The Early Word on Modern Mexican Restaurant Comedor

Comedor, the modern Mexican restaurant from chefs Gabe Erales, Alan Delgado, and Philip Speer, opened in April, bringing dishes like bone marrow tacos and a dessert with chicatanas (ants) to downtown Austin. Though information about the restaurant is scarce — it doesn’t even have a website — early reports from are indicating a new hit.

The food and drinks — At CultureMap, Brandon Watson states the chef have “created a menu that honors historical foodways but still feels strikingly contemporary.” He praised the diver scallop crudo, those bone marrow tacos (“likely to be the signature dish”), and a dish of beans, mushrooms, and dumplings, but noted the restaurant is “at its most playful” for desserts.

The drinks, which come from William Ball’s team at Garage bar, also get rave reviews, with James S. calling the sherry cocktail “mind-blowing” on Yelp.

The space — It appears the aesthetics of the space get as positive reviews as the food. Watson said the space “feels like a gallery.” A common description on Yelp was “sexy.” The enclosed garden space reminded one reviewer of Mexico City.

The service — Reviews consistently complimented the attentive service, with Makenzi H. calling it “the ultimate hospitality experience.” This could be because the restaurant provides benefits for its employees, which one Yelp reviewer took issue with (though he praised the service).

The overall experience — Reviews so far have been overwhelmingly positive, with the restaurant maintaining five stars on Yelp and 4.8 stars on Google reviews. Yelp reviewer Bill B. sums it up: “The reality of Comedor exceeds the hype.”

Update, May 21: A blurb describing renderings of the restaurant has been removed.