Today we’d like to introduce you to Neil Antonio Diamente.
Hi Neil Antonio, it’s an honor to have you on the platform. Thanks for taking the time to share your story with us – to start maybe you can share some of your backstory with our readers?
Alessandro and Antonio first met in 1997 working at Oliveto, an Italian restaurant in Oakland, CA. After a long day’s work they would play music together at Antonio’s place. They went on to form the band GSol and recorded several albums over two decades. In 2016 Alessandro moved to Ashland with his family. In 2023 Antonio came to Ashland as well. While strolling on the Calle along the Ashland Creek together, the idea of opening an Italian cafe in the heart of Ashland was born. Alessandro’s oldest daughter, Sabrina, had recently returned from living in Italy for a decade, having learned all the recipes of her Nonna (grandmother), and that became the basis of the menu. Lumina, the light of culture, opened its doors just before Thanksgiving 2025.
Lumina is an Italian cafe in the heart of the Ashland Plaza near Lithia Park, where food, art, dancing, music and la bella vita come together. We are locally sourced + organic and we don’t use seed oils. We offer the highest quality food, served fast, with a unique hot bar and order-at-the-counter service. We also have the best Italian wines, Oregon beers, and specialty cocktails featuring something from Italy in every drink.
Come linger over authentic homemade Italian cooking from le ricette della nonna.
Alright, so let’s dig a little deeper into the story – has it been an easy path overall and if not, what were the challenges you’ve had to overcome?
This was our first restaurant so there were many challenges and learning opportunities along the way. First, we found and secured the location in the heart of the Ashland Plaza, but it took over a year to get through city planning and permitting, including convincing the historical and preservation groups to allow us to modify a building from 1904. We had to install all the kitchen equipment since it was previously only a retail space. We began construction in January 2025 and didn’t finish until November, with even further changes happening after we opened. Since then we have grown exponentially. We went from a staff of 5 to 50 in six months, so hiring and training have been ongoing struggles. We also expanded our hours as well as increased production. Running out of things has required us to keep upping our supply, which has required us to modify and add storage in our basement. What has made it worth the struggles in the love we get from customers who keep coming back because of what the cafe offers – high quality, organic, free of seed oils food that tastes amazing, plus the best coffee and cocktails.
Alright, so let’s switch gears a bit and talk business. What should we know about your work?
Our Head Chef, Sabrina, grew up in southern Italy with her mother and grandmothers in the kitchen, learning how to cook recipes handed down over generations. We source organic pasta from Gragnano, Italy, only a few miles from where Sabrina’s family is rooted. Alessandro and Antonio first played music with the band GSol, recording several albums and touring with sometimes up to nine members. Lumina means an opening through which light enters, and we like to think that we are place for the light of culture, particularly Italian culture, but also music from Cuba, Brazil, Africa and beyond. On our bookshelves in our little library in the cafe, we have poetry, philosophy, childrens’ books as well as cookbooks and cocktail histories. We offer dancing on Fridays and Saturdays – salsa, mambo, tango, swing and cha cha cha – free to the public. Thursdays we have live music. We are so happy that our community has come to embrace our space for gathering with friends and family over healthy, delicious food.
What makes you happy?
What makes us happy at Cafe Lumina is to see families engaged around a table, chatting and eating happily; to hear from patrons how delicious the olive oil cake is or that ours is the best cappuccino in town; to watch the dancers smile and move around on the hundred year old Douglas Fir floors; when people say that it’s just like being in Italy or Europe, dining outside by the Ashland Creek at our teak wood tables and blue and white checkered seats, like from cafes along the Amalfi Coast. It makes us happy to please others because we are in the hospitality industry and we genuinely enjoy taking care of people – body, mind and soul.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://luminacafeashland.com
- Instagram: https://instagram.com/cafelumina.ashland
- Facebook: https://facebook.com/cafelumina.ashland
