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A patio with picnic tables covered by corrugated aluminum slats.
The patio at Cloudburst Brewing’s Shilshole Avenue location.
Jade Yamazaki Stewart/Eater Seattle

Seattle Restaurants and Breweries With Great Patios for Outdoor Dining

15 great spots where you can soak up the Northwest sun

by Harry Cheadle, Jade Yamazaki Stewart, and Eater Staff Updated
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The patio at Cloudburst Brewing’s Shilshole Avenue location.
| Jade Yamazaki Stewart/Eater Seattle
by Harry Cheadle, Jade Yamazaki Stewart, and Eater Staff Updated

Anyone who complains about the rain in Seattle hasn’t lived here in the spring and summer, when the sun comes out, the temperature rises, and the whole city heads to the beaches, the parks, and the restaurants and breweries. Eater Seattle is here for your needs. We have a rooftops map for those looking to eat and drink above the city, and a list for those looking for the best views of the Seattle skyline, the lakes, and the Puget Sound. This list right here is the best patios for sunny days in Seattle.

As usual, this list is not ranked; it’s organized geographically. Know of a spot that should be on our radar? Send us a tip by emailing [email protected].

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Eater maps are curated by editors and aim to reflect a diversity of neighborhoods, cuisines, and prices. Learn more about our editorial process. If you buy something or book a reservation from an Eater link, Vox Media may earn a commission. See our ethics policy.

Beer Star

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White Center’s all-ages beer hall (with a Tacoma outpost) has 40 taps a-flowing, featuring everything from beer to kombucha to cold-brew coffee. Beer fanatics can bring their kids and dogs and stretch out on the large patio, which seats dozens. On the food menu, there are burgers from Lil Woody’s and pizza from Southside Pizza Pie.

9801 16th Ave SW (SW 98th St), Seattle, WA 98106
(206) 453-3088
(206) 453-3088
Picnic tables on the patio at Beer Star on a sunny day, with orange umbrellas and strings of lights.
Beer fanatics can stretch out on Beer Star’s large patio.
Beer Star/Facebook

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The Stonehouse Cafe

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This roadside brunch spot is inside a historic cobblestone building that was once a gas station — what a sentence! It’s a counter-serve restaurant that serves up standards like chicken and waffles and burgers, but what will keep you here is the covered and heated patio with a sweeping view of Lake Washington.

9701 Rainier Ave S, Seattle, WA 98118
(206) 397-4102
(206) 397-4102
Chicken and waffles on a patio table.
Chicken and waffles at the Stonehouse Cafe.
Harry Cheadle

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The Flora Bakehouse

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The sweeter sibling to vegetarian mainstay Cafe Flora has staked out a prime location in Beacon Hill with a variety of wonderful baked goods, including chocolate sea salt croissants, kouign-amann, cinnamon rolls, and unicorn horn meringues. It also recently opened up a handsome new rooftop deck, with both covered and open-air seating options.

1511 S Lucile St (at 16 Ave S), Seattle, WA 98108
(206) 762-0418
(206) 762-0418
A rooftop deck at a Seattle cafe with customers sitting at tables, a pink railing, and a pink-accented servers’ station to the right
The Flora Bakehouse recently opened a new rooftop deck.
Belathee Photography

Also featured in:

Marination Ma Kai

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This Hawaiian-Korean spot has some of the best views in West Seattle, and lots of outdoor seating. It’s the perfect place to lounge with kimchi fried rice, moco loco, Spam musubi, kalua pork tacos, or even a cocktail. On nice days, parking is a challenge, but it’s right next to the water taxi terminal, making it an easy and scenic trip from downtown. 

1660 Harbor Ave SW, Seattle, WA 98126
(206) 328-8226
(206) 328-8226

Also featured in:

Bottlehouse

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The small but enchanting Madrona patio at Bottlehouse, one of the city’s top wine bars, is a charming area to relax with a glass of rosé — frozen, if the weather is warm enough — and a cheese plate. The service is always welcoming and it’s rarely hard to get a table.

1416 34th Ave, Seattle, WA 98122
(206) 708-7164
(206) 708-7164

Also featured in:

Terra Plata

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At this Capitol Hill restaurant from respected chef Tamara Murphy, dishes such as wild mushroom risotto, albacore carpaccio, and roast game hens are served alongside a robust list of cocktails, best enjoyed while hanging out on the comfortable roof deck. Diners who are able to nab a seat out there are surrounded by Murphy’s edible garden.

1501 Melrose Ave (at Minor Ave), Seattle, WA 98122
(206) 325-1501
(206) 325-1501
The covered rooftop patio at Capitol Hill restaurant Terra Plata with wooden communal tables and a surrounding garden.
Diners can sit on the rooftop deck at Terra Plata.
Courtesy of Tamara Murphy

Also featured in:

Citizen

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Lower Queen Anne’s all-day cafe is a popular place in the warmer months to chill outside and play cornhole. On the menu is a selection of brunch items, including some solid waffles and sandwiches. The cafe also introduced Citizen Campfire for the 21-plus crowd , which includes DJs on spring weekends and a series of pop-up events.

