People Who Care
Every person at LUME is here because they love what they do. No front-of-house versus back-of-house — we're one team.
est. LUME 2019
Head Chef & Co-Founder
Sofia Reyes
Sofia grew up in Barcelona, the daughter of a market fishmonger and a home baker who made everything from scratch. She trained at the Basque Culinary Centre, staged at Mugaritz, and moved to London in 2016. LUME was born from her belief that cafés could serve food as thoughtfully as any Michelin-starred restaurant — just without the pretension.
Her menus are seasonal by necessity, not trend. She visits New Covent Garden at 5am most Thursdays to pick produce herself, and she writes every recipe by hand in spiral-bound notebooks she keeps lined up on the kitchen shelf.
"The best thing I can serve someone is something that tastes like it was made today. Because it was."
UK Champion 2022
Head Barista & Coffee Director
James Okafor
James won the UK Barista Championship in 2022 with a set built around a washed Ethiopian lot he'd sourced from a small co-op in Yirgacheffe — a relationship he still maintains, visiting every other year. He joined LUME in 2020 after two years at a Copenhagen roastery, bringing with him a meticulous approach to water chemistry, grind consistency, and shot timing.
What sets James apart is that he teaches everything he knows. Every LUME barista is trained by James personally, and the standard on the bar reflects it. Ask him about any coffee on the menu and expect a proper answer.
"Coffee isn't difficult — it just asks for attention. The same attention the farmers gave it."
since 2021
Head Pâtissière
Mei Lin
Mei trained at Le Cordon Bleu London and spent four years in the pastry kitchen of a three-Michelin-star restaurant before deciding she wanted people to be able to eat her work with a coffee in hand, not on a tasting menu. She joined LUME in 2021 and immediately transformed the pastry counter into something London hadn't quite seen before.
Her croissants have been described as "technically perfect and emotionally generous" by one food critic. She starts work at 5am, has a thing for obscure spice combinations, and keeps a stack of Escoffier's Le Guide Culinaire on her bedside table.
"A croissant should make you sit down. If you're eating it standing up without thinking about it, I haven't done my job."
"We hired people who wake up every morning and can't imagine doing anything else. That's the only criteria that matters."— Sofia Reyes, Head Chef & Co-Founder
Every Face Counts
Amara Ndiaye
Senior Barista
With LUME since 2020
Luca Ferretti
Kitchen Sous Chef
With LUME since 2022
Priya Sharma
Floor Manager
With LUME since 2021
Noah Bergström
Barista & Trainer
With LUME since 2023
Passionate About Coffee
& Good Food?
We're always looking for people who care. Not just about the craft, but about making someone's morning better. If that's you, we'd love to hear from you.
Get in Touch