Among those born in the eighties, who does not remember seeing Sarah Jessica Parker keeping the precious boxes of her Manolo Blahniks in the oven in her New York apartment? The fact is that four decades later it is another series, nominated for the prestigious Emmy Awards for best comedy, The Bear (Disney), which shows us that those of us who live in small spaces need to find any corner to store our fetish clothes. For Carrie the oven was the refuge of hers stiletto and for Carmen Carmy Berzatt of her vintage Levi's.
In the same way that Sex and the City became one of the first trendsetting series, followed by Gossip Girl, Mad Men and Succession, The Bear is much more than cooking. Of course, the clothes that she has made fashionable are more in tune with what the majority of society wants (and with effort can afford) to wear on a day-to-day basis. This indie comedy with touches of the best Scorsese cinema and the documentaries of the late Anthony Bourdain has made almost half a million followers of a hashtag created practically for the occasion:
Also, some protagonists of the series, such as the restaurateur Matty Matheson, have launched their own clothing brand, in this case Rosa Rugosa, which is reaping great success with the online sale of garments that some would think could come from some department store. Why, what is the aesthetic of a chef? “It is not the one that many think immediately, that after a long service they put on anything to return home. As The Bear demonstrates, the pairing of fashion and cuisine is the order of the day and no matter how much one spends a large part of their day coming up with the best snacks, even in a Chicago sandwich shop, that does not mean that they put on the first thing they find in her closet”, remarks Linda May in Vanity Fair UK.
The boyfriend shirt already demonstrated it decades ago, that white shirt that some girls steal from their boyfriend and that becomes the key piece of a look. Recently, pajamas have also been highlighted on the street, velvet friulianes have become the flat shoe par excellence and even casual bows on the catwalk. White T-shirts, clogs, jeans, and baseball or basketball caps define the new luxury in casual terms.
“Chefcore once again enthrones the casual, sexy and iconic look of James Dean or Tom Cruise in their time. It is the exquisiteness, the quality and the care for the details that define it, like everything cooked with love and patience”, explains Alba Sunyer, author of the book Àpats/ The Catalan Table, in which she interviews the vast majority of chefs Today's Michelins born in Catalonia, from Ferran Adrià to Carme Ruscalleda and the Roca brothers.
“After the pandemic there was that desire on the part of haute couture to dress ourselves to the nines again, but it was a failed attempt. Not only do the generations over thirty no longer want to feel corseted in a suit or a pencil skirt, but millennials and Gen z' have put comfort and its prevalence over sophistication on the table”, adds the stylist for Grazia UK Sofia Allen.
“Beyond the J. Crew sweater that on June 27 was consecrated as The Bear Sweater and the Tom Browne jacket that Carmy gives Sydney as a gift, in the series there are garments and accessories that many can afford, such as chinos or Carhartt jeans, or Birkenstock clogs. That is one of the successes of the series, which shows that there are already many who do not see it as an extravagance to get a white shirt for 100 euros if it is of quality and the label demonstrates its traceability in ecological terms”, adds Allen.
And so it is. The shirts worn by the protagonist, mostly produced by firms hitherto unknown to the general public, such as Velva Sheen or Merz b. Schwanen, are manufactured on demand so as not to harm the planet. Merz b. Schwanen was founded in 1920 and continues to produce its T-shirts as before, which are delivered in exclusive packaging: a brown box with a notebook that reviews the history of the house to this day.
"We don't like them to think that we only look for finesse in the kitchen, we also want quality clothes while we work and when we go out on the street," the chef of the London River Café, a meeting place for both neighbors, remarks in an interview with The Guardian. like influencers. That is why firms like Service Works, in London, create designer and comfortable pants and clothing to wear under a kitchen uniform.
Another key to this booming outfit are the sneakers, as we see in The Bear, with exclusive collections from the main brands in the market. Proof of this is the legendary Parisian sandwich shop Paperboy, which has launched an exclusive collection with Beams and New Balance.
“Chefs are artists at heart. They are obsessed with details, just like good clothing brands do,” says Brian Parcir, the culinary director of Thompson Hospitality and private chef for the New York Yankees. “In Tokyo, the famous French chef, Alain Ducasse, runs the Beige Restaurant, a space that crowns the Chanel headquarters. Similarly, we can also find a Dior restaurant in Paris, a Gucci Oyster Bar in Milan or a Prada Café in London. Undoubtedly, exclusive gastronomic experiences with which the firms seek to surprise their unconditional followers.
Other brands such as Armani (Dubai), Bulgari (Milan), Versace (Dubai) or Karl Lagerfeld (Macau) go even further, offering a complete package at any of their hotels. In Spain, without going any further, Dolce
Social networks are what have also helped many chefs and their recipes to circulate and go viral, as has happened with The Bear's sandwiches and even the simple spaghetti al pomodoro that Carmy cooks. Those who have already seen the series or are starting the second season already know that tomatoes are part of the success, like in a good pasta dish.
