Big Dean’s Oceanfront Café

El bar más yankee de todo Santa Monica, barra, fútbol en todas las tvs, birra tirada y hombres con bigotes gruesos y sombreros. Las mejores hamburguesas del universo y papas delicia. Atención diez puntos! Nada caro en comparación al resto de esta zona.

Just a quick clarification– this is very awesome place! I loved it there & stayed like 2hr longer than planned. No fancy dishes or food that deserves Michelin stars, but great vibe that makes you feel like you are in your home dive bar that was just teleported to the ocean side. Masterpiece!

I have been going to Big Deans for 30 plus years and have never had a bad day there. I had spent hours and dollars drinking pitchers of lowenbrau back in the day in the back patio. The Cheese Burgers are as good today as back in the 80’s. In fact I am going to stop by today for one!
I still to this day bring my out of town friends and family to this spot as the laid back atmosphere always impresses. Lots and beer and drink choices and awesome people watching. I was really happy when the renovated the restrooms a few years back… It was a tight fit previously.
Alway a great time and Rock n Roll!

Super packed. But we sit at the back and got served quicky. The waiter was friendly. Food came out quick. We were starving so we ate quickly but the food was fairly good for the price also.

My husband have the Philly cheesesteak and I had the fish and chips. His was fantastic mine was a little well-​done but that’s OK. The atmosphere was great staff was wonderful and the weather was perfect. The music also added to the atmosphere which was awesome. The weirdest thing was they don’t have an ice machine so drinks come in a can that’s just kind of weird for me. :-)

Hello Marty,
This happened Sunday evening. Unfortunately we were not able to speak to anyone on staff about it, as the vomiting bouncer was always within earshot. However, given that one of the people waiting on us was cleaning up his vomit, he was clearly aware of the situation.
Please note that I’m not trying to get this employee in trouble, I simply think that a more appropriate response to the situation would be for him to have been sent home.

Sitting in front of the Santa Monica pier, with the sun setting, beer never tasted better. The primary draw of Dean’s is the view. It’s in a spectacular location. The 32 oz. Bud Lights go down easy (two of these massive cups is a gallon of beer). The tater tots are a staple, we get them with guac on the side (and hence «Guac tots.» I don’t know how, but it makes sense in cali). Similarly our savvy tour guide ordered «Patty Melts» off the menu, which is basically a grilled cheese with a hamburger inside. Delish. The décor leaves something to be desired (divey is putting it nicely) but all in all the place is an institution. It is crowded until the sun sets, at which point it clears out quickly.

After a long bike ride from Manhattan Beach, I needed myself a cold brew. I was able to get a seat at the bar. I ordered about 3 beers only. I didn’t try any of their food. So, this review is solely for the front bar & and customer service. The price average for 6 beers with tip was about $ 40.00? I think that was fairly good. The service was good, but not super great.
The location looks pretty small from the outside, but if you walk towards the back. They have a nice little outdoor patio. The restrooms are kept super clean.
Bar in the front — had fly issues. There were flies flying everywhere. I’m not sure if this is normal. I will return to sit in their back patio. Summer is just around the corner.

Arrived in town on Friday and most locations near by appear to be high end or too fancy. Big Dean’s made me feel right at home! Patio in the front for people watching and patio in the back to chill with friends. I had a special which was a delicious tender $ 12 New York steak sandwich with fries and a few $ 5 bottles of Stella. Plenty of beer on tap, staff was friendly with happy to be alive attitude and I definitely would come back!
If you’re in the area give it a try! It’s a great location near Santa Monica pier and the beach. I love beaches!

Great beach bar, sports bar etc. lots of seating, really good burgers and overall menu. Lots of everything!!! The staff are super friendly and the service is every quick. Don’t let the line scare you as it moves very quickly! They have a hidden back area and additional bar that you can’t see from the entry! (It’s also outdoor too) if you get seating in the front of the bar… some of the best people watching ever! They have huge draft beers and the pricing is fair! This is hands down the best beach bar in Santa Monica /​Venice!

Great place for a casual lunch at Santa Monica Pier. Exceptional service and prices are reasonable.

This place rocks. As long as I’ve lived here, this has been one of my favorite spots. They use breadcrumbs to fry the fish in which is always way better than batter so it’s badass. Great vibe, look out at the people, enjoy the weather. That’s why I love this town!

Great times at this Santa Monica classic. Burgers are great and so are the fish tacos. You have a few beers to chose from, classic beers… no micro brew. Plenty of sun in the back. Totally recommend.

Cool vibe going in, for sure. Beers are a good price, had the wahoo tacos, pretty good. What killed it for me is I ordered chips and salsa; chips were homemade, which is nice but then the salsa they gave me… Wow Straight out of a jar from the grocery store that’s all super red tomatoey, no flavor, no spice. Come on now, fresh chips but store bought salsa, that’s crap? At least go to a Mexican store and buy pre made Mexican salsa. Shame

Big Deans was an okay place. The service was just okay — it took a while to get waited on and the server wasn’t SUPER attentive. But the food was good and reasonably priced, as was the beer and it was a great beach front location so I would definitely recommend with the caveat that the service may not be the best but everything else is good.

The business did respond and I feel the need to at least give them an account of exactly what happen that day with me and my wife. If the owner is listening, this is an exact account of what my wife and I experienced at your business.
My wife and I approach the front of the business at the same time as another couple. A young man (did not catch the name) approach them within seconds and greeted them with a friendly and warm hello and quickly seat them. Got their drinks order and brought it to them. We were waiting patiently and assume that as soon as the young man was done, he would surely seat us. That was not the case, he didn’t even acknowledge us and walked right pass us back to the bar. We were baffled and confuse, and was not sure what had just happen, but as we stood their like idiots waiting for someone to come seat us, we hear laugher coming from the bar what we saw sicken me. Something was said because the three men and the bartender all looked at us while the young man kelp himself distracted with simple task. There were only 5 people in the place at that time so I know for sure they saw us. I simple cannot understand why we were ignor and was refuse service.
I want to thank you to the person that respond to my review and, maybe it was a disgruntled employees but reguardless, I won’t be returning to this establishment.

