JACKSONVILLE, Fla. — After a fire last year closed the doors of Hamburger Mary’s on Beach Boulevard, the franchise is ready for its new home in Murray Hill.
The former site of El Jefe, a Mexican restaurant that closed in April, will become the drag restaurant’s new location at 947 Edgewood Ave. S.
Jordyn Shepherd, a performer who previously worked at Hamburger Mary’s, said she “sold my house to make this work.”
As the new owner of Jacksonville’s Hamburger Mary’s, Shepherd said she planned to start construction this month and hopes to host a soft opening for New Year’s Eve.
Plans for the 4,000-square-foot space include building a dressing room and stage, taking down a few walls for a more open concept and moving the entrance from the front of the building to the back with free valet parking for customers.
“I am grateful for the old Mary’s,” she said. “However, we are separating and rebranding and remarketing to bring back people who don’t come anymore or people who haven’t been before. We are trying to get away from the gaudy and take it to the next level.”
Shepherd affectionately refers to this plan as Hamburger Mary’s 2.0 and said she’ll be holding auditions for performers in early December to ensure she is hiring the best talent to align with her new goals.
The restaurant will continue its expected events, such as charity bingo and Sunday brunches, and even improve on some old favorites, like turning karaoke into “Queen of the Night Mary-aoke” with a drag performer hosting and a more sophisticated DJ system.
Shepherd said she was looking for the right property since she was asked by corporate to take over for the Jacksonville area, but she kept coming back to the space in Murray Hill.
Additionally, Shepherd plans to open a salon and retail store in the 1,500 square feet next door to the restaurant. She said this wasn’t originally in her plans, but the empty space was “ugly and touching us” so it “had to change.”
The salon will sell drag cosmetics and apparel, such as lashes and tights, and offer drag makeovers and private events.
“Some people say ‘you’re doing too much,’ but to me, it all meshes,” she said.
Shepherd said the all aspects of the Jacksonville community — from local drag performers to the Murray Hill business district — have been extremely supportive of her plans.
“I’m not in it for the money,” she said. “When I first stepped foot in Mary’s it was the only thing that made me happy for a long time. I want to offer that safe space for anyone who might feel the same way.”
Once the restaurant opens, reservations will need to be made online through Yelp, as they were at the previous location.
Editor's note: This story was first published by our news partners at the Florida Times-Union.
