Chef Daniel Humm is opening a casual new restaurant in the West Village this week, trading the hushed formality of his three-Michelin-starred Eleven Madison Park for an à la carte menu built around a wood-fired oven, a showpiece roast chicken, and a martini cart that rolls table to table. The restaurant, named simply Humm, opens Saturday at 435 Hudson Street, between Leroy and Morton streets.
The 7,731-square-foot space previously housed En Japanese Brasserie, a West Village institution known for its Kyoto-style cuisine and handcrafted tofu that closed permanently in December 2024 after 20 years under founder Reika Yo Alexander, according to Caper Media. Humm occupies roughly 5,000 square feet of that footprint, per Time Out, which reports that reservations are now live through Resy ahead of the Saturday opening.
Running the kitchen is Dimitri Magi, Humm's executive chef and a 16-year veteran at Eleven Madison Park alongside Humm. Time Out quotes Daniel Humm saying of the new project, “We want to show a different side of us.” That shift shows up immediately in the menu, which Time Out reports excludes red meat but leans into vegetable-forward small plates like crispy feta with sesame and shallot agrodolce, tuna crudo, a chicory and tangerine salad, and fried eggplant with pickled green tomatoes.
A Chicken Inspired by Humm's Mother
The centerpiece of the menu is a roast chicken for two inspired by Humm's mother's cooking, sourced from Amish farms in Lancaster, Pennsylvania, per Time Out's reporting. The bird is stuffed beneath the skin with bread crumbs, butter, lemon, thyme and garlic, then roasted multiple times before finishing in the restaurant's wood-fired oven and getting a last touch of chicken jus and brown butter. A whole branzino serves as the menu's other shareable centerpiece, while seasonal produce for the restaurant comes from Magic Farms in Hoosick Falls, New York — the same upstate supplier that stocks Eleven Madison Park, according to Time Out.
Fine Art Meets a Casual Dining Room
Designer Pierre Yovanovitch built the interiors in warm maroon and ochre tones, with a 90-seat main dining room wrapped around a central wood-fired oven, a separate bar and lounge, and a host stand created by artist Rashid Johnson, according to the Resy Blog. The outlet describes the look as a deliberately cozy contrast to Eleven Madison Park's light, airy dining room. Time Out reports the space also displays work by Louise Bourgeois and Roni Horn, and the Resy Blog specifically notes a multi-panel Bourgeois piece titled “10 am Is When You Come to Me” alongside an original Bourgeois sculpture in the bar.
Clemente Bar, a cocktail lounge and studio space above Eleven Madison Park, opened in October 2024 and was decorated with custom frescoes by Italian artist Francesco Clemente, as Reporter Gourmet reported at the time.
Martinis on the Move, Three Ways to Dine
Diners have three seating options at Humm: the full menu in the main dining room, or smaller food menus at the bar and lounge, according to Time Out. A martini cart makes rounds through the main dining area, and the Resy Blog details that the beverage program includes three signature martini variations — spicy, citrusy, and savory — alongside an 80-page wine list featuring four distinct Champagne categories. Time Out adds that the wine list spans both established regions and smaller producers, with an open kitchen surrounding the wood-fired oven visible from the dining room.
From Fine Dining to a Neighborhood Spot
The new restaurant marks a notable pivot for Humm, who bought Eleven Madison Park with former partner Will Guidara in 2011. Eleven Madison Park, originally opened in 1998 by restaurateur Danny Meyer, has held three Michelin stars since 2012 and ranked No. 1 on The World's 50 Best Restaurants list in 2017, according to Wikipedia.
Humm's civic profile extends beyond the dining room. UNESCO appointed Humm a Goodwill Ambassador for Food Education in September 2024, recognizing his advocacy for sustainable food systems and nutritious school meals, as reported by Kompas.id.
With reservations already open on Resy, diners curious about Humm's more relaxed register won't have to wait long: the doors open Saturday.
