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.
