Following periods with Günter Scherrer and Jörg Müller, Bühner eventually joined Harald Wohlfahrt as chef de partie at the Schwarzwaldstube in Baiersbronn in 1989. The perfect preparation for taking on the position of head chef at La Table in Dortmund in 1991. This is where, five years later, he earned his first Michelin star, followed by a second in 1998. From April 2006 until July 2018, Bühner was Managing Director and head chef at la vie in Osnabrück. This restaurant had been awarded 19 points in the Gault&Millau scoring system and three Michelin stars, as well as top ratings in all other German restaurant guides. Following its closure in summer 2018,

Bühner embarked on a second career, which now takes him around the world as keynote speaker, guest chef and consultant. Whether at the San Sebastian Food Festival, ChefSache in Cologne, the Relais & Châteaux Meeting in New York or the World Gourmet Summit in Singapore – Bühner stands out internationally, offering top-level skills, the right expertise and boasting an excellent network. This also benefits food companies and other restaurateurs, who engage Bühner for testimonials and as a consultant. Whether he works for Givaudan – the world’s biggest manufacturer of flavours and fragrances –, an international group of hotels or a restaurant owner from Gütersloh, it is ultimately the variety that makes this top chef so enthusiastic. This is because nothing is off limits for Thomas Bühner. The most important criteria for him are engagement on an equal footing and an exciting project. Among the most thrilling projects at present is the Majesty (MeiXangDi) restaurant at the Kaohsiung Marriott Hotel in southern Taiwan, for which he has worked as a consultant since November 2019.