Best Trendy Restaurants in Santa Monica (90402)
6 hand-picked restaurants, AI-analyzed and critic-validated
Notable Picks
8.8
A modern French fine-dining room where art and tasting-menu cooking share the spotlight, MUSE feels like a grown-up dinner party in Santa Monica Canyon. Expect tableside flourishes, rare wines, and meticulous plates that lean rich and indulgent rather than minimalist.
Must-Try Dishes:
Veal bonbons with sauce verte, Lobster with pommes soufflées and caviar, Vanilla St. Honoré
What makes it special: Gallery-like French dining where fine art and tasting menus meet.
This low-lit Italian institution has been drawing industry regulars for decades with ultra-classic pastas, luxe seafood, and a tight, reservations-only room. The cooking leans rich and traditional, with simple sauces and generous truffle and butter moments.
Must-Try Dishes:
Sweet corn agnolotti in white truffle sauce, Spaghetti bottarga, Langostine grigliate
What makes it special: Classic coastal Italian with decades of star-studded regulars.
#3
Farmshop
8.5
Inside Brentwood Country Mart, Farmshop is an all-day California restaurant and market known for farmer’s-market brunches and carefully sourced plates. It doubles as a social hub where shoppers, creatives, and families linger over coffee, wine, and polished, produce-forward dishes.
Must-Try Dishes:
Shirred Eggs with lamb merguez, dates & yogurt, Buttermilk Biscuit with fra’mani ham & sunny-side egg, Brioche French Toast with strawberries & mascarpone
What makes it special: A chef-driven breakfast with bakery-level pastries in a chic market setting.
8.4
Since 1990, this narrow Italian dining room has delivered cozy, candlelit plates of pasta and seafood to locals who treat it like their weekly canteen. The space is intimate and slightly old-school, but the cooking is warm, generous, and quietly romantic.
Must-Try Dishes:
Zuppa di pesce in guazzetto, Fettuccine Bolognese, Veal Milanese
What makes it special: A long-running, snug Italian spot where regulars swear by the pastas and seafood.
8.3
Vibes:
Date Night Magic
Group Dining Gatherings
Birthday & Celebration Central
Comfort Food Classics
Dating back to 1949, Golden Bull is a revamped canyon chophouse with leather booths, stiff cocktails, and a surprisingly lively late-night bar crowd. The menu leans into prime rib, classic steaks, and upgraded tavern fare in a wood-paneled room and patio.
Must-Try Dishes:
Prime rib with Yorkshire pudding, French onion soup, Filet mignon
What makes it special: Midcentury steakhouse energy with fireplaces and canyon locals.
8.1
Part of the Rustic Canyon family, this tiny ice cream shop turns out small-batch scoops made from scratch, often inspired by the nearby farmers’ market. Flavors skew playful and seasonal, drawing families, date-night couples, and sweet-toothed locals after dinner at the Mart.
Must-Try Dishes:
Salted Caramel Ice Cream, Fresh Mint Chip Ice Cream, Campfire Sundae
What makes it special: Serious small-batch ice cream made with organic, farmers market-driven ingredients.