Famous New York jazz club Blue Note is opening a new branch in London in early 2026.
Blue Note London will be located in the basement of Covent Garden’s St. Martin’s Lane Hotel, and will take in two performance spaces: a 250-capacity main room and a 100-capacity second room.
At one point, it appeared that the venue would not be able to open after figures from the Metropolitan Police raised concerns to Westminster City Council during a licensing hearing in February. Officers told a licensing committee they believed Blue Note’s proposed opening hours of 9am until 1am would “expose more people to crime and disorder in the immediate area”. The council has now granted Blue Note the necessary license to open, though.
“We’re excited to be coming to London and grateful to Westminster Council for recognising what Blue Note can bring to the city’s nightlife,” Blue Note Entertainment Group President Steven Bensusan said. “We’re looking forward to bringing world-class jazz and a deep cultural legacy to one of the greatest music cities in the world.”
New York’s Blue Note first opened in Greenwich Village in 1982. There are other branches of the jazz bar located in cities such as Tokyo, Beijing and Rio de Janeiro. The London venue is the first in the UK.
