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    Forte Jazz Lounge

    4.8 (94 reviews)
    Closed 6:30 pm - 10:00 PM

    Forte Jazz Lounge Photos

    Business Info

    FORTE JAZZ LOUNGE ATMOSPHERE

    What's the vibe?
    Live music
    Casual
    Intimate
    Romantic

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    Recommended Reviews - Forte Jazz Lounge

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    Lounge
    Karen L.

    Love Love Love this venue. Forte Jazz Lounge showcases some impressive professional jazz groups, legends, recording artists, Grammy winners, et.al, and continues to be one of the most unique nightclub spaces in Charleston. The lounge offers bistro type seating, theater style seating as well as comfy premium couches for two. There are small tables by your seats so you can have drinks and food while listening to some of the best jazz music in town. Excellent staff and Service with a smile. Forte is a family friendly venue. Two shows nightly 7pm & 9 pm.

    My sister and I went to celebrate her birthday. We chose Sinatra night and it was a really great experience. Check in was fast and easy. The pianist (also the music director) and the saxophone player were just on point. The vocalist sounded exactly like Sinatra. They played all the greatest hits. The place is well decorated and themed, chairs comfortable and easy to find our table (they put your name on it). They had clean restrooms and water available. We both got the Ella cocktail and it was super light and refreshing, along with a scrumptious charcuterie board (it doubled as our dinner). I would totally come back again, next time with my husband for a romantic date night!

    Yaz B.

    This place was amazing - I came on a night when they had 80's/90's night - I purchased couch seating off of the dance floor - it was a great view of the performers - we ordered a cheese board, which tasted and looked amazing, it was plentiful. Everyone kept getting up to dance and super friendly - when I'm in town - I will def make another stop here

    Motown Night/Jazz
    Cheryl M.

    While visiting Charleston I was looking for some entertainment, I found a Motown jazz show here and it was an enjoyable experience. The horn players were great. It's not a very large venue, the seats are close together. I didn't try any of the food, just popcorn.

    Wall
    Ryan H.

    Great evening! We so enjoyed the Bobby Darrin tribute with the great ensemble of musicians. I loved how devoted to the raft the owner was. And quite talented as well. Heck, his wife was bartending as well. And we got great service at the bar. We were there to see our friend Kenny, who is in the horn section, but we loved all of it. My wife is looking for old Bobby Darrin Albums now. The inside was beautiful. The artist wall apparently was painted by local students and was very nice. We will be back! Great option for a date or just to see some good music!

    Death Reaper himself
    Kris G.

    This is a very nice lounge with chill vibes and amazing art on the walls. You get a fun feel the moment you walk through the door with a foyer and bar as soon as you enter... When the house opens there is varied seating from table tops to stools to couches to suit everyone's needs. We opted to sit up front to get a nice view. The Club has a live YouTube channel and an amazing sound system to boot. Such fun with this unique Halloween happening. They have different shows and acts throughout the season for a varied audience. Love the venue. They also have a nice craft cocktail menu ($12-16) with red and white offerings as well as some eats. The cakes looked incredible but did not partake. They also offer some sandwiches and a charcuterie tray. The staff was very attentive and friendly. Can't wait to go back and experience more events at this venue!

    Chun P.

    Playing tourist, I randomly stopped in on a Thursday night. It was midway through the owner's performance, so thankfully the gal gave me half price on the cover charge which ended up being $13. From the outside it looks small, but inside it's deceptively large! Dark, chic, and romantic, with good acoustics. The owner and his trio were playing jazz standards and taking requests...good stuff! Beers start at $7, and cocktails are in the teens. If you're looking for a more upscale, quiet, and elegant place to enjoy music and drinks, this is it.

    The lobby bar
    Alicia P.

