A “Neighborhood Bar” Concept:
An Inviting Atmosphere with
Top-Quality Offerings

Opened in 2018 in New York’s West Village, Katana Kitten combines the lively, familiar atmosphere of a traditional Japanese izakaya with top-tier cocktails. Its quality has gained international recognition, ranking 9th on The World’s 50 Best Bars in 2022. We spoke with owner-bartender Masahiro Urushido about the aesthetic he wants to convey, his dedication to crafting cocktails, and his thoughts on how to promote honkaku shochu (single distillation shochu) in the U.S. market.

Text: Reiko Suga / Photography: Koichi Mitsui / Composition: contentsbrain / English Translation: LIBER
Interview Location: Katana Kitten (531 Hudson St, New York, NY 10014, USA)

A Bartending Job Started for a Living That Later Led to Becoming a Champion 

What brought you to New York, and how did you build your career as a bartender?

Originally, my cousin, who was attending graduate school in New York, invited me to visit, so I came to New York in 2003. As I wandered the city with a guidebook in hand, I fell in love with the New York vibe and wanted to experience everyday life here. I had been learning English since I was six, and at the time, I had a strong desire to get out of Japan.

My cousin encouraged me and said I should try going to school here so I decided to attend CUNY LaGuardia Community College^★1. Since I needed to work to support myself, I took on part-time jobs at cafés and restaurants, but it didn’t feel quite right. That’s when I began bartending at an Australian restaurant called Kingswood (now closed) while attending school.

★1 CUNY LaGuardia Community College: A two-year public college in Queens, part of the City University of New York (CUNY) system.

For three to four days straight, I would work late into the night at the bar, catch a nap in the break room, go to class, and then return to work at the bar afterward. I was only getting about three to four hours of sleep each day, but I could manage it back then because I was young.

After working at Kingswood, I spent seven years as a bartender at the restaurant-bar Saxon + Parole, which later became known for its cocktails. At first, the bar was busy, and I wasn’t interested in competitions, but eventually, I started to take part in them as well.

One day during business hours, someone from Chivas Regal visited the bar and invited me to participate in a competition. At first, I said I wasn’t interested, but after hearing more about it, I found the challenging nature intriguing and decided to give it a try. As a result, I won the title of the inaugural champion of The Chivas Masters 2014, organized by Chivas Regal.

The Contrast Between a Welcoming
Atmosphere and World-Class Cocktails

What aspects do you focus on in running your bar?

With the concept of a Japanese American bar, we add a Japanese twist to the American bar style. The goal wasn’t to make it overly polished or stylish; instead, we envisioned it more as a neighborhood bar.

I wanted to create a bar with a friendly and welcoming atmosphere, staffed by charming, approachable people, where everyone feels comfortable coming in. While maintaining a casual vibe, we aim for cocktail quality that would hold up even at a bar in Ginza. New York has many hidden bars known as speakeasies^★2, but this concept is quite the opposite of Katana Kitten.

★2 Speakeasy: Originally, this term referred to the illicit bars that thrived during Prohibition in the United States (1920–1933, varying by state) where people would secretly order drinks. After the repeal of Prohibition, it came to denote retro-style bars and, more recently, refers to hidden or secretive bars.

The term “neighborhood bar” carries various meanings. It can be a casual standing bar for office workers to drop by after work or a place where laborers can relax and enjoy a drink at the end of the day. We happened to find a great spot for our current location, and it offers a welcoming, down-to-earth atmosphere that everyone can enjoy.

The interior was designed by bar consultant Don Lee. I wanted to create a Japanese bar vibe that would fit naturally in New York, so we used straight wooden beams on the ceiling to give it a traditional Japanese home feel. The bar counter was also custom-built to match my height. Over time, guests have often brought various mementos and now the counter area is slowly transforming into a lively collection of decorations (laughs).

Creating Positive Vibes
Together with Our Customers

What role do bars play for people in New York?

I think this also speaks to what kind of place the cocktail bar Katana Kitten is. Going to a cocktail bar itself feels like a fancy experience, so I wonder why people would choose to go to a neighborhood bar within that context. It’s probably for socializing, enjoying conversation with the bartender, or as somewhere to go on a date. Each table has its own story. Maybe bars serve as the setting for each of those stories.

