A chef famous for his work on Bravo's 'Top Chef' is opening a Chocolate and Coffee factory here in the Hudson Valley. Johnny Iuzzini serves as head judge for the Just Desserts version of Top Chef and has served up desserts for many of the world's famous in addition to writing two critically acclaimed cookbooks.

Iuzzini originally hails from Wallkill and is ready bring a long time dream to life. He plans to make a long term commitment to the area. In an interview with Catskilleats.com, he had this to say:

“I’ve been around the world, and I’ve been down in the city, in the urban environment, for a long time, and now my goal is to bring all that experience up here. My plan is to do a full-scale bean-to-bar chocolate factory and a coffee roastery.”

A new company has been launched called 20 Degrees American Chocolate and Coffee Roasters, and they are currently scouting locations and raising capital for the business in Sullivan County. Iuzzini hopes to turn the company into a global brand, but is first raising the $2 to $3 million needed to get things off the ground. The Sullivan County location will have a retail shop and cafe as well as educational facilities for everyone from kids to professional development for chefs.


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