Best Patios Santa Monica: Top Outdoor Dining Picks

Santa Monica has some of the best patio dining in all of Southern California, and honestly it's not even close. You've got ocean breezes, near-perfect weather most of the year, and a restaurant scene that genuinely embraces outdoor eating. Whether you want a casual beer garden with your dog, a rooftop cocktail spot with Pacific views, or a laid-back backyard where the grill is the star of the show, there's a patio here that fits. The picks below are organized by vibe, venue type, and what you actually need to know before you go, so you can stop scrolling and start sitting outside.

How to choose the best Santa Monica patio for you

Before you just pick the first place with outdoor seating, it helps to think through a few things. Santa Monica patios vary wildly in what they actually offer. Some are right on a busy street and can get loud. Some require reservations weeks in advance. Others are walk-in only and fill up by 6pm on a Saturday. Here's what to line up before you head out.

• Vibe: Are you catching up with a friend over lunch, planning a date night, or meeting a big group? The crowd energy at a brewery beer garden is very different from a hotel rooftop lounge.
• Shade and comfort: Santa Monica afternoons can get bright and warm, especially in July. Look for spots with umbrellas, overhead coverage, or natural shade. Rooftop and ocean-facing patios tend to catch a breeze that helps.
• Noise level: Street-adjacent patios (like The Surfing Fox on its road-facing side) can get noisy during peak hours. If you want easy conversation, look for garden-style or enclosed courtyard setups.
• Dog-friendliness: Not every outdoor patio is officially pet-friendly even if it's technically outside. Call ahead or check the venue's policy specifically, especially on weekends.
• Reservations vs. walk-in: Some spots like Elephante require reservations and fill up fast. Others, like the Santa Monica Brew Works outdoor area, are first-come on weekdays.
• Time of day: A few patios have specific outdoor seating hours. Patio del Mar at Hotel Casa del Mar, for instance, is open Wednesday through Sunday from noon to 8pm, so timing matters.

Top patio picks in Santa Monica by vibe

Casual and laid-back

Le Great Outdoor is exactly what its name promises. Resy describes it as eating in a big Santa Monica backyard, and that's spot-on. It's got an open-grill setup and a communal, relaxed feel that makes it easy to linger. There's no pressure to perform here. It works beautifully for a weeknight dinner when you just want good food in a low-key outdoor setting. Pono Burger (4.5 stars with over 500 Tripadvisor reviews) is another great casual option if you want something quick and satisfying outside without committing to a full sit-down meal.

The Courtyard Kitchen also lands squarely in the casual-but-quality category. It's stroller and dog-friendly, has happy hour from 4 to 7pm, and dinner starts at 5pm, so the transition from afternoon snacks to a full meal is seamless. The outdoor courtyard feels genuinely tucked away, which is rare in this part of the city.

Date night

For a romantic outdoor dinner, Tar & Roses is the standout. It has a 4.6 rating across nearly 710 Tripadvisor reviews, and the menu (wood-fired, seasonal, ingredient-focused) is the kind of thing that makes a dinner feel like an event. Tripadvisor’s “Restaurants with Outdoor Seating in Santa Monica” list includes Tar & Roses (about 4.6 with roughly 709 reviews) and Pono Burger (about 4.5 with roughly 524 reviews), reflecting popular patio dining choices among reviewers. The patio isn't enormous, which actually works in its favor for date nights since it keeps things intimate. Book ahead, because this one fills up.

Patio del Mar at Hotel Casa del Mar takes a different approach to romance: it's a beachfront al fresco bistro with direct ocean views. Open Wednesday through Sunday from noon to 8pm, it's genuinely one of the more beautiful outdoor dining spots in Santa Monica. The light at sunset here is something else. It pairs well with a glass of wine and nowhere to be.

Lively and social

Elephante is the spot if you want energy. The open-air rooftop patio has Pacific Ocean views, live music, DJ nights, and a full cocktail program. Visit Santa Monica's listing flags it as requiring reservations, which tells you everything you need to know about how popular it gets. Show up without a booking on a weekend and you'll be waiting. Book ahead, dress up a little, and order something with mezcal. LouLou Rooftop Restaurant and Lounge is a similar vibe in the elevated-and-lively category, also with open-air outdoor seating and ocean views, and worth checking if Elephante is fully booked.

Best patios by venue type

Restaurants

Tar & Roses and Le Great Outdoor are the two restaurant patios worth prioritizing. Tar & Roses is better for a special occasion or date. Le Great Outdoor is better when you want the atmosphere of a good dinner party without the formality. Patio del Mar is in a category of its own if views and hotel-quality service are what you're after.

Bars

Chez Jay's Backyard is a Santa Monica institution and it earns that reputation. The updated patio is an oasis behind the main bar with proper ocean breezes, and their happy hour (Tuesday through Friday, 4 to 6pm) makes it a smart choice for an early evening drink. The Surfing Fox is a good dog-friendly option with a welcoming vibe, though be aware that the street-side patio seating can get noisy during busy hours. Ashland Hill is excellent for craft beer and pub fare in a genuinely dog-welcoming setting, with a monthly yappy hour that's become a neighborhood staple.

