The award followed a major new chapter for the business, as JÖRO moved from its original shipping-container site in Kelham Island to a larger home at Oughtibridge Mill on the edge of Sheffield.
Luke has built his reputation on a style of cooking that blends technical precision with bold flavour, drawing on British ingredients while also reflecting the Nordic and Asian influences that have shaped his career. Michelin praised JÖRO’s new site as one of the most exciting reopenings of the year, highlighting the focus and flavour in Luke’s tasting menu, the quality of the ingredients, and the pride shown by the kitchen team.
early career and influences
Raised in Cambridgeshire, Luke began his career young, first working as a kitchen porter before moving into professional cookery. Early roles in and around Cambridge helped lay the groundwork, but it was his time at Alimentum that first gave him a close-up view of serious fine dining. He then spent time at Midsummer House and later staged at The Fat Duck, where he was exposed to a more experimental style of gastronomy.
Travel also played an important role in shaping his food. Luke has spoken about how time spent in Asia widened his view of flavour, ingredients and cooking, with street food culture proving especially influential. That combination of fine dining discipline, experimentation and wider global inspiration has become central to the food he cooks today.
from The Milestone to JÖRO
Before opening his own restaurant, Luke moved to Sheffield and joined The Milestone, where he worked his way up to head chef. During that period he met Stacey Sherwood-French, who would become both his wife and business partner. After several years in the city, the pair left to develop their own project, launching JÖRO in 2016 in the Kelham Island district.
The original JÖRO stood out immediately. Set inside shipping containers, it brought a different kind of restaurant experience to Sheffield and quickly established a reputation for ambitious tasting menus, clean presentation and inventive combinations. The restaurant gained national attention early in its life, earning a Michelin Bib Gourmand and three AA Rosettes, and helping put both Luke and Sheffield more firmly on the fine dining map.
a new era at Oughtibridge Mill
In December 2024, Luke and Stacey launched JÖRO 2.0 at Oughtibridge Mill, leaving behind the original Kelham Island site after eight years. The move marked a major step forward for the business, giving the team a larger and more ambitious setting in which to develop the restaurant further. The new site includes the flagship restaurant as part of a broader hospitality destination and has allowed JÖRO to evolve while keeping the identity that made it successful in the first place.
The restaurant describes its food as innovative and ingredient-led, with an immersive open-plan dining room designed to bring guests closer to the kitchen. That setting suits Luke’s style well: modern, expressive and rooted in detail, but without losing warmth or personality.