    I was in town for the week, I had been to a lot of the restaurants and done some things on the water, I wanted to see a show and found the "Jazz Festival" was happening... I'm not sure exactly what I was expecting, but I certainly didn't go to a "festival". This small venue had tickets available for several shows each evening and I just chose the best date/time that worked for my schedule. I was only able to get a seat toward the back, although any location in the small theatre was no issue seeing the stage...however, the level of comfort in front row seats (on a comfy looking couch) vs a bar chair in the back were worlds apart. There are a lot of things that are hidden or camoflauged with large fabric. Like it was a magic show along every wall. In the lobby, it's very tight, very little space for everyone to stand waiting to get in...the bar area is closed off with large fabric (like curtains) when they are between shows. And inside the theatre, everything is lined with large fabric and dark lighting.. the flooring is uneven, you can feel it moving when people walk by. I think I find all the buildings in Charleston overall, need to be rebuilt. I ordered a glass of wine and charcuterie board at the lobby bar before the show (before they closed the fabric) - they offered to bring me the board once inside the theater, which was no issue because it's much easier than me trying to carry everything myself...you get a table, which is nice. It was a decent portion with different breads/crackers, cheeses, meats, accompaniments... I do think they could have sprung a little more on the types of cheeses offered. Regular cheddar should never be one of the options. But the show is just an hour and none of this is a big deal for me, it just looks/feels cheap. The tickets weren't terribly expensive either. Seemed like a low budget hall with low budget offerings. But the music/entertainment/show are what really matter here. That said, the show itself was great - I saw Oscar Rivers Jazz Quartet. I didn't research any of the artists....honestly thought I'd get some horns, but there were none. But enjoyed it nonetheless. The singer had a fantastic voice and belted out a few very well known tunes. Would I return? YES. Would I check more into who I'm going to see? YES! Still, I would come back... I know what it's like inside now... and now you do too.

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    11 months ago

    Great place for a fun night out. The owners are wonderful! The show was full of great music and entertainment. Highly recommend going!

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    1 year ago

    Jazz and atmosphere were amazing!!! Would absolutely be going back. We didn't have food but it looked good

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    Had an amazing experience at Friday R&B night!! Downtown Charleston had its nightlife popping! Everything was just fine beautiful actually.

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    Page 1 of 3

    Ask the Community - Forte Jazz Lounge

    Is this a casual place or dressier for men?

    Not shorts and t-shirt casual. But nice jeans and a collared shirt would be fine.

    Would this be good for someone with frank Sinatra music?

    Don’t See Your Question? Ask Away!

    Review Highlights - Forte Jazz Lounge

    This exclusive, intimate jazz venue is family owned and operated Joe Clarke, the owner and manager is incredibly kind and accommodating.

    Mentioned in 8 reviews

    Read more highlights

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    3.5(797 reviews)
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    Kelly was amazing. Fantastic service, drinks, and food highly recommend in Charleston…read more This place has everything, cocktails, apps, bearded dragons, a disco ball filled with a fantastic Skyline Aviation cocktail. The ambiance is perfect for a day or night out. You can see the bay on the roof top across the street getting a little busy. Great show and atmosphere.

    This place has so much potential that it doesn't live up to. Starting off strong it's right beneath…read morea beautiful art gallery, which created an exciting aesthetic before going up to the rooftop. The roof top however gives off more of a college/dive bar vibe despite having a great view of the city. When we went on Monday only one bar, the downstairs one was open. Despite there being servers it didn't seem that anyone wanted to take tables so the solution was for guests to order drinks/food at the downstairs bar and bring it up to the deck themselves. While the bartender was nice, fast, and good at her job everyone else around her just didn't seem to care to provide service. The chips on the trio platter were beyond stale and since servers didn't care to serve the top deck tables were left unbussed and dirty. Not sure if this experience was a case of severe understaffing or just negligence on the management. I'd recommend going to literally any other rooftop bar for a more elevated experience where the staff actually wants to serve the guests.

    Photos
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    Forte Jazz Lounge - lounges - Updated July 2026

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