S03.E03: Doors

[chitowngirl]

Synopsis: The staff slogs through a month of service.
Drops on Hulu June 27, 2024.

Edited June 26 by chitowngirl

[Irlandesa]

This show doesn't always give me a lot of laughs but Fak pouring the broth and then bringing it back to the kitchen legit made me laugh out loud. 

[Mindthinkr]

I got stressed watching this episode and had to take breaks to catch myself. 
I wondered if the Michelin Judge (the table Richie saw with the tell tale fork on the floor) was the one at the end who’s ticket didn’t look finished. 

[maddie965]

Episodes 2 and 3 almost gave me a heart attack. Can we get sime relief, please?

Edited June 27 by maddie965

[tennisgurl]

This episode left me fully exhausted, I think I need a breather. Its amazing chefs have any fingers left with as much their poor hands suffer on top of everything. 

"The key to getting one of those little stars is fucking super soakers?!" 

[Daisychain]

Well, I only made it through 3 episodes last night.  Not delightful.  I feel like Carmy in his anxiety and depression is bringing back everyone who made progress in Season 2, most specifically Richie, Marcus, and of all above Sydney.  Please!  So stressful and unenjoyable.

[Adeejay]

Someone please explain to me how this show is a "Comedy".  It gives me anxiety and stresses me out. I am not sure if I can continue to watch.  

[Irlandesa]

7 hours ago, Mindthinkr said:

I wondered if the Michelin Judge (the table Richie saw with the tell tale fork on the floor) was the one at the end who’s ticket didn’t look finished. 

I don't think it's a Michelin Judge.  I think it's just a food critic who came to write a review of the restaurant.  That's why the photographer from the newspaper wanted to come in and get photos of the meal.

 

[txhorns79]

7 hours ago, Daisychain said:

I feel like Carmy in his anxiety and depression is bringing back everyone who made progress in Season 2, most specifically Richie, Marcus, and of all above Sydney.  Please!  So stressful and unenjoyable.

This.  It's not fun watching people scream at each other over and over.  Of course people are running on empty, Carm is chaos.  I have no idea why Unc would agree to continue to fund this place with Carm's insane spending, and seemingly no monthly food budget to help keep Carm in check? 

[peeayebee]

On 6/27/2024 at 12:16 PM, Mindthinkr said:

I got stressed watching this episode and had to take breaks to catch myself. 
I wondered if the Michelin Judge (the table Richie saw with the tell tale fork on the floor) was the one at the end who’s ticket didn’t look finished. 

23 hours ago, Irlandesa said:

I don't think it's a Michelin Judge.  I think it's just a food critic who came to write a review of the restaurant.  That's why the photographer from the newspaper wanted to come in and get photos of the meal.

I completely missed all of this. I saw the fork and the purse on the floor but didn't notice anything with a Michelin judge, food critic, or photographer.

Loved Marcus's eulogy. It was all simple facts he was stating about his mother. Of course the lesson to Carmy and others is that we need to look closely at each other and pay attention.

But other than that, another stress-filled episode. I would not last a day or even an hour. How do kitchens wash all those never-ending dishes? I mean, of course that's just one thing out of many.

I thought it was pretty ingenious of Richie to get those diners out of their table by taking them to the kitchen. 

I love Oliver Platt.

Edited June 29 by peeayebee

[txhorns79]

1 hour ago, peeayebee said:

I completely missed all of this. I saw the fork and the purse on the floor but didn't notice anything with a Michelin judge, food critic, or photographer.

I might be wrong on the timeline, but I'm pretty sure the restaurant just opened.  My understanding is that a Michelin judge wouldn't show up until some point much later when the restaurant has been around a bit and already has a reputation.   

[aghst]

I thought Richie was more zen after the Forks episode but he’s intent on poking the bear whenever and however we can, which is to constantly provoke Carmy.

Is Richie an employee or a partner, like Sydney?

They clash over the rules and conduct of each other’s domains, Carmy in the kitchen and Richie in the front.  I can’t recall, did Carmy at one point fire Richie?  But Carmy was the one who arranged for Richie to work at Olivia Coleman’s restaurant in the Forks episode.  Richie didn’t argue with the main chef there, so it’s a personal thing between Richie and Carmy.  Again I can’t recall if in any of the back story episodes in season 2 whether they showed these two fighting long before they worked together.

The other thing I don’t get, didn’t Carmy said they’d charge $175 for 9 dishes or courses?  That implies a fixed or tasting menu, where all the clients get the same set of dishes, maybe choices with appetizers and main dishes.  But the chaos in the kitchen made it seem like they were all a la carte orders, so some chefs like Tina was more stressed than others because there were more orders for her station.