706 Taylor Ave N, Seattle, WA 98109
(206) 284-1015
(206) 284-1015

Also featured in:

Westward

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Tables on an outdoor patio line up on the northern shore of Lake Union, providing amazing views from this impeccably designed, seafood-focused favorite. The restaurant from Renee Erickson’s Sea Creatures group serves up a robust selection of oysters and inventive cocktails.

2501 N Northlake Way, Seattle, WA 98103
(206) 552-8215
(206) 552-8215

Also featured in:

Uneeda Burger

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This burger joint is one of the best lunch options in Fremont — if it’s on the menu, get the elk burger, an umami feast — but beware its patio. Hanging out here for too long will make a long lunch seem like a good idea, and pretty soon you’re having a beer and an order of tempura vegetables and setting up an out of office thingy on your email. You don’t want that to happen, do you?

4302 Fremont Ave N (at N 43rd St), Seattle, WA 98103
(206) 547-2600
(206) 547-2600
A patio looking out onto a city street.
The patio at Uneeda Burger.
Suzi Pratt/Uneeda Burger

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Cloudburst On Shilshole

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Cloudburst Brewing’s taproom on Shilshole Avenue in Ballard serves a selection of the brewery’s award-winning beers along with a food truck serving dumplings, noodles, and cucumber salad from Sichuan-Yunnan restaurant Plenty of Clouds. There’s a spacious, airy patio, most of which is covered, making it perfect for both sunny and rainy days.

5456 Shilshole Ave NW, Seattle, WA 98107

Brimmer & Heeltap

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Brimmer and Heeltap isn’t a secret — there are no secrets left in Ballard — but the garden seating feels like something hidden. It’s open for coffee and wifi during the mornings and afternoons (via Brimmer’s cafe alter ego, Red Arrow), but it also makes for a romantic dinner location in the evenings. And if the surroundings aren’t romantic enough, we’re fairly certain that Brimmer’s great wine list and expansive cocktail menu can help.

425 NW Market St (at 6th NW), Seattle, WA 98107
(206) 420-2534
(206) 420-2534

Also featured in:

Bongos

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This hidden triangle feels a world away from busy Aurora Avenue right next door. Bongos dishes up excellent Caribbean fare on its sand pit of a patio, and is the perfect place to tuck into a citrus-braised pork sandwich or a plate of Jamaican chicken curry.

6501 Aurora Ave N, Seattle, WA 98103
(206) 420-8548
(206) 420-8548

Also featured in:

Don Lucho's Restaurant & Pisco Bar

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Maple Leaf’s Peruvian restaurant serves up some excellent lomo saltado and has built not one, but two patios. There are 16 tables, which are covered and heated whenever it gets too brisk, plus some big screen TVs for diners to enjoy on game days. You can even book their patio for private parties.

7919 Roosevelt Way NE, Seattle, WA 98115
(206) 257-1333
(206) 257-1333

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Beer Star

9801 16th Ave SW (SW 98th St), Seattle, WA 98106

White Center’s all-ages beer hall (with a Tacoma outpost) has 40 taps a-flowing, featuring everything from beer to kombucha to cold-brew coffee. Beer fanatics can bring their kids and dogs and stretch out on the large patio, which seats dozens. On the food menu, there are burgers from Lil Woody’s and pizza from Southside Pizza Pie.

9801 16th Ave SW (SW 98th St), Seattle, WA 98106
(206) 453-3088
(206) 453-3088
Picnic tables on the patio at Beer Star on a sunny day, with orange umbrellas and strings of lights.
Beer fanatics can stretch out on Beer Star’s large patio.
Beer Star/Facebook

The Stonehouse Cafe

9701 Rainier Ave S, Seattle, WA 98118

This roadside brunch spot is inside a historic cobblestone building that was once a gas station — what a sentence! It’s a counter-serve restaurant that serves up standards like chicken and waffles and burgers, but what will keep you here is the covered and heated patio with a sweeping view of Lake Washington.

9701 Rainier Ave S, Seattle, WA 98118
(206) 397-4102
(206) 397-4102
Chicken and waffles on a patio table.
Chicken and waffles at the Stonehouse Cafe.
Harry Cheadle

The Flora Bakehouse

1511 S Lucile St (at 16 Ave S), Seattle, WA 98108

The sweeter sibling to vegetarian mainstay Cafe Flora has staked out a prime location in Beacon Hill with a variety of wonderful baked goods, including chocolate sea salt croissants, kouign-amann, cinnamon rolls, and unicorn horn meringues. It also recently opened up a handsome new rooftop deck, with both covered and open-air seating options.

1511 S Lucile St (at 16 Ave S), Seattle, WA 98108
(206) 762-0418
(206) 762-0418
A rooftop deck at a Seattle cafe with customers sitting at tables, a pink railing, and a pink-accented servers’ station to the right
The Flora Bakehouse recently opened a new rooftop deck.
Belathee Photography

Marination Ma Kai

1660 Harbor Ave SW, Seattle, WA 98126

This Hawaiian-Korean spot has some of the best views in West Seattle, and lots of outdoor seating. It’s the perfect place to lounge with kimchi fried rice, moco loco, Spam musubi, kalua pork tacos, or even a cocktail. On nice days, parking is a challenge, but it’s right next to the water taxi terminal, making it an easy and scenic trip from downtown. 

