Say goodbye to Big City Tavern, the Fort Lauderdale staple slinging all-American spreads of lobster mac ‘n’ cheese, burgers and meatloaf sandwiches.
The Las Olas Boulevard restaurant will close after 25 years in business on Sept. 30, a co-owner told the South Florida Sun Sentinel on Thursday.
The classy, brick-lined saloon at 609 E. Las Olas Blvd., a half-block east of the Henry E. Kinney Tunnel, announced the closing in a Thursday email blast to customers that began with “Cheers to an Amazing 25 Years!” before revealing its last day of business. Its website and social media made no mention of the shutdown.
Todd Herbst, co-founder of parent company Big Time Restaurant Group (Louie Bossi’s Ristorante Bar Pizzeria, Rocco’s Tacos and Tequila Bar, Elisabetta’s Ristorante), on Thursday was vague on details about the reasons.
“I think we were fortunate to be there as long as we have been. Times are changing and you can’t compete with progress,” Herbst said.
He called Big City Tavern’s finale a “cause for celebration” and said a new Big Time eatery would soon appear on Las Olas.
“All I can say is we have a terrific agreement with the landlord, so stay tuned,” Herbst said. “We made lots of memories serving the Fort Lauderdale community [at Big City Tavern] and a lot of money, but like all great runs, it must come to an end.”
A scene from the lunch crowd at Big City Tavern in Fort Lauderdale on Thursday, Sept. 17, 2026. The restaurant is scheduled to close at the end of the month. (Carline Jean/South Florida Sun Sentinel)
Big City Tavern’s 45 workers, informed of the closing on Wednesday night, have been offered jobs at the hospitality group’s other locations, he said. Herbst added that there are no plans to throw a goodbye party.
“There’s more to come from us on Las Olas,” he said. “Thank you for choosing us to share your celebrations and first dates and last dates with us.”
This news follows the recent closures of City Cellar Wine Bar & Grill in May and Grease Burger, Beer and Whiskey Bar in July, both run by Big Time Restaurant Group in West Palm Beach. It also follows the high-profile arrest in January of Big Time chef and partner Louie Bossi, whose namesake Italian restaurants are still in operation.
Maurizio Meloni serves dishes on Thursday, Sept. 17, at Big City Tavern in Fort Lauderdale. (Carline Jean/South Florida Sun Sentinel)
Herbst said Big City Tavern’s shuttering isn’t tied to those closings or to his business partner’s arrest, insisting that “Big Time Restaurant Group is still financially healthy, and there are more restaurants on the drawing board.”
“There’s no correlation to any of that. These two restaurants [City Cellar and Big City Tavern] recently hit the 25-year mark, while Grease hit 15 years, but nothing lasts forever,” he said. “They had great runs, but their times were up and we have no regrets.”
At its peak, Big City Tavern had multiple outposts in South Florida. The Las Olas restaurant-bar featured oversized brown-leather booths and rustic walls mounted with old paintings and an elk head and served comfort dishes including jerk-chicken pizza, rigatoni bolognese, plus pastries and breads made in-house.
A 2011 Sun Sentinel dining review described Big City Tavern as “a great dining spot for everyone” that “doesn’t feel corporate.”
Big City Tavern, at 609 E. Las Olas Blvd., Fort Lauderdale, is scheduled to close on Wednesday, Sept. 30. Visit BigCityLasOlas.com or call 954-727-0307.
Sun Sentinel staff writer Phillip Valys can be reached at pvalys@sunsentinel.com or Twitter/X @philvalys.