Sizzling kitchen drama The Bear is spicing up the dating game for chefs

On the back of the hottest show on TV with Carmen and co, cooks are in the mix for dating app matches and saucy DMs. Hannah Crosbie finds the way to a person’s heart is through their stomach

Stephen Graham in ‘Boiling Point’, a younger Marco Pierre White and The Bear’s Jeremy Allen White (Hulu/Alamy/PA/Getty)

We truly live in a post-Bear society. The show exploded onto the small screen just over a year ago; screaming, swearing and on fire. It followed the successes of similarly pube-straighteningly tense kitchen dramas such as Boiling Point, with scripts and situations so realistic I know ex-chefs, too traumatised by their own experiences, who refuse to watch more than one episode.

Everyone else can’t get enough of it. The relentless pace, the doomed relationships, the tomato sauce-stained jeopardy. There’s no doubt it makes for romantic watching but with little to no scenes of intimacy, it’s curious to see just how many people are now thirsting after chefs. Until quite recently, this was an occupation associated with antisocial hours and substance abuse issues, and not one to be seriously considered by a potential romantic partner.

As I’m endlessly fascinated with how pop culture can shape and skew perceptions of the industry I love, I spoke to several chefs about exactly how The Bear has affected their dating lives.