 

[possibilities]

Carmy wants to create something that takes a lot more experience and practice than the crew he has. If he had ramped it up more gradually-- don't start with changing the menu every day, build to that, for instance-- it would work better. 

[Colorado David]

On 6/27/2024 at 11:00 PM, txhorns79 said:

This.  It's not fun watching people scream at each other over and over.  Of course people are running on empty, Carm is chaos.  I have no idea why Unc would agree to continue to fund this place with Carm's insane spending, and seemingly no monthly food budget to help keep Carm in check? 

I agree with your point, but I think the show does this so when they do actually come together and get along, it is a lot more poignant and meaningful. If every epi was happiness and roses, we would get tired of the same old routine. These arguments, while yeah can be terrifying esp if you yourself have been there, are creating a diverse creatively-open atmosphere. Plus I'm quite sure real kitchen staff would agree this chaos is pretty much genuine (I myself have no restaurant experience so forgive if i am way off base.)

[txhorns79]

4 minutes ago, Colorado David said:

I agree with your point, but I think the show does this so when they do actually come together and get along, it is a lot more poignant and meaningful. If every epi was happiness and roses, we would get tired of the same old routine.

I don't need happiness and roses, just maybe an occasional episode that isn't just chaos in the kitchen.  I understand that isn't necessarily the show's thing, but would not mind seeing it on occasion instead of everyone always walking on eggshells. 

[aghst]

Carmy sends Marcus to Denmark, Richie to the forks restaurant, the other guy to sommelier class.

Maybe he should have sent himself and Carmy to anger management and de-escalation workshops as well.🙃

[chaifan]

In total agreement with everyone who commented about how stressful this episode was.  Man, that needs a warning like the "sex, drugs, violence" labels.  I just came off of a hella stressful day (10 hours in the ER with an elderly parent) and this is NOT what I needed. 

I missed whatever reference was necessary to make sense of the fork/purse on the floor clip.  I don't understand how that signifies a food critic, and it seemed Ritchie did nothing, didn't pick up the fork.  Sorry, I'm confused.

For all the hullaballoo last episode about a different menu every day, it seemed they were repeating a lot of dishes during this episode.

Here's something I genuinely don't understand... if the restaurant has a tasting menu, that means everyone is getting the same thing, right?  (Except for gluten free, no shell fish type diners.)  So why can't so much of this be prepared in advance?  They know pretty much how many of each course they'll be serving in a night.  All those little bowls of chopped carrots and celery, for example.  Why is Carm plating each one of those out in real time?  I can see adding the garnish/flourish at the last moment, but spooning out the veg during dinner service hours seems like a waste of Carm's time and talent.

And wouldn't the dining room be able to hear all the "fuck you's" going on in the kitchen?  Those doors are constantly swinging open, they're just glass on the top.  They can't possibly be containing the kitchen noise.

And holy crap, Fak's shining moment of serving a table was hilarious!  I knew he was going to screw up, but I assumed he'd spill it or cough in it, or something.  Also, why hasn't Carm or Syd insisted he clean up?  The scruff and hair are so unkempt.  ew.

 

 

[Haleth]

On 6/28/2024 at 9:54 PM, peeayebee said:

Loved Marcus's eulogy. It was all simple facts he was stating about his mother. Of course the lesson to Carmy and others is that we need to look closely at each other and pay attention.

Well, they tried to be civil.  It lasted about 10 minutes before all the FUs were flying again.

On 6/29/2024 at 6:43 AM, aghst said:

 Richie didn’t argue with the main chef there, so it’s a personal thing between Richie and Carmy.  Again I can’t recall if in any of the back story episodes in season 2 whether they showed these two fighting long before they worked together.

They've been arguing since they were toddlers.  Family.  It's how they communicate.  They also know it's not personal and they do love each other.  I was surprised Richie carried a grudge for so long about their argument while Carmy was in the fridge.  They never get that shouty at anyone outside the family.

8 hours ago, chaifan said:

it seemed Ritchie did nothing, didn't pick up the fork.

I'm sure he did or got someone on the staff to remove the Fork o' Doom.

[Blakeston]

On 6/29/2024 at 10:57 PM, chaifan said:

I missed whatever reference was necessary to make sense of the fork/purse on the floor clip.  I don't understand how that signifies a food critic, and it seemed Ritchie did nothing, didn't pick up the fork.  Sorry, I'm confused.

There's an urban legend that Michelin reviewers will leave a fork on the floor to see if the staff notice it and fix it. I really doubt it's true.

