Chef Philip Speer got his start in the culinary world at the young age of 17, when he decided to work in scratch bakeries. He spent five years learning the craft of baking in Austin and Houston before switching over to restaurants. “Following that path gave me a few more tricks in my bag to bring into the restaurant kitchen.”

Chef Speer’s career spans decades working alongside notable chefs and restaurants, including Chef Shawn Cirkiel at Jean Luc’s Bistro, Chef Bryan Caswell at Jean-Georges Vongerichten’s Bank, Chef Tyson Cole at Uchi/ko and Chef Paul Qui at qui. During his time as Executive Pastry Chef and Culinary Director at Uchi/ko, Speer was nominated for four James Beard Foundation Awards in the Outstanding Pastry Chef category and has since received local and national recognition in Texas Monthly, Bon Appetit, Food + Wine, Cooks Illustrated, Art Culinaire, Thrillist, Zagat, Eater.com, U.S.A. Today, the Austin Chronicle, the Austin-American-Statesman, CultureMap and more. His experiences on both sides of the kitchen inspired him to ultimately run his own French-American restaurant, Bonhomie. Speer has just recently opened Comedor, in downtown Austin, where he serves as the pastry chef and partner. Comedor is a modern Mexican restaurant, built by Tom Kundig.