A Ginza-Style Cocktail Bar in Hudson Square, Above Ground
Six cocktails named for places in Japan, a nine-seat counter to drink them at, and a row of windows onto Charlton Street.
🗼 Ginza Manners on Charlton Street
Don't Be Shy opened in September 2026 at 68 Charlton St in Hudson Square, and it takes its cues from the classic cocktail bars of Tokyo's Ginza district. It's a small room. Nine seats line a sapele wood counter, and head bartender Shinya Yamao, formerly of Piora and Shigure, works right across from them. A handful of tables fill out the rest. Ask for the counter, because only those nine seats can order the signature menu.
🍠 A Trip to Japan in Six Glasses
The signature menu is called Trip to Japan, and each of its six $26 cocktails is named for a place in Japan. Edo mixes sweet potato miso vodka with vermouth bianco over a sweet potato Campari ice cube. Fuji is brandy infused with Japanese whisky tea and smoked over apple chips. Several drinks borrow from the region in the name. Echigo pours two Niigata labels, Hakkaisan sparkling sake and Echigo Stout, and Ryukyu builds its swizzle on Okinawan agricole rum and shikuwasa citrus. Table guests order from the $24 house originals and classics or the $16 zero-proof Pretender list. For food, a wagyu hot sando with tomato, lettuce and Parmesan runs $16.
🪟 Ginza Without the Basement
What stands out most is the light. Plenty of the city's Japanese cocktail bars sit below the sidewalk. Don't Be Shy is at street level, with a row of windows along Charlton Street and warm light washing the ceiling, so the room never feels cramped. You get the Ginza-style counter without spending the night underground. It's open Tuesday to Saturday from 5 PM to midnight, with last call for food at 11 PM and drinks at 11:30 PM. Resy books bar seats for parties of one to seven.