[SnarkAttack]

On 6/29/2024 at 9:57 PM, chaifan said:

In total agreement with everyone who commented about how stressful this episode was.  Man, that needs a warning like the "sex, drugs, violence" labels.  I just came off of a hella stressful day (10 hours in the ER with an elderly parent) and this is NOT what I needed. 

I missed whatever reference was necessary to make sense of the fork/purse on the floor clip.  I don't understand how that signifies a food critic, and it seemed Ritchie did nothing, didn't pick up the fork.  Sorry, I'm confused.

For all the hullaballoo last episode about a different menu every day, it seemed they were repeating a lot of dishes during this episode.

Here's something I genuinely don't understand... if the restaurant has a tasting menu, that means everyone is getting the same thing, right?  (Except for gluten free, no shell fish type diners.)  So why can't so much of this be prepared in advance?  They know pretty much how many of each course they'll be serving in a night.  All those little bowls of chopped carrots and celery, for example.  Why is Carm plating each one of those out in real time?  I can see adding the garnish/flourish at the last moment, but spooning out the veg during dinner service hours seems like a waste of Carm's time and talent.

And wouldn't the dining room be able to hear all the "fuck you's" going on in the kitchen?  Those doors are constantly swinging open, they're just glass on the top.  They can't possibly be containing the kitchen noise.

And holy crap, Fak's shining moment of serving a table was hilarious!  I knew he was going to screw up, but I assumed he'd spill it or cough in it, or something.  Also, why hasn't Carm or Syd insisted he clean up? The scruff and hair are so unkempt.  ew.

 

 

And the neck tattoos, he's a mess.  Ick.  The sweating over the food prep grosses me out too.  In one scene, was it Carm or Tina, who touched their nose and then continued handling the food, ick.  No hair nets, no gloves?  Guess it doesn't make for good TV.  

[possibilities]

I don't mind the tattoos, but the nose-touoching is too much for me.

And it's true the Faks look sweaty and unkempt (as well as being incompetent). I think they are kept around because it is a family restaruant at heart, still. And thus, loyalty is non-negotiable.

[lovett1979]

After reading the first few comments here, and finding the discussion to be unfamiliar, I had to check my Hulu watch list and discovered that I NEVER SAW THIS EPISODE. Somehow, my Apple TV skipped from episode 2 to 4. Hmm, I had a very odd feeling going through the season that nothing was really happening plot-wise, maybe this episode was what I was missing. I'll be watching later today. Hopefully it pulls the season together.

[chaifan]

I hate the neck tattoos.  (I hate them on everybody, fictional or real.)  But there's nothing he can really do about that, short of wear a turtleneck or cravat, which is why I didn't mention it.  And while family loyalty may be a non-negotiable, I think Carm or Ritchie could still tell Fak to get a haircut and shave.

 

[peeayebee]

I'm not a fan of neck tattoos either, but sometimes they don't bother me. Neil's -- It IS Neil, right? -- look terrible. I always think it's neck-beard, which is another yuck. So either way... yuck.

[Blakeston]

Fak seems to be good with mechanical stuff, but I can't fathom a Michelin-starred restaurant letting him anywhere near the customers.

[possibilities]

7 hours ago, chaifan said:

I think Carm or Ritchie could still tell Fak to get a haircut and shave.

Definitely!

[thuganomics85]

Should have known starting things off with Marcus's beautiful eulogy to his mother was just going to be the calm before the mother fucking storm.

Yeah, Carmy's grand plan seems to be causing problems on every level.  Not only is the nonstop menu changes leading to overspending on already expensive items that they only used sparingly, but it understandably has the staff flummoxed because that has to be so much information to keep track of, and things will no doubt slip through the cracks. 

And Carmy... really isn't coming off like a chef/leader who can weather storms like this.  If anything, I agree that he seems to be making almost everyone regress after all of the improvements.  Marcus seems to be isolating himself again (I'm sure a lot of it is still because of his mother, but I think there is more to it), Tina seems to have lost her confidence again, and Richie is back to being the brash and ill-tempered guy before the "Forks" episode.  Only Sydney seems to be still keeping it together and trying to keep Carmy in check.  But an intervention of some kind is needed or The Bear won't be lasting for much longer, I suspect. 

Did love Neil actually successfully pouring the broth and delivering the info correctly, only to just walk back to the kitchen with it.  Bwah!

Uncle Jimmy's reactions to... everything was a hoot and a half.  Bless you, Oliver Platt!

