Lit Cafe

LIT Cafe is a craft culinary restaurant offering gourmet breakfast, lunch & fresh pastries daily. Orange County offers at a price that everyone can enjoy.

What we do

Our little story

A chef-driven gourmet food concept by classically trained Le Cordon Bleu graduates, Chef David Fujimura & Pastry Chef Erica Tjangnaka.

Our menu offers a balance of comfort & creativity, celebrating food through classic comfort fare with a modern twist, all using fresh ingredients. Our focus is on the quality and taste of our food, with consistent details, presentation & great customer service.

We have made a lot of great friends in this tight community of OC. We strive to offer one of the best breakfast & lunch experiences - and look forward to inviting new friends & neighbors to our table.

Chef David has over 13 years of experience in the food and hospitality industry, receiving his culinary training at 3 leading restaurants in his native Southern California.

After graduating from Culinary School at the Le Cordon Bleu Pasadena, California in 2004 he moved to Irvine, California to work at the Hyatt Regency Hotel to help open the (at the time) new restaurant 6ix Park Grill.

Thereafter, he went to work as a Sous Chef apprentice under Chef Hiro Ohiwa at Cafe Hiro in Cypress.

In 2007, David started at the number one restaurant in Orange County, Marche Moderne at South Coast Plaza.

In 2008 David left Marche to assist in the opening of Andrei’s Conscious Cuisine as the restaurant's Sous Chef.

David left Andrei’s to work at Charlie Palmer at South Coast Plaza under newly appointed, Executive Chef Seakyeoung Kim in 2010. While at Charlie Palmer, he acquired one of three coveted Sous Chef positions.

Chef David has dedicated his professional life to many years of intense training in 3 of O.C.’s top kitchens. Throughout those years, he has established a great reputation and developed long-standing relationships with restaurateurs and his peers.

Chef Erica is the protégé of famed M.O.F., Chef Stephane Treand of ST Patisserie Chocolat in Costa Mesa, California. Chef StephaneTreand is extremely well known in the pastry world from California to Japan and everywhere else in between. Chef Erica was classmates with Chef David Fujimura and graduated with honors from Le Cordon Bleu Pasadena, California in 2004.

She interned at Noe Restaurant in Los Angeles, California, and shortly after that went to St. Regis Hotel and Resort in Dana Point, California. There, she worked with M.O.F. Chef Stephane for 2 years, moving up the ranks quickly.

In 2007, Erica went to Marche Moderne and worked under Chef Amelia.

Erica left the industry to start a family in 2010, and after her first child, she slowly returned to her love and passion for the culinary arts. She decided to join Chef David at Charlie Palmer at South Coast Plaza as a pastry cook. Chef Seakyeong Kim recognized how rare her skill sets and palate were, and signed her on as the Pastry Consultant for Charlie Palmer. There she was heralded as one of the best pastry chefs in California by both Chef Kim and Chef Charlie Palmer.

Almost a year after she started her consulting job, Chef Erica received a call from Chef Stephane to help open his (at the time) new pastry school in San Clemente in the Spring of 2012. From there, he then hired her to help him with his shop in Costa Mesa. There she assisted him and many other top pastry chefs from all over the world during their teaching sessions. She was even asked to teach a couple of basic technique classes for Chef Stephane’s school.

Chef Erica’s long-standing reputation of excellence and consistency among the top Pastry Chefs in not only the United States but around the world allows her limitless possibilities.