Sweetbitter (Seasons 1–2)

Sweetbitter (2018) is a Starz drama series you can watch online on iFILM, adapted from Stephanie Danler's debut novel. Ella Purnell plays Tess, 22, who drives to New York City with no plan and no contacts, and lands a job at a high-end downtown restaurant within days of arriving.

The restaurant becomes the whole world. Tess learns wine, learns the brutal pecking order of a professional kitchen, and gets pulled into the orbit of Jake — an enigmatic bartender played by Tom Sturridge — and Simone, the server who seems to own every room she walks into. What happens after last call is as important as the service itself: the show does not sanitize the drugs, the drinking, or the particular loneliness of being new to a city that does not notice you.

Two seasons, six episodes each — tight and atmosphere-heavy. Purnell carries the whole thing on the specific quality of her confusion, which is more convincing than most coming-of-age performances. Stream all episodes of Sweetbitter online on iFILM.