Best place in Santa Monica!!!
Cold beer and great burgers with the most friendly staff…

Found this spot to watch football, the staff is so friendly, attentive and funny. It’s bar food, beer, football, a good crowd and pigeons ugh the friggin aggressive pigeons.

So glad I found this place! Literally steps away from the pier and beach. A great location with reasonable prices!
My roommates and I decided to eat here before the twilight concert on the pier. We walked up and they checked our IDs and then we had to find our own table. It looks small at first but there’s plenty of room in the back. Our waiter got to us quickly and served our drinks and food in a blink of an eye. Their drinks were priced reasonably. Approx $ 5-​$ 7 depending on what you get. The food ranged from $ 8-​$ 10. I got the half fish and chips for $ 7, my roommate got the full one for $ 9.50, and my other roommate got the cheeseburger for $ 6! Seriously a steal. The food was good and the service was great. Everyone was very laid back but attentive too. A good place I’m sure I’ll be returning to!

So this place was great all around. It was a really nice small place that had a lot of outdoor seating! The inside was the bar and maybe 4 in dining tables, but the rest of the tables were outside of in the backyard. It was kind of like a style of a House.
The people were very friendly and it seemed like this place was owned by a whole bunch of guys that are best friends.
It’s right next to the beach too which gave it some cool beachy so cal vibes to it.
The portions are also very big! I got a chili cheese burger and it was LOOAAADED with chili. I killed the whole thing cause it was so yummy.
Definitely recommend if you are in the Santa Monica area!

Great little place to just chill & drink with friends. When you first walk in, it looks small but there’s this whole other back area with more tables to sit at. There’s even this grass area where you can relax on.
The staff are really friendly & attentive. Our server looked like a surfer prince charming haha.
I order a full order of the fish & chips ($ 9.50) that came with fries & a salad & my bf ordered the single patty cheeseburger ($ 6.50). The cheeseburger didn’t come with any sides but even so, my bf & I shared and it was a good amount of food. Pretty affordable for a place right next to the Santa Monica beach.
I also got the pear cider (I think it was $ 6) and it was pretty good! I want to try the apple cider next time.

This place is right up my alley. BEACHSIDE! FAIR PRICES! SPORTS BAR! BEER!
It is an honest to goodness freakin’ restaurant. I’m talking you can get a corn dog for like $ 3 (again, we’re beachfront and primo rob people blind location). Yea, it’s just a basic little sports bar, but THIS is what I expect from humanity. SOOOOO chill… all the employees are mega chill… like those white boys that are like… hang 10 bra… need another brew? everything cool? like that vibe. basically, I really loved this place. it screams the socal that I want the world to see… nothing like that preppy little Barbrix stuck up snobby you need a reservation restaurant. THIS… THIS RIGHT HERE is my definition of L.A. ok… maybe its santa monica… but still.

I am hesitant to write this review, as I am with all of my favorite locations. Mostly because I am selfish and want want to keep the west side gems hidden.
With that said, this is by far the best day drinking location on the west side.
They have:
TVs– with Sports Net, Go Dodgers!
Cold beer
Sun
Shade– if you’re into that
Food
In addition, its on the beach. Life doesn’t get much better!
Tip: Über to the Ocean & Colorado then walk down, it will save a you time and money with all the traffic.

I will admit I really don’t care for the Santa Monica pier. I don’t think I would ever go and eat dinner there or just hang out, so when my buddy decided that’s where we should have our monthly lunch I sort of cringed.
I drive over and got stuck with $ 12 parking and I thought this is why I don’t come here, but as they say «in for a dollar, in for a pound» or something like that!
On to Big Deans, it have to respectfully disagree with some other Unilocal reviews. It is what it is. A divy beach burger bar. And it’s very good. We had the fish tacos to start, crispy and with a bite! Nice. Then the all famous Big Dean burger, 2 patties with all the trimmings and gooey cheese. Beautiful greasy perfect beach unit. Beers are cold and the tables are in the sun. What more can you ask?
Oh, how bout a little LA beach attitude… they got that and it’s just fine. I’d come back if I can figure out better parking. Which I can if I really think about it. Good find.

We stopped in here not long ago to catch a playoff basketball game. We are from out of town and watched the first half at a bar down the pier but no one was there. This spot had more people and a better sports atmosphere. It is indoor/​outdoor and on a cool day they had the ceiling heaters on which really helped.
I would recommend this to people hanging at Santa Monica Pier — A nice hole in the wall (in a good way) sports bar =)

Perfect place to people watch by the Santa Monica Pier, sat outside with my son and ate some fried foodstuffs.
FISH N CHIPS
Good crunchy batter exterior, nice hot fish inside… squeeze on some lemon, good stuff.
CORN DOG
Can’t go wrong with 4 yr old and a corn dog, my son ate it up.
FRENCH FRIES N ONION RINGS
Decent fries, really good onion rings.

Gut gelegene Bar mit wohl dem besten Cheeseburger der Welt! Man sieht es dem Laden nicht an, aber der Cheeseburger ist super. Ansonsten alles offen, live TV und Bier gibts hier in 0,933 L für 7,50 Dollar!
Kann ich nur empfehlen!