Happy Corner Hospitality Opens Motek By The Sea in Fort Lauderdale

Oceanfront Mediterranean Expansion Marks Happy Corner Hospitality's Broward Entry Happy Corner Hospitality opened Motek By The Sea on Thursday, November 5, bringing its Eastern Mediterranean concept to Fort Lauderdale Beach for the first time. The 12,000-square-foot, 315-seat restaurant marks the group's debut in Broward County and Motek's first oceanfront location. The Fort Lauderdale expansion follows Motek's growth from a single Downtown Miami location in 2020 to nine restaurants across Florida. Motek By The Sea joins existing outposts in Aventura, Boca Raton, Brickell, Coral Gables, Downtown Miami, Miami Beach, Midtown Miami, and South Pointe.

Menu and Culinary Positioning The restaurant serves Motek's full kosher-style, 100% Seed Oil Free Certified™ menu from all-day brunch through dinner. Signature dishes include the award-winning Arayes Burger—a pita stuffed with spiced beef and grilled until crisp that won the People's Choice Award at the South Beach Wine & Food Festival's Burger Bash in consecutive years—alongside the Whole Mediterranean Branzino, Crispy Chicken Schnitzel Sandwich with harissa aioli, freshly baked laffa and pita, and traditional mezzes and dips. The restaurant also offers the brand's $5 happy hour. Happy Corner Hospitality has operated all concepts without industrial seed oils since June 2025, using premium fats including olive oil, avocado oil, and real butter. The group was among the first hospitality operators in the United States to receive the Seed Oil Free Certified™ seal from the Seed Oil Free Alliance.

Sesame Kitchen Follows Sesame Kitchen, Happy Corner Hospitality's Mediterranean all-day café concept, will open at W Fort Lauderdale in the coming weeks as a vibrant, open-air space with approximately 40 seats. A custom serving truck will function as both the visual focal point and hub for food and beverage service, surrounded by lush tropical landscaping and layered shade elements. The menu will feature house-made pastries, croissants, bourekas, sufganiyot, specialty lattes, coffee, and hot teas drawing inspiration from across the Mediterranean. Sesame Kitchen will operate completely free of seed oils, with all offerings prepared in-house using premium ingredients. This Fort Lauderdale opening represents Sesame Kitchen's second location following its original outpost at SoLé Mia in North Miami. The concept will subsequently make its New York debut in Battery Park.

Broader Expansion Strategy The Fort Lauderdale openings are part of Happy Corner Hospitality's multi-market expansion.

In New York City, Motek recently opened on 57th Street and will launch a Williamsburg location in 2026. Yalla Motek, the group's fast-casual Mediterranean street food concept, will debut in NoMad this December, with five additional Yalla Motek locations currently in development across Manhattan, including 57th Street & 6th Avenue, 46 Madison Avenue, Downtown Manhattan, the Upper West Side, and the Upper East Side. Founder Charlie Levy said: "There's something incredibly special about dining by the ocean, and I've always been inspired by the possibilities that come with a setting like this. Sitting down for a great meal while feeling the ocean breeze is priceless, an experience you simply can't replicate. That connection to the water is deeply personal to me, rooted in where I come from and reflected in the spirit of Motek. With Motek By The Sea and Sesame Kitchen at W Fort Lauderdale, we have an opportunity to bring that vision to life, creating a destination that embraces this incredible oceanfront setting while becoming a meaningful part of the Fort Lauderdale community."

Why It Matters

For operators tracking Mediterranean concepts and ingredient-forward positioning, Happy Corner Hospitality's multi-unit expansion—now spanning three distinct brands across two states—demonstrates demand for specialized Mediterranean dining beyond Miami. The group's early adoption of seed-oil-free operations and dual-concept hotel partnerships offer a model for scaling differentiated dining in competitive markets.

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Written by FBM Publications Editors