Fort Myers will have the last Bahama Breeze to close, with the 27-year-old restaurant scheduled to shut in May 2027 and reopen as Yard House the following month

The Bahama Breeze at 14701 South Tamiami Trail is scheduled to close in May 2027 and reopen as Yard House in June, Fort Myers News-Press reporter Robyn George reported Monday.

The Fort Myers restaurant opened in May 2000. Its closing will end a run of about 27 years and make it the last remaining Bahama Breeze to shut as owner Darden Restaurants retires the brand.

Darden's own financial reporting confirms the wider plan. The company says all Bahama Breeze locations are expected to close or convert to another Darden brand by the end of its 2027 fiscal year. The individual Fort Myers months come from the reporting, not from that filing.

One month between brands

The published timetable leaves roughly one month between the Bahama Breeze closing and the Yard House opening. It is a conversion of the existing property, not a permanent restaurant vacancy.

That makes the immediate local impact different from a conventional business failure. The building stays in Darden's portfolio and returns under another brand. What disappears is the Bahama Breeze operation that has occupied the site since 2000.

The schedule is still given by month rather than by a specific closing or opening day. Darden has not published a Fort Myers construction calendar, the cost of the conversion, or a local staffing and transfer plan.

What is known for workers and customers

Customers have until May under the current schedule before the Bahama Breeze name leaves Fort Myers. Yard House is expected to begin serving at the same property in June.

No verified number is available for employees affected, positions that will transfer, or any gap in pay while the building is converted. A brand conversion can preserve jobs, change them or require a new hiring process. Until Darden publishes the Fort Myers plan, none of those outcomes should be presented as settled.