Breweries

Santa Monica Brew Works is the go-to brewery patio in the city. Outdoor seating opens at noon on weekends and at 5pm on weekdays. Well-behaved dogs are welcome in the outdoor area, families with kids can stay until 8pm, and they take group reservations for 10 to 50 people. Santa Monica’s official guide to Santa Monica Brew Works notes that “Well-behaved pets are allowed in their outdoor seating area,” and says families can enjoy the brewery with children until 8 p.m. It checks more boxes than almost anywhere else in town. Just remember: it's 21-plus after 9pm, and no outside food or drinks are allowed.

Pet- and group-friendly patio options

Santa Monica is genuinely one of the more dog-friendly patio cities in SoCal, but you still need to do a quick check before you show up with your pup. Not every outdoor patio is officially designated as pet-friendly, and some restaurants will ask you to move even if you're sitting outside. The spots below have explicit policies in place.

Best dog-friendly patios

• Santa Monica Brew Works: Explicitly dog-friendly in their outdoor seating area. Weekend seating from noon, weekdays from 5pm.
• Ashland Hill: Canine companions welcome on the patio, with a monthly yappy hour. Happy hour runs Monday through Friday, 4 to 6pm.
• The Surfing Fox: Dog-welcoming patio, confirmed by OpenTable listings. Note the potential for street noise on the road-facing side.
• The Courtyard Kitchen: Officially dog and stroller friendly, with courtyard seating and a happy hour window from 4 to 7pm.

Best options for groups

For larger groups, Santa Monica Brew Works is your clearest winner. They handle parties of 10 to 50 people with a dedicated group reservation system, which takes a lot of the coordination stress off the table. For a more upscale group dinner, Tar & Roses can accommodate parties but book well in advance. For a casual afternoon group hangout, Ashland Hill's patio and happy hour pricing make it very budget-friendly for larger tables.

What to order and when to go for patio dining

Patio dining in Santa Monica rewards flexible timing. If you go during peak dinner hours (7 to 9pm on weekends), expect waits at popular spots even if you have a reservation, simply because outdoor seating is limited and tables turn slower when the energy is high. Late lunch (1 to 3pm) or early dinner (5 to 6pm) gives you more breathing room and, at most spots, better service.

Happy hours are genuinely worth building your visit around. The Courtyard Kitchen's 4 to 7pm window is one of the longest in the area, great for a slow transition from afternoon into dinner. Ashland Hill runs Monday through Friday, 4 to 6pm, with five-dollar bites and drinks. Chez Jay's Backyard does Tuesday through Friday, 4 to 6pm. Jameson's Pub on Main Street runs every day from 3 to 7pm with a two-for-one drink structure, which is hard to beat if you're planning a patio afternoon with a crowd.

For ordering, lean into what each spot does well outdoors. At Le Great Outdoor, let the open-grill menu drive your choices because the fire-cooked items are the point. At Tar & Roses, the wood-roasted dishes and shareable small plates work well for patio pacing. At a brewery like Santa Monica Brew Works, order a flight before you commit to a pint so you can taste the range. At Elephante, cocktails are the main event, so start there and add food as the night unfolds.

Practical planning: reservations, parking, and weather

Reservations

For Elephante and Tar & Roses, reservations are non-negotiable on weekends. Book at least a week ahead in summer, ideally two. Patio del Mar at Hotel Casa del Mar is worth calling ahead on, especially for weekends since hotel guests get priority. Santa Monica Brew Works, The Courtyard Kitchen, and Ashland Hill are more walk-in friendly, but even they fill up fast on Friday and Saturday evenings from around 6pm onward.

Parking

Street parking near the beachfront (around Hotel Casa del Mar and Elephante) gets tight by midday on weekends. If you are specifically looking for the best patios west Hollywood, it helps to compare vibe, reservation rules, and how easy the area is to park in. The city-owned parking structures near the Third Street Promenade and the beach lots are your best bet. Expect to pay a few dollars per hour but save yourself significant frustration. For spots like Tar & Roses and Ashland Hill, which are a bit further inland, street parking is more manageable, especially on weekdays.

Weather and shade

July in Santa Monica brings what locals call the June Gloom hangover: mornings and early afternoons can be overcast and cooler than you'd expect, burning off to sunshine by early afternoon. This actually works in your favor for lunch patios since the sun is softer. By late afternoon and evening the breezes pick up, which is perfect but can get cool, especially on rooftop spots like Elephante and LouLou. Bring a light layer if you're planning a long outdoor dinner. For full-sun afternoon sessions, Pono Burger and The Courtyard Kitchen have shaded areas that make midday comfortable without the blast of direct sun.

If you love patio hunting beyond Santa Monica, the same practical approach applies whether you're heading to West Hollywood for a rooftop scene, scoping out spots on Main Street, or planning a trip to Las Vegas or Santa Fe. If you’re headed there, you’ll want to compare the best patios in Las Vegas by vibe, seating style, and whether reservations are required trip to Las Vegas. The vibe shifts but the checklist stays the same: shade, timing, reservations, and whether your dog can come.