1660 Harbor Ave SW, Seattle, WA 98126
(206) 328-8226
(206) 328-8226

Bottlehouse

1416 34th Ave, Seattle, WA 98122

The small but enchanting Madrona patio at Bottlehouse, one of the city’s top wine bars, is a charming area to relax with a glass of rosé — frozen, if the weather is warm enough — and a cheese plate. The service is always welcoming and it’s rarely hard to get a table.

1416 34th Ave, Seattle, WA 98122
(206) 708-7164
(206) 708-7164

Terra Plata

1501 Melrose Ave (at Minor Ave), Seattle, WA 98122

At this Capitol Hill restaurant from respected chef Tamara Murphy, dishes such as wild mushroom risotto, albacore carpaccio, and roast game hens are served alongside a robust list of cocktails, best enjoyed while hanging out on the comfortable roof deck. Diners who are able to nab a seat out there are surrounded by Murphy’s edible garden.

1501 Melrose Ave (at Minor Ave), Seattle, WA 98122
(206) 325-1501
(206) 325-1501
The covered rooftop patio at Capitol Hill restaurant Terra Plata with wooden communal tables and a surrounding garden.
Diners can sit on the rooftop deck at Terra Plata.
Courtesy of Tamara Murphy

Citizen

706 Taylor Ave N, Seattle, WA 98109

Lower Queen Anne’s all-day cafe is a popular place in the warmer months to chill outside and play cornhole. On the menu is a selection of brunch items, including some solid waffles and sandwiches. The cafe also introduced Citizen Campfire for the 21-plus crowd , which includes DJs on spring weekends and a series of pop-up events.

706 Taylor Ave N, Seattle, WA 98109
(206) 284-1015
(206) 284-1015

Westward

2501 N Northlake Way, Seattle, WA 98103

Tables on an outdoor patio line up on the northern shore of Lake Union, providing amazing views from this impeccably designed, seafood-focused favorite. The restaurant from Renee Erickson’s Sea Creatures group serves up a robust selection of oysters and inventive cocktails.

2501 N Northlake Way, Seattle, WA 98103
(206) 552-8215
(206) 552-8215

Uneeda Burger

4302 Fremont Ave N (at N 43rd St), Seattle, WA 98103

This burger joint is one of the best lunch options in Fremont — if it’s on the menu, get the elk burger, an umami feast — but beware its patio. Hanging out here for too long will make a long lunch seem like a good idea, and pretty soon you’re having a beer and an order of tempura vegetables and setting up an out of office thingy on your email. You don’t want that to happen, do you?

4302 Fremont Ave N (at N 43rd St), Seattle, WA 98103
(206) 547-2600
(206) 547-2600
A patio looking out onto a city street.
The patio at Uneeda Burger.
Suzi Pratt/Uneeda Burger

Cloudburst On Shilshole

5456 Shilshole Ave NW, Seattle, WA 98107

Cloudburst Brewing’s taproom on Shilshole Avenue in Ballard serves a selection of the brewery’s award-winning beers along with a food truck serving dumplings, noodles, and cucumber salad from Sichuan-Yunnan restaurant Plenty of Clouds. There’s a spacious, airy patio, most of which is covered, making it perfect for both sunny and rainy days.

5456 Shilshole Ave NW, Seattle, WA 98107

Brimmer & Heeltap

425 NW Market St (at 6th NW), Seattle, WA 98107

Brimmer and Heeltap isn’t a secret — there are no secrets left in Ballard — but the garden seating feels like something hidden. It’s open for coffee and wifi during the mornings and afternoons (via Brimmer’s cafe alter ego, Red Arrow), but it also makes for a romantic dinner location in the evenings. And if the surroundings aren’t romantic enough, we’re fairly certain that Brimmer’s great wine list and expansive cocktail menu can help.

425 NW Market St (at 6th NW), Seattle, WA 98107
(206) 420-2534
(206) 420-2534

Bongos

6501 Aurora Ave N, Seattle, WA 98103

This hidden triangle feels a world away from busy Aurora Avenue right next door. Bongos dishes up excellent Caribbean fare on its sand pit of a patio, and is the perfect place to tuck into a citrus-braised pork sandwich or a plate of Jamaican chicken curry.

6501 Aurora Ave N, Seattle, WA 98103
(206) 420-8548
(206) 420-8548

Don Lucho's Restaurant & Pisco Bar

7919 Roosevelt Way NE, Seattle, WA 98115

Maple Leaf’s Peruvian restaurant serves up some excellent lomo saltado and has built not one, but two patios. There are 16 tables, which are covered and heated whenever it gets too brisk, plus some big screen TVs for diners to enjoy on game days. You can even book their patio for private parties.

7919 Roosevelt Way NE, Seattle, WA 98115
(206) 257-1333
(206) 257-1333

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