Dining out in the summer is best when it’s served with fresh air and sunshine, which is why it’s not a surprise that consumers are eagerly awaiting outside dining now more so than ever. Based on OpenTable, it is reported that the desire to eat outdoors was up 19 percent in the first week of June compared to the same timeframe the year before.
To meet the growing need, the restaurant technology company recently released a study -the top restaurants for Outdoor Dining in America 2023 Edition– after analyzing over 13 million customer reviews on their website. (To create the list for its annual edition, OpenTable looked at diner reviews from May 1st, 2022, and April 30th, 2023, taking into account the studies that have at least a minimum score overall, including diner rating as well as user clout and review count, and regional ratings.)
“With many restaurants elevating outdoor dining spaces for summer and beyond, this list represents dining destinations with incredible outdoor — and culinary — offerings,” Susan Lee, Chief growth officer, stated in a press release obtained by and published by Travel + Leisure.
Its Top 100 list spans 20 states across the United States and is primarily based in areas with warm weather. California is ranked top with 31 restaurants, including Dana Point’s Coastal Kitchen; Orange’s King’s Fish House; Palm Springs’ Spencer’s Restaurant; and Cardiff-by-the Sea’s Pacific Coast Grill.
Florida was next with 17 restaurants, including Celebration’s Columbia Restaurant, Sarasota’s The Rosemary & Thyme, and Lake Buena Vista’s Raglan Road Irish Pub. Hawaii came in third place with ten spots. These include Honolulu’s House Without A Key, Lahaina’s Mala Ocean Tavern, and Paia’s Mama’s Fish House in Maui.
The smallest state in the nation, Rhode Island, also was a big winner with four restaurants spread across cities including Tiverton’s Boat House Waterfront Dining and Providence’s Los Andes Restaurant and Narragansett’s The Coast Guard House Newport’s The Lawn at Castle Hill Inn.
The list of this year’s winners included many familiar names from the previous year’s list, like New York’s Cafe Luxembourg; Los Angeles’ Bacari Silverlake; San Francisco’s Foreign Cinema; Napa, California’s Bistro Don Giovanni and C-Level in San Diego; Arlington, Virginia’s Ruthie’s All-Day including Tampa Florida’s Ulele. The first-timers included are Yountville, Calif.’s Bistro Jeanty; Santa Fe, New Mexico’s Izanami and Honolulu’s Orchids at Halekulani.
“For every seven new Napa cabernets launched each year, there’s something different and exciting like that. It’s important to support them.”
No matter how many revered and paid-for wineries Napa has in the present, there is a reason that the Valley was founded by guys similar to Dan Baron — a hippie who came to Napa in 1970 and eager, young producers. These people vinify their wine in the evenings and earn the money to bottle it. The Press reflects this reality well.
“I always want to maintain the older-vintage backbone, but Vinny pushes me to also look for the new,” Samantha Rudd says. “We have to be on the forefront of the trends in Napa, taking risks. This Valley is meant to be a food and wine mecca, and we have to keep pushing what Napa can do. There’s so much cache here that the restaurant industry rests on its laurels. It was time, at least at Press, to not do that anymore.”