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Bacchanal
Bacchanal
Photo: Nikki Mayeux

30 Places to Dine or Drink Outdoors This Fall

by Gwendolyn Knapp
12 comments / new
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Bacchanal
| Photo: Nikki Mayeux
by Gwendolyn Knapp
12 comments / new

Sure the weather is atrocious today, but soon that rainy frown will be flipped upside down as Fall's cool breezes head to the Crescent City. That being said, Eater NOLA now presents 30 Places to Dine or Drink Outdoors This Fall. Also, don't forget to check out Eater's guide to 10 New Outdoor Dining Areas, including Broussard's, Dominique's on Magazine, and more beautiful new outdoor spaces that we didn't include on this list for redundancy's sake.

Don't see a patio, courtyard, or balcony that absolutely deserves to be on the map? Leave a comment or send us a tip.


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Bacchanal Wine

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This Bywater icon is home to hands down the best outdoor dining in New Orleans. Renovations have made for a new kitchen, headed by Joaquin Rhodas, and live music prevails in the relatively untouched, and gorgeously shabby, backyard. Bonus points: A new upstairs dining area for when it gets too crowded.
600 Poland Ave, New Orleans, LA 70117
(504) 948-9111
(504) 948-9111

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Café Amelie

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For a truly unique dining experience in a wonderfully lush French Quarter courtyard, folks head to the courtyard of the romantic Cafe Amelie.
912 Royal St, New Orleans, LA 70116
(504) 412-8965
(504) 412-8965

Bayona Restaurant

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Susan Spicer's impeccable French Quarter restaurant also boasts an intimate back patio, with a gurgling fountain, shade from the sun at lunch via umbrellas, and romantic lighting and white table cloths in the evening.
430 Dauphine St, New Orleans, LA 70112-3406
(504) 525-4455
(504) 525-4455

Also featured in:

Martinique Bistro

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Chef Eric Labouchere continues to impress with his seasonal interpretations of French cuisine at this Uptown haunt. The outdoor dining area is quite romantic, surrounded by giant shrubbery (for privacy) and lit ever so gently.
5908 Magazine St, New Orleans, LA 70115
(504) 891-8495
(504) 891-8495

Feelings Cafe

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This Marigny restaurant is known for their sunlit courtyard at brunch, and when the sun sinks low, an intimate respite from the grind of the neighbhorhood. There's usually live music, or the soothing sound of a fountain to accompany the dining experience.
2600 Chartres St, New Orleans, LA 70117
(504) 945-2222
(504) 945-2222

Commander's Palace

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Nothing beats twenty-five cent martinis at lunchtime, or Tory McPhail's exceptional menu of New Orleans classics like turtle soup, except maybe enjoying it all on Commander's enticing patio.
1403 Washington Ave, New Orleans, LA 70130
(504) 899-8221
(504) 899-8221

Also featured in:

The Rusty Nail

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The Warehouse District bar has a pretty epic back patio. It's a true urban oasis, so nice that lots of people actually rent it out for private functions.
1100 Constance St, New Orleans, LA 70130
(504) 525-5515
(504) 525-5515

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Cafe Degas

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The entire dining room is basically a covered deck. When the weather is nice, nothing beats brunch or an early dinner at Degas in the open-air, overlooking the chess players in Fortier Park across the street.
3127 Esplanade Ave, New Orleans, LA 70119
(504) 945-5635
(504) 945-5635

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Sylvain

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This French Quarter gastropub also features seating in the courtyard, a good option when the weather cools off and you refuse to be indoors.
625 Chartres St, New Orleans, LA 70130
(504) 265-8123
(504) 265-8123

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Parkway Bakery & Tavern

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Po' boys and outdoor seating? Yeah, you right. This Bayou St. John staple has lots of tables outside, most of them covered to protect you from the elements.
538 Hagan Ave, New Orleans, LA 70119-4911
(504) 482-3047
(504) 482-3047

