Yes, That was Alpana Singh on the New Season of ‘The Bear’

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Chicago viewers of The Bear might have noticed a familiar face in episode two of the popular show’s new season. Alpana Singh, restaurateur, retired master sommelier, and former Check, Please! host, teaches the character Sweeps about wine pairings at her eponymous State Street restaurant, as employees at The Bear try to up their game after a mediocre review in the Chicago Tribune. 

“I think of wine as like a liquid snapshot of time,” Singh tells Sweeps in the episode. “It was that moment, everything that was happening for that year, what the summer was like, what the rains were like, and it just captures it and puts it in a bottle.” 

Singh celebrated the appearance on her Instagram. “Yup! That’s me on Season 4, episode 2 of [The Bear]. Words can’t fully capture how grateful I am for the opportunity to be a part of this groundbreaking show,” she wrote. “This show is a love letter to the restaurant industry, and getting to share and represent the wine side of that world was the experience of a lifetime.”

Singh was the youngest woman and only South Asian to become a Master Sommelier, achieving the prestigious title at age 26. 

Haven’t seen The Bear and want to learn more or catch up on past seasons? Read our explainer.