Above all, the most important thing is for customers to enjoy their time having a drink. Even though people come to Katana Kitten for different reasons, they all share the same vibe. Watching the interactions and atmosphere created by other guests brings a sense of positive energy, and the real thrill is when the entire bar pulsates as one.

Is there anything you pay special attention to when serving customers?

As a professional, it’s only natural to pay close attention to details like the temperature of the ice and the glass. I always aim to serve cocktails at the optimal temperature, factoring in how it will feel once it reaches the table. At the same time, I think it’s important for people to feel a sense of comfort when they walk in, so I try to create a relaxed, unpretentious atmosphere that puts them at ease.

I aim to create a contrast where the atmosphere is casual, but the cocktails served are of the highest quality. Every bar has its own concept, and ours is a place where I want customers to come and relax. I learned the fundamentals of service excellence during my time at Tableaux in Daikanyama, Tokyo, where I worked in Japan. As a food runner^★3, I polished silverware, set tables, and managed tasks that seemed simple but came with pressure. That experience still serves me well today.

★3 Food runner: Primarily responsible for delivering dishes prepared by the chef to the customers’ tables. They also set up tables, clear plates and glasses after meals, polish cutlery, and handle cleaning duties.

The Allure of Shochu and
Its Smooth, Mellow Flavor

What are the most popular cocktails at your bar?

Drawing inspiration from Japan’s izakaya, we offer five highball cocktails, including Shiso Gin & Tonic and Melon Lime Soda, all of which are popular. We keep it to five options to avoid overwhelming customers with too many choices. We serve them in Japanese beer mugs with high-quality ice from Okamoto Studio Custom Ice.

Whiskey and shochu are also popular. For shochu cocktails, we have two: the meguroni #2, with iichiko Saiten as the base spirit. The 43% ABV barley shochu pairs well with genever^★4. The other is a low-alcohol shochu-based cocktail called el camino, which combines iichiko Silhouette with green tea, cucumber, and Mexican liqueur.

★4 Genever: A spirit originating from the Netherlands, often considered the precursor to gin.

How well-known is shochu in the United States?

Many of the customers who come to Katana Kitten already have an interest in Japan, but even so, only a few recognize shochu as one of the Japanese national spirits. Its recognition is still quite low compared to sake, but that just means there’s great opportunity for growth.

Shochu has a soft flavor, so using it in a Negroni^★5 makes the cocktail smoother than usual. It’s similar to how Mezcal^★6 can be used in a Margarita^★7 to add a smoky flavor. In the same way, shochu can bring a unique twist to classic cocktails.

In that sense, the meguroni #2, made with shochu, holds an important place on our cocktail menu. People are often hesitant to order something they don’t recognize or find hard to pronounce, and they may also feel reluctant to drink such spirits straight or on the rocks. That’s why it’s essential to create cocktails with approachable names. If a cocktail sparks someone’s interest in shochu, I think it would be great for them to try it on the rocks as well.

★5 Negroni: A cocktail made with gin, vermouth, and Campari.
★6 Mezcal: A distilled spirit from Mexico made primarily from agave. Tequila is a type of mezcal specifically produced in the Tequila region. While tequila is made from blue agave (agave azul), other types of mezcal can be made from around 50 different varieties of agave, either alone or in combination.
★7 Margarita: A tequila-based cocktail.

How has the response been to high-ABV shochu like iichiko Saiten?

I had the impression that iichiko was already well established in the U.S. shochu market, so when iichiko Saiten was introduced, I felt confident it would be successful here. While flavor is more important than ABV for cocktails, spirits are generally expected to be around 40% ABV. iichiko Saiten is easy for bartenders to work with, and I’m sure it will continue to be embraced in the market.

The uniqueness of koji is also reflected in the flavor, giving it a certain umami that people can appreciate once they try it. I knew that a genuinely good product would naturally gain popularity, and as expected, iichiko Saiten can now be found in a variety of bars. Of course, 25% ABV shochu has its own appeal, delivering a smooth umami that only that alcohol level can achieve. The fact that each style offers a different taste experience is part of what makes shochu so appealing.