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Dat Dog

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The Freret Street location of Dat Dog, also known as their 'beer garden,' has tons of picnic tables with umbrellas in their signature primary colors.
5031 Freret St, New Orleans, LA 70115
(504) 899-6883
(504) 899-6883

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Cowbell

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Chef/owner Brack May always has an insanely delicious special up his sleeve, especially on Saturdays when brunch plates like shrimp and grits are known to make an appearance. That's on top of the amazing burgers. There's lots of outdoor seating in the sun or the shade.
8801 Oak St, New Orleans, LA 70118
(504) 866-4222
(504) 866-4222

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The Delachaise

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Drive by this St. Charles favorite in the evenings or late at night, and the front patio is bound to be packed with revelers. Cheese plates, cocktails, and a streetcar view... Who can blame them?
3442 Saint Charles Ave, New Orleans, LA 70115
(504) 895-0858
(504) 895-0858

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Napolean House

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Sure you can sit inside like Willem Dafoe in a Mercedes commercial, but you should venture out onto the first floor patio to enjoy your Pimm's Cup and a midday feast.
Chartres Street, New Orleans, LA 70114

St. James Cheese Company

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Here's a great date idea. Grab your guy/gal, head to St. James, order a cheese plate and a bottle of wine, and enjoy it out front, overlooking Prytania, or on the shady patio. Dogs, btw, are always welcome here.
5004 Prytania St, New Orleans, LA 70115
(504) 899-4737
(504) 899-4737

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Bayou Beer Garden

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This Mid City bar is home to a giant covered back deck, and it gets pretty packed for Saints games. It's also great for taking in live music, or just enjoying a beer and a plate of gravy debris fries with friends.
326 N Jefferson Davis Pkwy, New Orleans, LA 70119
(504) 302-9357
(504) 302-9357

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The Velvet Cactus

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This Lakeview Mexican restaurant (on Harrison Ave) has a huge outdoor dining area that usually packs to the max when nice weather rolls into town. The entire restaurant actually has an open-air feeling.
917 Harrison Ave, New Orleans, LA 70124
(504) 301-2083
(504) 301-2083

Dante's Kitchen

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This Riverbend brunch and farm-to-table innovator has a great little courtyard that's equally no-frills as it is romantic. And, oh yeah, they've been serving black and gold jam at brunch.
736 Dante St, New Orleans, LA 70118

K-Paul's Louisiana Kitchen

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Feast on Cajun classics in a 'climate-controlled' French Quarter courtyard, or sit on the balcony for a truly lush experience overlooking Chartres.
416 Chartres St, New Orleans, LA 70130
(504) 596-2530
(504) 596-2530

Cure

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The Freret Street's impeccable craft cocktail bar is non-smoking inside, so the smokers do tend to flock to the outside patio. But earlier in the evening, during happy hour, when the sun dips low enough to not sting, this patio is perfect.
4905 Freret St, New Orleans, LA 70115
(504) 302-2357
(504) 302-2357

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Satsuma

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The Bywater location of Satsuma, has a cool little courtyard for enjoying a sandwich or coffee, while watching the hipster eyecandy stroll by on Dauphine.
3218 Dauphine St., New Orleans, LA 70117
(504) 304-5962
(504) 304-5962

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Superior Seafood & Oyster Bar

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This Uptown seafood restaurant has a covered patio overlooking Napolean, and a front porch with huge windows that open up to transform the joint into an outdoor dining destination right on St. Charles Avenue.
4338 Saint Charles Ave, New Orleans, LA 70115
(504) 293-3474
(504) 293-3474

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Santa Fe

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The Faubourg St. John location of this tapas restaurant draws crowds to their covered outdoor seating area overlooking the beautiful and bustling section of Esplanade. Nice for an afternoon/evening margarita.
3201 Esplanade Ave, New Orleans, LA 70119
(504) 948-0077
(504) 948-0077

Crescent Pie & Sausage Company

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This Mid City sausage and pizza emporium (also home to killer mac n cheese) has a handful of tables on their covered deck, overlooking quiet Banks Street.
4400 Banks St, New Orleans, LA 70119
(504) 482-2426
(504) 482-2426

