If you looked up “beach bar” in a dictionary, there’s a reasonable argument the photo would be Big Dean’s. Sitting right on the Santa Monica boardwalk in the shadow of the pier, this mostly-outdoor dive has been holding down the local end of one of California’s most tourist-trafficked stretches of coast for decades, and somehow remains largely bypassed by the masses trickling down from the Third Street Promenade. The drinks are cheap, the bar food is real, and the people-watching from the patio ranks among the finest in Southern California. Board shorts welcome. No dress code. No pretension. Just cold beer with a Pacific view while the volleyball courts run up the beach.
