Rhinebeck’s newest breakfast and lunch spot, Halcyon All Day Cafe, is bringing a piece of the sunny West Coast to the Hudson Valley. Owner Daniel Bagnall, a California native, is channeling the bright, upbeat feel of his home state’s cafes in his latest eatery. “The coffee shops there are all painted white, and have happy art, good coffee, and a good atmosphere,” says Bagnall. “That’s sort of our goal too, just to be somewhere that you could swing in and stay if you wanted to.”
A History in the Kitchen
This quaint cafe was a long time in the making for Bagnall, who’s been working in professional kitchens for over 15 years, starting when he was a teenager. “I’ve been cooking forever,” says Bagnall. “I honestly started it just because I needed a job, because I didn’t have an allowance. I just stayed.” Eventually, he relocated to New York City and worked as a cook at Eleven Madison Park, and then as executive chef at the music-centric cocktail bar and restaurant Public Records.
When the pandemic hit, Bagnall was feeling fatigued after being in the industry for so long. “I got sort of burnt out of the city, as I think a lot of people did,” he says. He’d been splitting his time between the city and his Germantown house for the past eight years, and decided to relocate to the Hudson Valley town full time. In August of 2020, he opened Sonder, a natural wine bar in Hudson. The establishment closed its doors this past September, but will be moving to a new location in Rhinebeck in the coming months.
Even while he was busy running Sonder, Bagnall was figuring out what he wanted to do next. “I’m always dreaming of the next kind of business to open. There’s a sandwich shop that I hope will be in the future, and a $1 slice shop that I hope will be in the future, and an Indian restaurant that I hope will be in the future,” he says with a laugh. “But one of the things that I’ve always wanted to open is a coffee shop.” Bagnall mulled over the idea for a while, and finally decided to open Halcyon in November. A storefront had been up for rent for a few months, and he took the leap. “I kept walking by it, being like ‘no, not the right time, not the right time,’” says Bagnall. “Then one day, I was just walking around the village and was like, ‘you know what? I need to call them.’”
Quality-Focused Cafe Fare
After securing the space, Bagnall set out to create a casual spot that could feed the robust local community, at any time of day. “I call it an all-day cafe, which is sort of a lie right now because we’re only open until 3pm,” jokes Bagnall. “It’s somewhere that I envision, long-term, people can stop in the morning to get coffee, and swing by on their way home from work to grab a bite to eat for dinner, and everything in between.” The menu was developed in collaboration with chef Clyde Woodstock, who’s been working with Bagnell for years, most recently at Sonder. It consists of breakfast and lunch staples, including toasts topped with ricotta and jam made in-house, salads, and rice bowls. “It’s all classic cafe fare with a slight twist,” says Bagnall.
The shop’s sandwiches, served on milk bread baked in-house, are the stars of the menu. “We kind of jokingly say we accidentally opened a sandwich shop,” says Bagnall. Their most popular item, a classic bacon egg and cheese, is made with bacon that’s roasted with agave nectar. For a hearty lunch, check out the grilled skirt steak sandwich, which is topped with chimichurri and roasted garlic aioli.
Another option–and Bagnall’s favorite dish–is the Halcyon rice bowl, which features jasmine rice tossed with capers, apple cider vinegar, and other herbs, served warm and topped with a poached egg, avocado, sweet potato, pickled carrots, and a macerated kale. Bagnall tries to source produce locally whenever he can, shopping at Tivoli’s Migliorelli Farm and other local farmer’s markets. “We’re doing our best just to provide with really good ingredients,” says Bagnall.
For those in search of a sweet treat, Halcyon has a coffee bar and array of pastries made onsite. The beans come from Touchy Coffee in Troy, and baked selections rotate often. Two mainstays are the oatmeal hemp cookies, as well as a salted chocolate chip cookie. “I think every coffee shop needs their own chocolate chip cookie,” says Bagnall. The food is simple, and Bagnall wants to keep it that way. “Our goal is quality, and just doing something tasty,” he says.
Creating a Community Hub
In addition to the light and classic fare, the quaint cafe is filled with plants and artwork, creating what Bagnell describes as a “super airy, cheery, and fun” environment. Halcyon just expanded its hours and will now be open five days a week, Wednesday-Sunday from 9am-3pm. Bagnall hopes to be open seven days a week soon, and eventually expand the eatery’s hours to include dinner service.
Since the restaurant’s November opening, Bagnall says that the weekends have been busy with Rhinebeck residents and out-of-towners. Their positive reception of the cafe motivates Bagnell to continue making the food that he loves. “It’s just a fun little cafe, and I think people really enjoy it.”
Halcyon All Day Cafe is open Wednesday-Sunday, 9am-3pm. Check their Instagram for updates on future hour changes.
Halcyon All Day Cafe
6384 Mill Street, Rhinebeck
