Cat & Fiddle. Photo courtesy of Hollie Nell.

“Los Angeles is 72 suburbs in search of a city.”

—Dorothy Parker

But what suburbs. They’re like craters on a moon; at first glance, they resemble mere shadows, but reveal themselves to be complicated entities with deep crevices and mysteries of their own. And the beer gardens within LA’s many neighborhoods are like suburbs within suburbs, craters within craters.

Though the beer garden is a concept arising from German culture, I think it finds its best home in year-around warm climates such as the one Los Angeles so gloriously hosts. Patrons may tuck themselves into lattice chairs, pulling into mosaic tables that make a nice counterpoint to surrounding bushes and potted plants. A patio absent of balcony tables can offer benches and long tables that give strangers the chance to meet. Those leery of vodka-soda sipping, fedora-wearing and business card-toting industry types can relax with a pitcher of beer and a basket of french fries, free from Hollywood’s overbearing presence. They can enjoy the fresh air while warming up to heat lamps and a chat beneath strings of Christmas lights or lanterns.

That’s a rather over-idyllic scene, perhaps. But a beer garden by nature (pun-intended), with its fusion of “libations” and greenery, is pretty idyllic. And if a suburb within a suburb should act as an island or vernal oasis, then this brief list of beer garden-eateries fits the bill.

I must, however, begin with a dual-pronged disclaimer. Some of these restaurant-bars are well-known, oft-frequented, but I’ve rarely seen them together in one list. Also, if it’s the city’s best beer you seek, these should not be your principal destinations (try Father’s Office. It garners too much praise for its untraditional hamburger; the more than 30 beers on tap are what stands out most in my memory). I find it necessary to dole out the latter warning because what makes these beer gardens so exciting is not so much the beer (or even simply the ale) they boast, but the atmosphere they present. These magnificent seven are sprinkled throughout the town, do not have dress codes, are not too over-priced (at least for drinks) and make excellent spots for weekend, post-work or after-school merry-making.

1) The Alcove Cafe & Bakery

1929 Hillhurst Ave
Los Angeles, CA 90027
(323) 644-0100

This Los Feliz outpost cannot be more aptly named. It’s a nice little nook that is easily missed.

Yes, Los Feliz has long been a hipster playground, but this recess, located near busy Vermont Ave., combines so many lovely things, it’s not only worth visiting, I know not where to begin describing its best features. The establishment’s front section is the part that best conforms to the beer garden paradigm. A sprawling, but tiered, terrace offers eclectic tables and chairs that though not a set create a charming effect merging form and function. Tiny golden lights speckle the trees lining the terrace, casting playful, jagged shadows. Within the place lies a Belle Epoque/French-style bakery-marble countertop that includes an adjacent glass display of over-sized colorful cakes to tempt even the most disciplined.

The Alcove grants little by way of beer-choice, offering Deus, a champagne-processed beer and light Belgian ale Duvel and dark Belgian ale Chimay, but it’s cold and hearty and made all the better when drunk alongside a well-made burger or cobb salad in this beautiful outdoor niche.

2) The Bungalow Club

7174 Melrose Ave
Los Angeles, CA 90046
(323) 964-9494

The garden in the back is well-worth the initial shock of stepping into the bar. After elbowing past the zoo of stereotypically Angeleno-behaving drones, you’ll close the door, enveloped by a quiet, almost private scene of romantic Eastern-inspired cubby-holes (or, er, bungalows) and candle-lit tables. The list of beers and ales is very basic, but it does the job. Bungalow serves Pyramid Hefeweizen, Stella Artois, Corona, Bud, Newcastle and Heineken. The plants and stone floor, hushed voices and chilled beverages add a dream-like quality to an already pretty joint.

3) Firefly

11720 Ventura Blvd
Studio City, CA 91604
(818) 762-1833

Perhaps Firefly should be the one called “The Alcove” because a driver will, if not careful, zoom right past it without giving the doors a second glance. The seemingly incoherent combination of American food and Moroccan decor may leave you initially confused, but the outdoor section in back, complete with booths and a bar, blocks to sit-on, and discrete sections should cure you of any dissatisfaction. Tea candles sparkle on tiny tables near bushes, and a night could be complete with a plan as simple as a Heineken, some buddies and a low chair nestled close to one of those well-lit slabs.

4) Warszawa

1414 Lincoln Blvd
Santa Monica, CA 90401
(310) 393-8831

Behind the Polish restaurant christened after Poland’s capital and appropriately serving food from the region, lies a large dancing—or standing space surrounded by tables and benches and crowned by the peaks of a transparent net-like tent. The crowd is often boisterous, jovially maintaining loud conversations over beer in this enclosed, youth-attracting garden.

5) Cat & the Fiddle

6530 W Sunset Blvd
Los Angeles, CA 90028
(323) 468-3800

Ever popular with those cut from every cloth, this bar’s courtyard, located in an old LA Spanish building and complete with a fountain, is a happy place to be. Neither dead nor too loud, The Cat & the Fiddle is an enchanting spot for macaroni and cheese, a burger, a Guinness or a beer. Though a cast of silver screen characters do make an appearance, this garden is neither gauche nor pretentious. The inside bears an almost TGI-Fridays atmosphere, complete with stained glass windows and booths. But the external front area where the fountain lies takes advantage of the city’s weather without sending out a cavalry of faux-accented waiters extolling the virtues of the “caprese salad and seared ahi on a bed of arugula” or a host of shawl wearing, “organic food or nothing”—consuming snobs.

6) World Cafe

2820 Main St
Santa Monica, CA 90405
(310) 392-1661

Though this main-street site attracts both a slew of cougars and of scriptwriters, its front garden, complete with minuscule rustic tables and strings upon strings of holiday lights and more bulbous fixtures, is perfect for an after-dinner (though it’s nice at breakfast and at lunch) beer near the sea.

7) Ye Olde King’s Head

132 Santa Monica Blvd
Santa Monica, CA 90401
(310) 451-1402

Two blocks from Santa Monica’s bluffs, this eatery is a bizarre and delightful mix of English pub, sports bar and beer garden. The sports bar attracts all manner of species, and girls should make note of that (while fending off roving hands) before entering. But the other two sections are as fun as they are funny. Patrons may order fish and chips, ale or draft beer (there’s a hefty list to choose from) while staring at red walls and paintings of deceased English royals (none, despite the spot’s name, appear on campus in beheaded form. Afterall, the theme is English, not French), or they can take their fried fare to the benches outside and enjoy a stray ocean (or cigarette carrying) breeze.