Bahama Breeze in Florida: six closed in April, eight more converting through May 2027
Darden Restaurants announced in February that it would end the Bahama Breeze brand. Fourteen restaurants would close for good by April 5, 2026. The other fourteen would be converted to other Darden brands over the following 12 to 18 months. Bahama Breeze was founded in Orlando in 1996 and about half of its restaurants were in Florida, so most of the wind-down lands in this state.
Five Florida restaurants closed on April 5: Miami (Kendall), Jacksonville, Kissimmee on West Osceola Parkway, Pembroke Pines and Sanford. A sixth, Brandon, had been on the conversion list. Darden reversed that in April and closed it on April 20, citing "the operating environment at and around this location." That closure carried a WARN notice for 86 employees, and the company offered transfers to other restaurants.
On August 27 Darden gave USA Today a schedule for the remaining conversions. Each restaurant closes as Bahama Breeze and reopens as another Darden brand, so none of these sites goes vacant.
| Location | Metro | Closes as Bahama Breeze | Reopens as |
|---|---|---|---|
| Orlando (Grand National, Oak Ridge Road) | Orlando | Sep 28, 2026 | Olive Garden |
| Altamonte Springs | Orlando | Oct 17, 2026 | Yard House |
| Lutz (Wesley Chapel) | Tampa | Nov 7, 2026 | Yard House |
| Orlando (Lake Buena Vista) | Orlando | Feb 2027 | Yard House |
| Tampa (Rocky Point) | Tampa | Feb 2027 | Yard House |
| Orlando (International Drive) | Orlando | Apr 2027 | Chuy's |
| Fort Myers (U.S. 41) | Fort Myers | May 2027 | Not yet stated |
| Kissimmee (Irlo Bronson Memorial Highway) and Orlando (Alafaya Trail) | Orlando | Not yet stated | Not yet stated |
The Fort Myers date comes from the News-Press, which reported the restaurant will close in May 2027 and convert over the following months. Darden has not said which brand it becomes. Two Orlando-area sites on the February conversion list, Kissimmee and Alafaya Trail, have no announced date yet.
For context, the chain had already closed at least five Florida restaurants in 2025 before the February decision, including its only Daytona Beach location.
| Closed for good | Metro | Closed |
|---|---|---|
| Miami (Kendall) | Miami | Apr 5, 2026 |
| Jacksonville | Jacksonville | Apr 5, 2026 |
| Kissimmee (West Osceola Parkway) | Orlando | Apr 5, 2026 |
| Pembroke Pines | Miami-Fort Lauderdale | Apr 5, 2026 |
| Sanford | Orlando | Apr 5, 2026 |
| Brandon | Tampa | Apr 20, 2026 (86 jobs, WARN notice) |
These records are part of the week of September 5, 2026 file. That file holds 221 restaurant and food service closure records nationwide. Street addresses, sources, and the full weekly file are available to subscribers.
Records as of September 7, 2026. A brief is an edition of record: corrections are published forward, not by changing this page. If cited: Store Closure Watch (storeclosurewatch.com).