[ProudMary]

On 6/27/2024 at 2:16 PM, Mindthinkr said:

I got stressed watching this episode and had to take breaks to catch myself. 
I wondered if the Michelin Judge (the table Richie saw with the tell tale fork on the floor) was the one at the end who’s ticket didn’t look finished. 

 

On 6/27/2024 at 10:11 PM, Irlandesa said:

I don't think it's a Michelin Judge.  I think it's just a food critic who came to write a review of the restaurant.  That's why the photographer from the newspaper wanted to come in and get photos of the meal.

 

This is the episode 3 thread. All we saw in Ep. 3 was a fork on the floor and a carry bag on the floor. Richie saw them. Nothing more was said.

I'm now through the first four episodes and there's still nothing to connect the visuals from Ep. 3 to anything else that has been mentioned. 

All of this is to say, please be more careful about what you're posting in individual message threads. I know that a lot of people like to binge the entire season, but many of us like to savor it more slowly and don't want to be spoiled. This is the first season where we have individual episode threads and many of us have not been able to enter the full season threads for the first two seasons until way after most binge viewers have stopped commenting. It's nice to be part of the conversation a little at a time, but we can't do that if others speak of later episode info in an earlier episode thread.

Thanks in advance for your future consideration. 🙂

[Jordan61]

On 7/1/2024 at 8:28 AM, possibilities said:

I don't mind the tattoos, but the nose-touoching is too much for me.

And it's true the Faks look sweaty and unkempt (as well as being incompetent). I think they are kept around because it is a family restaruant at heart, still. And thus, loyalty is non-negotiable.

One thing I will say is that at least Ted's beard looks neat and groomed. 

[dleighg]

On 7/1/2024 at 3:07 PM, lovett1979 said:

After reading the first few comments here, and finding the discussion to be unfamiliar, I had to check my Hulu watch list and discovered that I NEVER SAW THIS EPISODE. Somehow, my Apple TV skipped from episode 2 to 4.

Mine did this also! But my husband and I both thought "we haven't watched 3 episodes have we?" I thought maybe I'd left it running and it ran through episode 3 all by itself.

I also completely missed the whole fork on the floor thing. Thanks for the explanation (even if it's an urban legend) above!

[possibilities]

Why don't they put the Fak bros on the sandwich business and move the sandwich guy to the "fine dining" business? It seems like temperamentally that would be better for everyone.

[ProudMary]

3 hours ago, possibilities said:

Why don't they put the Fak bros on the sandwich business and move the sandwich guy to the "fine dining" business? It seems like temperamentally that would be better for everyone.

In S2 when Carmy and Sydney sent Tina to culinary school, they also sent Ebra and he dropped out after just a few lessons saying it wasn't for him. He's where he wants to be. They just opened The Beef's takeout window. They'll work out the kinks and Ebra will be fine. 

[aghst]

5 hours ago, ProudMary said:

In S2 when Carmy and Sydney sent Tina to culinary school, they also sent Ebra and he dropped out after just a few lessons saying it wasn't for him. He's where he wants to be. They just opened The Beef's takeout window. They'll work out the kinks and Ebra will be fine. 

Thing is, some more ruthless boss or manager might be inclined to replace him rather than being supportive and accommodating him.

No matter how long he's worked for them.

[Jordan Baker]

On 7/3/2024 at 3:04 AM, thuganomics85 said:

Should have known starting things off with Marcus's beautiful eulogy to his mother was just going to be the calm before the mother fucking storm.

The eulogy was my favorite part of this episode. It was wonderful in its simplicity and sincerity. Lionel Boyce has the most expressive eyes.

I agree with all those who said that the episode was stressful. The shouting, the plates crashing, things dropping on the floor? I'd last five minutes in a place like that.

[desertflower]

The episode was stressful but I found it much more interesting than the last episode where Carmie and Richie mostly just yelled at each other. At least here we got a little glimpse of how everyone is dealing with opening the restaurant. I find this show easier to watch when I stretch out the episodes and have some down time in between. Kind of like how I wouldn’t want to binge ER. Too much trauma!

I like Richie a lot more now that he has some pride and ownership in his work at front of house. I actually found myself siding more with him than Carmie in this episode.  

[TV Diva Queen]

I didn't see the fork on the floor as a Michelin rater being there. I saw it as Richie seeing it, he stops caring and leaves it there.  I feel that's why they showed the purse on floor too.  Richie of a couple weeks ago would have picked it up.  Today's Richie just let it stay there.  I'm just watching season three now - I'm probably off base now, but that was my in real time interpretation.  