Charcoal's Gourmet Burger Bar

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The Lower Garden District burger bar has bright orange balcony seating overlooking Magazine Street.
2200 Magazine St, New Orleans, LA 70130
(504) 644-4311
(504) 644-4311

The Bulldog

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The quintessential outdoor gathering spot on Magazine in the Irish Channel is always packed. Because people like to drink beer, and they like to drink it outside.
3236 Magazine St, New Orleans, LA 70115
(504) 891-1516
(504) 891-1516

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The Joint

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Bywater's barbecue mecca also has a smokin' hot back patio, and once you discover it, it's pretty much impossible to ever eat inside again.
701 Mazant St, New Orleans, LA 70117
(504) 949-3232
(504) 949-3232

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Basin Seafood & Spirits

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The newish seafood restaurant on Magazine has a quaint little courtyard in the back, a nice juxtaposition to all the sidewalk-centric dining areas along this stretch of the Irish Channel.
New Orleans, LA
(504) 302-7391
(504) 302-7391

Toups Meatery

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Chef Isaac Toups and his hilarious GM Larry Nguyen continue to amaze at this Mid City home of Cajun specialties. They have lots of outdoor seating with umbrellas for when it's too nice to eat inside.
Carrollton, New Orleans, LA 70119
(504) 252-4999
(504) 252-4999

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Bacchanal Wine

600 Poland Ave, New Orleans, LA 70117
This Bywater icon is home to hands down the best outdoor dining in New Orleans. Renovations have made for a new kitchen, headed by Joaquin Rhodas, and live music prevails in the relatively untouched, and gorgeously shabby, backyard. Bonus points: A new upstairs dining area for when it gets too crowded.
600 Poland Ave, New Orleans, LA 70117
(504) 948-9111
(504) 948-9111

Café Amelie

912 Royal St, New Orleans, LA 70116
For a truly unique dining experience in a wonderfully lush French Quarter courtyard, folks head to the courtyard of the romantic Cafe Amelie.
912 Royal St, New Orleans, LA 70116
(504) 412-8965
(504) 412-8965

Bayona Restaurant

430 Dauphine St, New Orleans, LA 70112-3406
Susan Spicer's impeccable French Quarter restaurant also boasts an intimate back patio, with a gurgling fountain, shade from the sun at lunch via umbrellas, and romantic lighting and white table cloths in the evening.
430 Dauphine St, New Orleans, LA 70112-3406
(504) 525-4455
(504) 525-4455

Martinique Bistro

5908 Magazine St, New Orleans, LA 70115
Chef Eric Labouchere continues to impress with his seasonal interpretations of French cuisine at this Uptown haunt. The outdoor dining area is quite romantic, surrounded by giant shrubbery (for privacy) and lit ever so gently.
5908 Magazine St, New Orleans, LA 70115
(504) 891-8495
(504) 891-8495

Feelings Cafe

2600 Chartres St, New Orleans, LA 70117
This Marigny restaurant is known for their sunlit courtyard at brunch, and when the sun sinks low, an intimate respite from the grind of the neighbhorhood. There's usually live music, or the soothing sound of a fountain to accompany the dining experience.
2600 Chartres St, New Orleans, LA 70117
(504) 945-2222
(504) 945-2222

Commander's Palace

1403 Washington Ave, New Orleans, LA 70130
Nothing beats twenty-five cent martinis at lunchtime, or Tory McPhail's exceptional menu of New Orleans classics like turtle soup, except maybe enjoying it all on Commander's enticing patio.
1403 Washington Ave, New Orleans, LA 70130
(504) 899-8221
(504) 899-8221

The Rusty Nail

1100 Constance St, New Orleans, LA 70130
The Warehouse District bar has a pretty epic back patio. It's a true urban oasis, so nice that lots of people actually rent it out for private functions.
1100 Constance St, New Orleans, LA 70130
(504) 525-5515
(504) 525-5515