MEET HENRY'S NEW CHEF, COMER SMITH

Henry's welcomes Chef Comer Smith to their team, bringing 17 years of experience to this Berkeley gastro sports pub and full service restaurant. Chef Smith was inspired by the local farms and seafood near his childhood home along the Georgia coast. Balancing school and committed to his culinary quest, he became a lead line cook by age 17. Hungry for adventure and travel, Chef Smith has worked in US cities and internationally, starting out with stints in top restaurants in Chicago, and Boston, then traveling to Vancouver BC, and France, where he worked at many renowned hotels and coastal restaurants, continuing to draw him into more diverse regional and ethnic cuisines.

He was also privileged to work with James Beard award winners Charlie Trotter, Gunter Seegar and James Beard award-winning novelist Deborah Schneider. He became the Chef de Cuisine at the 5 diamond Sky Room of the La Valencia Hotel in La Jolla and was part owner of Season 142, a farm to the table locally inspired restaurant in San Diego's Hillcrest district. Prior to relocating to Berkeley, Chef Smith led the culinary team at the Cielo Restaurant in the Hotel Theodore in Scottsdale, Arizona, where he embraced the challenge of running a restaurant within a hotel.

And now Chef Smith brings to Henry's and Hotel Durant an exceptional skill set of creativity, with a strong culinary style of farm to table cuisine, buying locally as often as possible and using the freshest sustainable ingredients for seasonal menu's to compliment an extensive selection of draught beers , California wines and unique cocktails. This compliments the lively atmosphere of Henry's, which locals continue to embrace as the premier destination for pre and post-sports game celebrations. When Chef Smith isn't in the kitchen, he enjoys fishing and exploring the great outdoors, finding great food and spending time with his family.