Chelsea is set to score a new Japanese cocktail bar from one of downtown’s most decorated bartenders. Masahiro Urushido, the owner of West Village favorite Katana Kitten, is working on a more intimate spot called The Winters Coming, now in early build-out inside a Seventh Avenue storefront and targeting a fall or winter 2026 debut. The plan calls for seasonal cocktails alongside Japanese home-cooking-inspired bar food, with a smaller, more personal feel than Urushido’s larger Greenwich Village bar.
The project first popped up via a liquor-license notice filed with Manhattan Community Board 4 that names the space at 204 7th Ave. The application includes a preliminary menu featuring fish korokke, Japanese breakfast sandwiches, and seared rice balls. Urushido described the project to the community board as "just a little bit more personal," and he confirmed to What Now New York that the team is aiming for a fall or winter 2026 opening. The filing frames The Winters Coming as a neighborhood bar built around simple, comforting plates and seasonal drinks.
From Katana Kitten To Chelsea
Urushido made his name at Katana Kitten, which opened in 2018 and helped put Japanese-American cocktail culture on the radar for a lot of New Yorkers. The West Village bar has been profiled for its precise drinks and rowdy, regulars-heavy vibe, and it has landed on industry roundups including The World's 50 Best Bars list. Eater NY and The World's 50 Best Bars have both highlighted his work there.
Menu And Approach
Early materials indicate The Winters Coming will lean into izakaya-style sharing plates and everyday Japanese comfort flavors rather than a formal tasting-menu setup. The preliminary snacks, coupled with the focus on seasonal cocktails, point to a casual bar program built to match simple, salty, or fried bites rather than fussy, plated dishes. Urushido’s track record at Katana Kitten, where cocktails are paired with approachable small plates, suggests the new spot will follow a similar, guest-friendly playbook. What Now New York
Where It Will Be
The Winters Coming is planned for 204 7th Ave, a narrow storefront on the stretch of Seventh Avenue between West 21st and 22nd Streets that has not had a consistently active restaurant tenant in recent years. The address has previously been tied to a restaurant called Champignon, and online listings and review sites show Champignon at that block in past years. Tripadvisor
Next Steps
The liquor-license application will go before Manhattan Community Board 4’s Business Licenses & Permits committee, which will issue a recommendation to the State Liquor Authority, the standard path for new bars in the area. The Winters Coming also appears to be organized as The Winters Coming LLC, with public records showing a late-2025 filing that lists Masahiro Urushido as the contact. Expect upcoming community board agendas and State Liquor Authority filings to pin down a firmer opening timeline as construction moves forward. Manhattan Community Board 4 and BizProfile
