Boulud on ‘The Bear’ Cameo: A Pleasure, and Jeremy Can Really Cook

Daniel Boulud, the iconic French chef-restaurateur whose 20 restaurants include Palm Beach favorite Café Boulud, told the Daily News that appearing in Season 3 of the mega-hit FX TV series “The Bear” (now streaming on Hulu) is an honor, and that lead actor Jeremy Allen White is actually “a great cook.”

In the drama-heavy comedy-drama, with White playing talented fictional chef Carmy Berzatto, Boulud appears as himself in flashbacks mentoring Carmy in the kitchen of Boulud’s famed Daniel restaurant in New York.

In real life, any chef is considered lucky to learn directly from six-time James Beard award-winning Boulud — revered in the culinary world and beyond — but in an email July 17 to the Daily News, Boulud said he’s the lucky one to have worked on the set of “The Bear.”

“It was a pleasure,” Boulud said, noting the prowess of the show’s actors and production team. “They are knowledgeable, professional and proficient. Nothing took more than one take during the entire filming. They deserve all their accolades. Cooking with (actor) Jeremy (Allen White) was like cooking with my young chefs. He is a great cook, a fast learner and extremely focused. The show is as real as it gets.”

Boulud isn’t the only famed chef with Palm Beach ties to make appearances on Season 3 of “The Bear”.

Renowned French Laundry and Per Se chef-restaurateur Thomas Keller — who’s set to open a much-anticipated Worth Avenue restaurant in Palm Beach — also appears in addition to a host of other chefs (Grant Achatz, Wylie Dufresne, Christina Tosi and more) in flashbacks about Carmy’s early chef life.

But for Boulud, his appearances on “The Bear” come as the iconic French chef-restaurateur with 20 restaurants is enjoying a notable summer. He’s currently on the cover and in a feature in the now-on-newsstands Aug. 31 issue of Wine Spectator.

Source: Palm Beach Post