Will Poulter is coming to River North this Sunday, and he's bringing a Michelin-starred chef with him. The actor who plays chef Luca on FX's “The Bear” will join London restaurateur Santiago Lastra for a one-day pop-up at Mr. Beef, the real-life sandwich stand at 666 N. Orleans St. that inspired the show, serving a limited-run sandwich that will disappear the moment the shop runs out of stock.
The event, scheduled for Sunday, October 25, kicks off at 1 p.m. and runs until supplies are exhausted, according to Time Out. Entry is walk-in and first-come, first-served, with no reservations. Time Out recommends arriving between 11:30 a.m. and noon to improve the odds of actually getting inside before the crowd and the food disappear.
The pop-up sandwich itself is a departure from Mr. Beef's usual Italian beef: it layers sliced beef tongue, caramelized mozzarella, pickled jalapeños, avocado, refried beans and chopped Mexican chorizo, according to the same report. It's built to celebrate Lastra's cookbook, “Mexican Soul.” The Chicago stop is part of Lastra's broader pop-up tour across the United States this month, per Time Out.
A Michelin Pedigree Meets a Neighborhood Institution
Lastra isn't just any visiting chef. He opened London restaurant KOL in 2020, earned a Michelin star in 2022, and climbed to No. 17 on The World's 50 Best Restaurants list by June 2024, according to Departures Magazine. KOL has built its reputation on pairing Mexican culinary techniques with British-grown ingredients, a blending of traditions that's now showing up in a beef tongue sandwich on North Orleans Street.
Poulter, for his part, plays chef Luca in “The Bear.”
The Family Behind the Counter
Mr. Beef owner Chris Zucchero, who also appears on screen in “The Bear,” will be on hand for the pop-up alongside the show's co-executive and culinary producer Courtney Storer, per Time Out.
Joe Zucchero founded Mr. Beef in 1979. The shop became the real-life inspiration for “The Bear,” and sandwich sales at the stand increased significantly after the series took off. Courtney Storer, Christopher's sister and a Chicago native, previously served as head chef at Jon & Vinny's in Los Angeles and worked at Mr. Beef in her youth; her brother later asked her to sit in the writers' room to ensure authenticity, according to Restaurant Business Magazine.
Dessert From Logan Square Rounds Out the Menu
Dessert duties fall to Pretty Cool Ice Cream, which will serve its own exclusive sandwich inspired by “Mexican Soul,” according to Time Out Chicago.
Mr. Beef has inspired “The Bear,” and sandwich sales at the stand increased significantly after the series took off.
Given the compact size of the storefront and the limited inventory for Sunday's one-day event, the biggest obstacle for fans may simply be getting in the door before the sandwiches run out. With no tickets and no guaranteed supply, Time Out's advice to show up well before the 1 p.m. start stands as the only real strategy for anyone hoping to meet Poulter or taste Lastra's cookbook-inspired creation in person.
