Ebon Moss-Bachrach’s Drink of Choice at the 2024 Emmys? A Whisky Espresso Martini

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In “The Bear,” it takes nearly two full seasons for Ebon Moss-Bachrach‘s Richie to find his way to the kitchen, ironic for a show whose main stage is the back of the house. “Richie doesn’t cook ever,” Moss-Bachrach says. “At first he was a disruptor, telling stories to the back. And then he found his place in the front of house and they don’t want him in the kitchen so much.”

So when Moss-Bachrach was given the opportunity to play around in the kitchen for a new partnership with Johnnie Walker, and curate recipes with the show’s culinary producer Courtney Storer, he was all in. With the exception of one day on set, where he snuck into the kitchen to watch Storer teach Ayo Edibiri how to make an omelet for a storyline in Season 1 (“I’ve been trying to work on an omelet and get it right”), he rarely had the opportunity to collaborate with Storer.

“For the most part, all of that great stuff that Coco brings to the show is stuff that, unfortunately, I’m not privy to,” he tells me over Zoom from a hotel in London, where he’s currently shooting for Marvel’s “Fantastic Four.” “So this was an opportunity for me to get some of that magic and bask in her beautiful light and be around her creative spirit.”

Johnnie Walker will be the official spirits partner of the 76th Emmy Awards, for which Moss-Bachrach and Storer have collaborated to create three pairing recipes to complement the whisky brand’s Blue Label cocktails. The cocktails, created by mixologist Charles Joly, include unique twists on the French 75, Rob Roy and Espresso Martini. The drinks are paired, in this order, with a caramelized onion burger, steak frite bite and and Chicago-style burger.

Moss-Bachrach’s favorite of the three is the Espresso Martini, which he says is a “a dessert and a coffee and an adult drink all in one.” But just like his character Richie, he doesn’t claim to be a master in the kitchen. Really, this partnership allowed him to have a front row seat to Storer’s genius. “I’m very good at tasting and feedback,” he insists.

Did he and Storer get any tips from renowned chef Matty Matheson, who also produces and stars in the show? “Lord, no,” Moss-Bachrach says. But he is excited to see his co-star taste their recipes for the first time at the Emmys, where “The Bear” boasts a record-breaking 23 nominations, including a supporting comedy actor nod for Moss-Bachrach.

“I’m gonna look deep in his eyes and watch him chew,” he says. “And clean his mustache for him a little bit, dab his mustache with a napkin. I think he’s gonna be just fine with what we came up with.”