[Madding crowd]

I stopped watching after the first few episodes because I couldn’t stand the yelling and arguing, then I decided to start back up. I live in Chicago and love the places and sights that are featured. This episode they are back to the non stop yelling. I know many restaurants can be high pressure and chefs can be demanding but this level of dysfunction could not result in a good restaurant.

All restaurants have a food budget. It seems ridiculous to think Carmy would put zero effort in looking at costs since he has a loan which needs to be paid back. Once the place is turning a profit you can increase your spending. 

[Kel Varnsen]

On 8/2/2024 at 10:38 AM, TV Diva Queen said:

I didn't see the fork on the floor as a Michelin rater being there. I saw it as Richie seeing it, he stops caring and leaves it there.  I feel that's why they showed the purse on floor too.  Richie of a couple weeks ago would have picked it up.  Today's Richie just let it stay there.  I'm just watching season three now - I'm probably off base now, but that was my in real time interpretation.  

A fork on the floor would also probably make him think of the Christmas dinner in Fishes with Mikey throwing forks. So if there is a fork on the floor it means things are really fucked up. 

[Kel Varnsen]

On 8/20/2024 at 4:00 PM, Madding crowd said:

All restaurants have a food budget. It seems ridiculous to think Carmy would put zero effort in looking at costs since he has a loan which needs to be paid back. Once the place is turning a profit you can increase your spending. 

The budget thing is so frustrating. If you are selling out every night and still not making a profit that's a huge problem. Your options there are to either cut costs or raise prices. I would think that raising prices would be super risky and turn people off trying an unknown place. Especially if it is a now expensive place with swearing from the kitchen and super hot or miss service. So you have to cut costs. They have 18 months to pay back Uncle J. It took 6 weeks for construction and this episode took a month and they still aren't profitable. So they have 15.5 months now to make like 800 grand in profit. Cutting costs seems like it would be the number one non-negotiable.

[Elizzikra]

8 hours ago, Kel Varnsen said:

The budget thing is so frustrating. If you are selling out every night and still not making a profit that's a huge problem. Your options there are to either cut costs or raise prices. I would think that raising prices would be super risky and turn people off trying an unknown place. Especially if it is a now expensive place with swearing from the kitchen and super hot or miss service. So you have to cut costs. They have 18 months to pay back Uncle J. It took 6 weeks for construction and this episode took a month and they still aren't profitable. So they have 15.5 months now to make like 800 grand in profit. Cutting costs seems like it would be the number one non-negotiable.

But... dystopian butter?!?!?!?!? That's my favorite line in the whole show!

[edhopper]

New menu everyday is ridiculous. It takes time and trial to create a new dish. It takes time to show the staff. It takes foresight to know what to order and how much. And to do all these while trying to to serve 3 turns is imbecilc.

And a Michelin star is great if you can get it, but that could be a year off. What you need is good reviews, and people want the food they read about.

Also you don't have a high end restaurant with someone going to Somm class, you have a experienced Sommelier.

Usually prix fix is 3 or 4 courses, with a choice for each course.  

Who is the advisor for this.

 

[Paloma]

On 7/1/2024 at 11:28 AM, possibilities said:

And it's true the Faks look sweaty and unkempt (as well as being incompetent). I think they are kept around because it is a family restaruant at heart, still. And thus, loyalty is non-negotiable.

Maybe I didn't watch the first two seasons closely enough, but I am confused about the Faks--specifically, how they are related to Carmy's family and how many Faks are involved in the restaurant and in what capacity. Before this season, I thought there was just one Fak (Neil? the heavyset guy who was previously a sort of fix-it guy but now seems to be front of house), but now I'm getting the impression that there is more than one.

[Blakeston]

3 hours ago, Paloma said:

Maybe I didn't watch the first two seasons closely enough, but I am confused about the Faks--specifically, how they are related to Carmy's family and how many Faks are involved in the restaurant and in what capacity. Before this season, I thought there was just one Fak (Neil? the heavyset guy who was previously a sort of fix-it guy but now seems to be front of house), but now I'm getting the impression that there is more than one.

The Faks are childhood friends of Michael and Carmy, but no relation. Neil Fak was the fix-it guy in earlier seasons, but Carmy is inexplicably allowing him to be a server. And now his brother Ted is the fix-it guy.

[Elizzikra]

9 hours ago, Blakeston said:

The Faks are childhood friends of Michael and Carmy, but no relation. Neil Fak was the fix-it guy in earlier seasons, but Carmy is inexplicably allowing him to be a server. And now his brother Ted is the fix-it guy.

There is also the yet-unseen Frannie Fak, whom Sugar dislikes intensely but we don’t know why…