Sophie Michell is a British chef, author, and entrepreneur whose career has been defined by the kitchens she’s led and, ultimately, owned. She built her reputation through a series of senior leadership and consultancy roles across London’s hospitality scene and beyond — serving as Executive Chef at Belgraves Hotel, a five-star property in Belgravia, London, and later as Executive Chef at the members’ club Home House, before taking on the role of Food and Drink Director at Byron Burgers. Her consultancy work has taken her further still, including as Consultant Chef for The Gorgeous Kitchen at Heathrow, an HMS project, and as Consultant Chef for Soldiere in the Middle East.
That progression from running other people’s kitchens to running her own found its fullest expression when she relocated to Barbados. There, in 2021, she opened Local & Co, a farm-to-table restaurant on the island’s west coast, where she served as Chef Patron and owner. Built around seasonal, locally sourced ingredients and a relaxed, produce-driven menu, the restaurant reflected her broader philosophy: that good food should be honest, rooted in place, and unpretentious, even when served in a beautiful setting.
Since then, Sophie has continued to shape hospitality on the island through an F&B consultancy partnership with Apes Hill, the luxury golf and villa complex, overseeing multiple dining venues there. Between her television work, cookbooks, and hands-on restaurant ventures, she has built a reputation as a chef equally at home behind the stove and behind the business.
In 2021, just as the pandemic began, Sophie relocated to Barbados to open Local & Co with business partner Ian McNeel. She was hands-on in every part of the venture, from renovations to menus to building relationships with local producers, pioneering one of the region’s only true farm-to-table, sustainable restaurants. She worked directly with farmers to source roughly 80% of her ingredients from Barbados and CARICOM, turning the conventional supply model on its head — work that earned Local & Co a UN accreditation for sustainability.
The restaurant became an outstanding success, doubling it’s footprint and expanding within two years and drawing a steady crowd of celebrities and politicians as one of the busiest spots on the island’s west coast. Sophie has since stepped down as partner, moving on to her next creative project and restaurant concept.
Sophie was part of an expert task force brought on to fix and rebrand the iconic burger chain Byron. She started as a consultant and then took the role as Food and Drink Director. With 55 sites to oversee, Sophie was responsible for all the Food and Drink menus, Procurement, Supply Chain, Health and Safety & Chef training.
The rebrand of logo, restaurant sites and menus were a massive success, with the finances doing a turnaround just before Covid-19 hit the restaurant trade.
Sophie took the role of Executive Chef at the prestigious Home House, Private member’s club in central London in 2018.
Sophie was responsible for all food at Home House; including in The Restaurant, the House’s classic dining space, pan-Asian restaurant the Octagon Dining Room, the opulent drawing rooms, lounges and bars.
Sophie also developed an alfresco menu for The Garden Restaurant and covered room service for the House’s 23 bedrooms and 8 luxurious event spaces.
Sophie became the UK’s youngest female Executive Chef at London’s chic Belgraves Hotel; a title she is immensely proud of. She completely overhauled the food offering after Mark Hix’s departure from the luxury boutique hotel, which had a superb response and numerous good reviews. Pont St, was re-launched in 2013 with Sophie leaving in 2016.
As part of Heathrow Airport’s growth of Terminal 2 as a destination for food, fashion and lifestyle, Sophie is part of the all female team behind The Gorgeous Kitchen, an exciting contemporary restaurant that provided passengers with a delicious menu worthy of any of the capital’s top restaurants.In 2015 it won ’Best Airport Restaurant’.
Sophie trained at the respected Butler’s Wharf Chef School in London, while working and training at reputable and glamorous Michelin Starred restaurants such as La Gavroche, The Greenhouse, the Lanesborough and The Embassy.