Montego Bay business partners Brian Jardim and Ian Dear have opened a martini jazz and blues bar, a $20 million investment that the partners hope will attract those in search of The Blue Beat high-end spot for and entertainment and dining.

Called the Blue Beat, the establishment is located on Gloucester Avenue in Montego Bay, next door to two of the businessmen's other operations - Margaritaville, and Marguerite's Seafood By The Sea.

The opening - on New Year's Eve - was timed to meet the Air Jamaica Jazz and Blues Festival which is slated for Montego Bay later this month.

"We worked non-stop to put this together in time for the Air Jamaica Jazz and Blues Festival later this month," Jardim told the Observer. "For those of us who are jazz lovers, this is a major milestone. No truly sophisticated resort area is complete without a great jazz club. Now Montego Bay has its own."

The bar is 1,000 square feet in size, and comfortably seats 50.

"We've invested a lot in state-of-the-art lighting and sound," said Jardim. "Inside we've created a really intimate, high-end atmosphere."

The Blue Beat is the fourth entertainment/bar/restaurant brand that the business duo have brought to market. The others: Margaritaville which is also located in Ocho Rios and Negril; Marguerite's, and the Groovy Grouper.

According to Jardim, the Blue Beat will target "high-end tourists and professional Montegonians - a more mature kind of guest who wants to have a cocktail either before or after a fine meal at Marguerite's, or who wants to enjoy a night of live jazz".

The Blue Beat will serve light meals featuring primarily Asian and Caribbean cuisine.

The martini jazz and blues bar will also play host to established musicians, as well as new talent, and will feature live jazz for four hours every night.

Montego Bay saxophonist Fitzroy Minott is the bar's music director and heads the resident band, Scotch.

Trousers in Denim

Cream of the 'Crop'

Cheeky's World