Best First Date Restaurants in Laguna Beach (2026)
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The first-date pick in Laguna Beach for 2026 is Broadway by Amar Santana, the Downtown Village room with a lively bar and a chef's counter that impresses without stiffness. Runners-up: the clifftop sunset terrace at Las Brisas, the beachfront Driftwood Kitchen, the wood fire at Oak, the intimate rooms of Selanne Steak Tavern, and the Italian value of Oliver's Osteria.
The light in Laguna goes amber an hour before sunset, and the whole town tilts toward the water. A first date here lives or dies on two things: a room you can hear each other in, and a view that does some of the talking. The best tables pair an ocean angle with a counter or bar you can slip into without a month's notice. Six Laguna Beach restaurants for a first date in 2026, ranked by how well they carry a conversation.
Six Laguna Beach Tables for a First Date
A single warm-lit room opens onto a counter where you can watch the kitchen work. Broadway sits at 328 Glenneyre Street in the Downtown Village under chef-owner Amar Santana, a Top Chef finalist named Orange County's 2026 Chef of the Year; the Spanish octopus is the order, and a five-course tasting runs 85 dollars. The bar and the chef's counter give an easy walk-in option, and the room impresses without making a first date feel formal. Book the counter for two. The strongest all-round first-date table in town.
The terrace sits on the bluff above Heisler Park, the Pacific filling the whole western view. Las Brisas has held this clifftop at 361 Cliff Drive since 1979, run by the Xperience Restaurant Group on the site of the old Victor Hugo Inn; the Camarones Tampiquenos in chardonnay and garlic is the order, the calamari 24 dollars and the braised mussels 31. A margarita on the patio at sunset is the classic, low-stakes Laguna first date. Arrive before the light goes. The pick when the view should do the talking.
Steps from the sand, the dining room opens straight onto the water and the sound of the surf. Driftwood Kitchen sits on the beachfront at 619 Sleepy Hollow Lane off Pacific Coast Highway, the DK Seafood Tower of Maine lobster, king crab and tuna tartare its centerpiece at market price, the lobster carbonara the warm order. The ocean-view bar takes walk-ins and pours hand-shaken drinks, which makes it an easy first stop. Take a table at sunset for the romance. The pick for an oceanfront first date.
A second-story room opens onto a balcony with a sliver of the Pacific past the rooftops. Oak has run at 1100 South Coast Highway since 2017 under chef Chris Tzorin, the wood-fired sea bass the order and the open fire the through-line of an upper New American menu. It is intimate and modern, quiet enough to talk, with reservations the smart move on a weekend. A balcony table at dusk does the work. The pick for a conversation-friendly room with a wood fire and a peek of the water.
Inside a 1934 house, the rooms are small and warm, a fire going in the tavern. Selanne Steak Tavern has held 1464 South Coast Highway since November 2013, executive chef Vincent Terusa cooking for co-owner and hockey Hall of Famer Teemu Selanne; the red beet ravioli is the starter and the dry-aged steaks the mains, dinner running roughly 50 to 175 dollars. The several small rooms and the Sunset Terrace keep the noise moderate, good for talking. Michelin-recommended and a confident choice. The first-date table for a step up in formality.
A small, low-lit room on Laguna Canyon Road, the pasta made in-house. Oliver's Osteria has run at 853 Laguna Canyon Road since 2018 under chef-owner Erik De Marchi, the handmade pasta and the whipped-ricotta antipasto the orders; it earned a Michelin Bib Gourmand in 2021, with two courses and a glass landing around 40 dollars. It reopened in spring 2026 after a closure, so confirm the day before you go. The room is intimate and easy on the wallet. The pick for an unfussy, value-led first date.
How to Book
Several of these rooms keep a walk-in bar, which suits a low-stakes first date: Broadway, Selanne Steak Tavern, Las Brisas and Driftwood Kitchen all have bars you can slip into without a reservation. For a table, book Broadway two to four weeks ahead, and reserve Las Brisas and Oak a few days out for a prime sunset slot. Oliver's Osteria reopened in spring 2026, so confirm it is serving the day before you go.
Laguna's light turns amber about an hour before sunset, so time the view tables for that window. Las Brisas on the Heisler Park bluff and Driftwood on the sand are the two strongest ocean angles, with Oak's balcony a quieter third. For a first date built on conversation rather than scenery, the small rooms at Broadway, Selanne and Oliver's let you actually hear each other.
Frequently Asked Questions
For 2026 the pick is Broadway by Amar Santana in the Downtown Village, a single warm room with a lively bar and a chef's counter that impresses without feeling stiff. Run by Top Chef finalist Amar Santana, named Orange County's 2026 Chef of the Year, it offers an easy walk-in counter for two and a five-course tasting at 85 dollars, which makes it the strongest all-round first-date table in town.
It ranges widely. Oliver's Osteria is the value end, with two courses and a glass landing around 40 dollars, and Broadway's five-course tasting is 85. Las Brisas runs mid-range, with calamari at 24 dollars and braised mussels at 31, while Selanne Steak Tavern is the splurge at roughly 50 to 175 dollars a head. Sharing a few plates at the bar keeps any of them affordable for a first date.
Las Brisas sits on the bluff above Heisler Park with a clifftop Pacific view, Driftwood Kitchen is on the beachfront at sand level, and Oak's second-story balcony catches a sliver of the ocean. Time any of them for sunset, when the light turns amber. Broadway, Selanne Steak Tavern and Oliver's Osteria have no ocean view but win on intimacy and conversation.
Broadway by Amar Santana, Oliver's Osteria and Selanne Steak Tavern keep the noise moderate, with small rooms you can talk across. Selanne's converted 1934 house has several intimate rooms and a fireplace, and Oliver's is a low-lit room on Laguna Canyon Road. Avoid the loud beach-party scene at The Deck if hearing each other matters.
Several rooms keep a walk-in bar, which suits a low-stakes first date: Broadway, Selanne Steak Tavern, Las Brisas and Driftwood Kitchen all have bars you can slip into. For a table, book Broadway two to four weeks ahead, and reserve Las Brisas and Oak a few days out for a prime sunset slot. Confirm Oliver's Osteria, which reopened in spring 2026, the day before you go.