H. Valley replaces Ambra at 569 Hudson Street (Google Maps)
Bread starts coming out of the oven at 5 a.m. at H. Valley, a new West Village market that opened Friday with a bakery, a butcher, local produce and a case of prepared food that runs from breakfast sandwiches to whole rotisserie chickens. The chef behind it earned a Michelin star at his last restaurant, and he’s promising the same standard here, just in a form you can grab on the way to work. And if you’d rather wait for the official party, that’s coming next week too.
It’s at 569 Hudson Street, directly across from the White Horse Tavern. The New York Times included H. Valley in its restaurant openings roundup this week, noting that the chef behind it is Austin Johnson, who founded One White Street and its neighboring Rigor Hill Market in TriBeCa and has since left both to open this one. His partner in the project is Eytan Sugarman of the White Horse Tavern.
The name is short for Hudson Valley, where the business says the farms behind everything it sells are located. Johnson also ran Rigor Hill Farm up there, and the market’s website describes its menus as changing week to week with whatever the farms are growing rather than the other way around. Its “Our Story” page notes that One White Street earned both a Michelin star and a Michelin Green Star for sustainable cooking under Johnson, and that he earned his first star at Frenchie in Paris before returning to New York.
The bakery, led by head baker Grayson Claes, is built around New York State flours from Brooklyn Granary and Farmer Ground Flour, with heritage grains like rye and spelt worked into naturally leavened sourdough loaves, baguettes, focaccia and a sourdough brioche. Croissants get a touch of sourdough levain for flavor, though they’re still primarily yeast-leavened. Anything that doesn’t sell at its peak gets turned into breadcrumbs, croutons, garlic bread or ice cream rather than thrown out.
Beyond the bakery, the Times describes a butcher counter cutting oven-ready meats and a prepared-food lineup that includes potpies and, somewhat unusually, pet food. The space also has a coffee bar and seating if you’d rather eat there than take it home, and H. Valley offers catering and private events. It’s open daily from 7 a.m. to 8 p.m., and a grand opening is planned for Wednesday, September 23, according to a recent Instagram story from the market.
