A swanky new steakhouse with multiple cocktail bars is coming to downtown Fort Lauderdale on Thursday, May 8. Jay’s steakhouse doesn’t just have moody lighting — it’s housed inside a former Lutheran church located at 441 NE Third Ave., where it trades pews for red velvet curtains and tableside prime rib trolleys.
The space retains much of the original architecture — vaulted ceilings, stained glass, and arched windows — now contrasted with dark leather seating, red velvet curtains, and multiple cocktail bars. Designed to operate as both a fine-dining restaurant and a late-night speakeasy, Jay’s is expected to offer live entertainment, a members-only lounge, and a rotating chef’s tasting menu.
From Church to Chophouse with a Late-Night Speakeasy
Created by Yes Hospitality, the South Florida-based restaurant group behind concepts like Naked Taco and Riviera, Jay’s marks one of the group’s most ambitious restaurants to date, with a focus on pairing high-touch hospitality with theatrical dining elements inside a dramatic, historically significant space.
“Jay’s is where you go to feel taken care of,” Yes Hospitality president Jay Shirodkar says. “It’s meant to feel like a backstage pass where things are off-script, elevated, and never pretentious.”…