Motek Expands to Broward With Opening at W Fort Lauderdale.

• Motek signed a 12,000 SF lease at W Fort Lauderdale, 401 N. Fort Lauderdale Beach Blvd, opening November 2026
• 315 seats; takes over Stephen Starr's El Vez, a Baja Mexican concept that had held the space
• Motek's 10th South Florida location and first in Broward County, for Happy Corner Hospitality founder Charlie Levy
• The W is owned by Blackstone, which acquired the hotel from Steve Ross' Related Companies for $97.7M in May 2024

Motek Takes El Vez's Oceanfront Perch at the W

Charlie Levy is done stopping at the county line. Happy Corner Hospitality, the group behind Mediterranean-Israeli restaurant chain Motek, signed a 12,000 SF lease at the oceanfront W Fort Lauderdale, 401 North Fort Lauderdale Beach Boulevard, with a November 2026 opening target. The space belonged to Stephen Starr's El Vez, a Baja Mexican concept that had anchored the beachfront hotel's restaurant footprint.

The new Motek will seat 315 and become the brand's 10th South Florida outpost — and its first in Broward County, finally closing the gap in a lineup that runs from Boca Raton to Coral Gables.

A Brand Built Fast Since 2020

Levy launched the first Motek in downtown Miami in 2020. The concept, Eastern Mediterranean with a kosher-style, seed oil-free menu, found its footing fast. By April 2025, Happy Corner had seven South Florida locations. A ninth opened in Midtown Miami in April 2026, taking 5,700 SF at 3255 NE 1st Ave alongside a conjoined Sesame Bakery. The Fort Lauderdale signing makes it ten in under six years.

The brand is scaling nationally, too. Motek entered New York's Flatiron District in September 2025 and has additional NYC locations planned in Williamsburg and on the Upper West Side.

Blackstone's W Gets a South Florida Brand That Travels

The W Fort Lauderdale is a two-tower, 23-story oceanfront resort built in 2010, with 346 hotel rooms and 171 condominium units. Related Fund Management bought it in 2014 for $90 million, spent $55 million on a renovation, and rebranded it under the W flag. After testing the market at a $275 million ask in 2018, Related held on until May 2024, when Blackstone acquired the hotel portion for $97.7 million. The deal added to Blackstone's growing South Florida hotel book, which also includes the East Miami hotel in Brickell, acquired last year for nearly $300 million.

Landing Motek at the W plugs a real gap. Fort Lauderdale Beach has seen a burst of new restaurant investment over the past year. Del Mar opened a 17,000 SF oceanfront Mediterranean concept at Auberge Beach Residences, and a dozen more openings are slated for 2026, but a national brand with Motek's Miami track record and built-in following is a different kind of draw for a hotel trying to fill seats seven nights a week.

What's Next

Motek is targeting a November 2026 opening at the W. If the Fort Lauderdale location performs, Levy has plenty of room to run: Happy Corner has yet to plant a flag in Broward's inland submarkets Boca's northern suburbs, Deerfield Beach, or the growing corridor along the I-95 spine and the brand's New York rollout suggests the company is building toward something bigger than a South Florida story.