Pacific Institute of Culinary Arts pays tribute to “The Bear” with a one-night pop-up dinner

by Mike Usinger on February 12th, 2024 at 3:07 PM

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As anyone who’s ever survived a dinner, lunch, or brunch rush knows, it’s a show that captures the glorious insanity of working in the restaurant industry. And now Vancouver’s Pacific Institute of Culinary Arts (PICA) is paying tribute to FX on Hulu’s smash hit TV show The Bear with a one-night pop-up dinner on February 29.

As those who’ve been glued to the Emmy-winning series since it premiered in 2022 know, The Bear has hotshot chef Carmen “Carmy” Berzatto yanked from the fine-dining world after the death of his brother. He returns home to manage the struggling, no-frills, beyond-chaotic restaurant left to him by his sibling.

For the PICA pop-up, chefs and students will recreate some of the dishes created by the show’s ever-colourful back-of-house characters.

Included on the menu will be:

House-made gnocchi with Mikey’s tomato-onion butter sauce
Braciole (flank steak, prosciutto, pine nuts, raisins)
Carmy’s mom’s chicken piccata (butter, lemon, capers, parsley)
Sydney’s cola-braised short ribs with creamy Parmesan risotto
Marcus’ chocolate layer cake (chocolate, chocolate, and more chocolate)
Carmy’s plum gelée (an elevated take on Haribo gummy bears)

The dinner takes place at Blue Hat Bistro at Pacific Institute of Culinary Arts, located at the West Second entrance to Granville Island. Tickets are $118 per person including gratuities.