Jeremy Allen White in chef’s whites outside a shuttered restaurant on Randolph Street. A costumed Ayo Edebiri in front of Saint Mary’s Catholic Church in Evanston. Chicago’s new favorite spectator sport has become spotting set locations for season three of the FX kitchen drama The Bear, which began filming in the area late last month.

The tell-tale signs: bright pink fliers on street lamps and apartment buildings that read Kubelik. While the code name may keep some people in the dark, keen observers behind such social media accounts as Filming in Chicago have been quick to crack the code. The fliers go up, and a pedestrian corner is transformed into a major set within days.

By tracing filming, you can get a little sneak peek of what Chicago might look like on screen when the latest season drops in June. WBEZ scoured filming permits and social media to put together this list of where the cast and crew have been working around town. Beware: This is meant to be a spoiler-free zone, but there may be some season three clues ahead.

Ukrainian Village

One sunny afternoon last week at the corner of Hoyne Avenue and Cortez Street in Ukrainian Village, onlookers who had gathered to watch filming for the day swapped tidbits of information they had picked up and kept an eye on the crew. Eventually, Ebon Moss-Bachrach, who plays “cousin” — AKA Richie — and Matty Matheson, the real-life chef who portrays the character Fak on screen, emerged from the first floor of the building.

Some observers stood for hours on March 7, taking selfies with one another and chatting with members of the crew when they came over to them. One fan held a copy of one of Matheson’s cookbooks in the air. The bright yellow cover caught his eye, and he met her in the street to sign it. The show’s central character, Jeremy Allen White, wasn’t around — these scenes, fans surmised, were set in Richie’s apartment — but the award-winning creator Christopher Storer was on set.

West Loop

On Saturday, March 9, Jeremy Allen White was filming a scene in the West Loop. TikTok user Gretchen Ireton posted videos of the show set up outside the now permanently closed restaurant Aikana on Randolph Street, including a glimpse of what appears to be the show’s star in Carmy’s chef uniform.

@gretchenireton i’m such a creep but you guys…the man is back #thebear #jeremyallenwhite #hulu #fyp ♬ original sound - mert

A filming poster showed extensive filming locations in the neighborhood over the weekend of March 7-9.

Armour Square/ Bridgeport

Filming permits filed with the Chicago Department of Transportation indicate this season will include more exploration of the character Marcus, played by actor Lionel Boyce. Boyce was spotted arriving at O’Hare last month, along with fellow actor Liza Colón-Zayas, who plays Tina in the show.

Fans will remember that, in season two, Marcus’s mother has been sick.

Permits indicate that the promising young chef’s storyline will be picked up this season. Several permits issued in late February for locations in the Bridgeport and Armour Square area are described as “Marcus’s mom’s house” and “Marcus driving scene.”

However, don’t expect all permits from this season to be quite so insightful. Even in the last couple weeks, the crew has gotten more creative in keeping fans off their trail. More recent permits have been far more cryptic, using descriptions like “C - W” or “SSH - F,” which X account Filming in Chicago recently speculated means “Carmy wrap” and “South Shore Hospital filming.”

For those of you looking at The Bear’s coded permits the database, here are a few tips: SSH=South Shore Hospital; C/D=Carmy’s or Sydney’s APT; R=Ritchie’s Apt; A=Avec; BC=Beck’s Chicago; F=Filming, P=Prep, W=Wrap. Or something like that: have fun with it!

— Filming in Chicago (@filming_chicago) March 11, 2024

Lincoln Park

Permits issued the first week of March placed the show in Lincoln Park, on Southport Avenue between Belden and Webster avenues and also on Shakespeare between Throop Street and Southport Avenue. That places filming very close to Pequod’s Pizza, which appeared in season two.

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Evanston

The Bear has also headed north to Evanston. According to the Evanston RoundTable, the show shot in February on Lincoln Street, which the paper describes as a “relatively quiet, tree-lined neighborhood.” The location is reportedly used as Carmy’s sister’s home, according to the RoundTable.

The show is back in Evanston this week. A post on X shows a large portion of the cast gathered outside Saint Mary’s Catholic Church on Evanston’s Lake Street on Monday, March 11.

Everybody’s there. pic.twitter.com/EMSE3rs2Gy

— Mike McCawley (@MikeMcCawley) March 11, 2024

The post marks the first sighting of Ayo Edebiri, who plays Sydney and has won over the internet and critics alike. After an impressive winning streak this award season, she also hosted SNL in February — further proof that The Bear has become a rocket to stardom for its cast.

WBEZ’s Amy Qin contributed.

Courtney Kueppers is an arts and culture reporter at WBEZ.