear’ does quite a job of presenting that side of the culinary world, where behind each dish is a bustling and chaotic ecosystem of a kitchen. In the third season of the show, Carmy decides to up the ante by aiming for a Michelin, but he suffers from a serious case of poor communication, which ruined his relationship with Claire in Season 2, and he threatens to do the same with several other members of his team, especially Sydney. By the end of this season, Sydney finds herself at a crossroads and must make a decision. While we are left at a cliffhanger, several things show that Sydney’s time at The Bear isn’t done yet. SPOILERS AHEAD
The News Clipping on Sydney’s Fridge is a Potent Sign
In all fairness, Sydney has every reason to leave The Bear. To begin with, Carmy is too set in his ways to see that a partnership means equal participation on both sides. He has offered Sydney the partnership but never treats her like a partner. Important decisions are made without consulting her, and significant changes are made to the dishes with her signature. Moreover, nothing has really changed when it comes to communication. The kitchen is still chaos, and oftentimes, Carmy is at the center stage of a conflict, escalating rather than containing a situation.
On the other hand, the promise of a new job offers everything Sydney has dreamed of. Adam Shapiro of Ever (which closes by the end of the season) has offered her her own kitchen, the freedom to do whatever she wants with the menu, the dishes, and the whole vibe of the place, for that matter. This freedom also comes with a great salary and insurance benefits, something that The Bear doesn’t offer for at least the first three months. Most significantly, it is a chance for Sydney to get her name at the top of the list. So, when the restaurant is praised or trashed, whether held in high regard or seen as a failure, her name will be attached to it, just like The Bear remains attached to Carmy’s.
All things considered, it is a lucrative opportunity for Sydney, and for all intents and purposes, she seems to have made up her mind. She is ready to accept it and tells Adam as much, but then, during the after-party of Ever’s funeral, she sees the news clipping on the fridge and is reminded why she joined The Bear, or rather, The Beef, in the first place. She is reminded of the dishes and the stains, the fights and the moments of peace, and most importantly, the people and the friendships she made. It is difficult to walk away from that, especially when Sydney has put so much heart and soul into the place.
The breakdown of Sydney outside of her house is a clear sign of her internal struggle. She thought she’d decided to leave The Bear for good; she thought she had figured it out and just needed to chat with Carmy and the others to finalize the whole thing. But the emotional connection is too strong. Moreover, Sydney must ask herself: is she ready to go through all that all over again? What Adam is offering her is very enticing, but Sydney knows the challenges that come with running your own restaurant from scratch. It has barely been a month since she was out of that process. Is she ready to do the same thing all over again, even as the risk factor remains the same?
Sydney knows that should she leave The Bear, no one (maybe not even Carmy) will hold it against her. Everyone needs to make the choices that are necessary for them. Still, with The Bear, Sydney has a sense of family (deeply, deeply dysfunctional as it may be), which inspires an inherent sense of loyalty that makes it difficult to cut off the ties so easily.
Sydney’s Departure May End Carmy’s Restaurant For Good
Odds have rarely been in favor of Carmy’s restaurant, but somehow, the place has managed to pull through, and the credit goes to the collective work of everyone there. While the place may have struggled to hire and keep new staff, it is interesting that the people who have been at The Bear since the beginning are still there. This circles back to the group’s sense of family and loyalty, which also keeps Sydney in a bind about leaving the place. So, when she thinks about leaving it, she knows it might as well be the fatal blow that crumbles everything for the place.
In Season 2, Carmy confessed that he couldn’t have materialized his dream of The Bear without Sydney. As much as he had thought about doing it for a long time, he needed someone to balance him. Ideally, it would have been Michael, but Sydney picked up the role with him out of the picture. Sure enough, one look at the kitchen and it’s clear that with Sydney gone, it would be nearly impossible for Carmy to fill that role. Interestingly, Luca is going to be around for the next few months so that something might emerge from that, but even he knows that working with Carmy is not something everyone is cut out for.
Considering how essential a part of The Bear Sydney is, it would take quite a replacement for the show to continue the story in her absence. So, even if she leaves for a while, she will eventually have to come back, and this time, Carmy will have to change his ways to keep her around. To keep the audience on their toes, the writers might allow Sydney to explore the freedom the new restaurant promises her, but at the end of the day, she is an integral part of the restaurant, and it would be impossible to have the place without her. Following the short detour, Sydney will eventually find herself at The Bear.
Read More: The Bear Season 3: How Did Carmy Get the Scar on His Hand?
