No photo of this bar survives from the 2008 site.

Johnson Club Room

12 E. 42nd St. · btwn Madison & 5th Ave.
Murray Hill, Manhattan

In 2026

Closed

Checked October 15, 2026.

Show on the map Directions See the 2008 page

Overview

A smoker's lounge beneath the tobacconist Nat Sherman skirts New York City's anti-smoking laws by requiring a $25 members day pass for entry. There's a full bar, a wide selection of small plates, and a giant walk-in humidor.

History

Downstairs from the cigars, members only

When Nat Sherman moved across the street to 12 East 42nd Street in October 2007, it put the new Johnson Club room on the shop's lower level¹. It was planned as a sequestered, members-only lounge with full bar service and light fare¹; in 2009 we noted that a $25 members' day pass got you in. In August 2020 Altria, Nat Sherman's parent company, announced it was shutting the business down after failing to sell it^{2, 3}. The shop closed that September, ending 90 years on 42nd Street^{2, 4}, and whatever remained of the Johnson Club closed with it.

Sources

Researched October 2026.

What's nearby

Rink Bar under 0.1 mi Closed; now The Rink at Rockefeller Center
Grand Central Oyster Bar 0.1 mi Still pouring
Penthouse Bar (Library Hotel) 0.1 mi Same bar, now Bookmarks Lounge
Bookmarks 0.1 mi Still pouring
Patrick Conway's 0.1 mi Closed; now One Vanderbilt
M Bar (Mansfield Hotel) 0.1 mi A different business is licensed at this address: Dmj Austin
Campbell Apartment 0.1 mi Closed; now The Campbell
Round Bar (Royalton Hotel) 0.1 mi A different business is licensed at this address: Mcr Opportunity Fund Property Management
Pershing Square (Buzz Bar) 0.2 mi Still pouring
Mulligan's Pub 0.2 mi Still pouring