Katana Kitten, New York City

The second stop of my recent NYC bar tours was the Katana Kitten, an award winning bar created by famous Japanese bartender Masahiro Urushido, author of The Japanese Art of the Cocktail, a book that I used a lot for my own book (if you read Italian you find my book here).

Upon entering the bar, you will quicly discover why in less that 10 years (it opened in 2018), the Katana Kitten has become a “classic” cocktail bar in the Greenwich Village. The bar is full of japanese pop stuff on the walls and on the cealing, the lights are perfect, the music is high but not disturbing, and overall the feeling is that of “a very happy place”. The bar crew (special mention to Carlos) is smiling and making you feel at home, the drinks are crafted with maximal attention and the food is just perfect to accompany them.

All in all, this is the result of the effort of Masahiro to combine Japanese hospitality (minimalism, attention to details) with NYC vibes, and could not have been done better. I had the pleasure of chatting with the bar creator, and realised that nothing in this place is there by chance, and all is thought in view of a concept of rigirous (Katana) and fun (Kitten) hospitality. Somehow, you are living a perfectly crafted cocktail experience without even noticing it, and that is the magic of the place.

I tried both a classic Martini, just close to perfection, and the house Martini, the famous Hinoki Martini, a reviseted saketini that I will hardly forget. But the cocktail list is long and inviting, so I will surely have to be back! Classic Martini rate: 9.