Now There’s an Outdoor Dining Guide to Pasadena’s Restaurants

Anxious to get out of the house? Want to dine out safely? Now there’s a guide for that.

As part of the continuing effort to support local restaurants as the city continues to expand its outdoor dining offerings, Visit Pasadena announced the release of its Pasadena Outdoor Dining Guide.

The guide features more than 75 restaurants open for al fresco dining.

“We are so excited to see all the innovation and creativity from our business community and the city of Pasadena during these times to provide a safe environment for our visitors,” said Jeanne Goldschmidt, executive director of the Pasadena Convention & Visitors Bureau in a prepared statement. “Visit Pasadena is pleased to offer the Pasadena Outdoor Dining Guide to support our local restaurants.”

Restaurants were hit particularly hard by the coronavirus after Gov. Gavin Newsom forced them to close all operations in March except for take-out dining. The move forced a handful of local eateries to close, including Kabuki’s in Old Pasadena, Du Par’s and Lincoln’s.

After local restaurants spent thousands of dollars to meet state guidelines to reopen indoor dining operations, they took another hit when Newsom again closed indoor dining last month.

As the city began discussing reopening dining operations former restaurateur Robin Salzer began pitching the idea of moving restaurants into the streets.

The idea seemed to lose traction but was implemented after Newsom’s new order once again closing indoor dining.

After moving operations outdoors, several restaurants told Pasadena Now they have seen their most successful nights since the pandemic shut down orders were issued in March, though with limited capacities.

But whether or not that new business model will save Pasadena’s restaurant businesses remains an open question.

That initial success could be strengthened by the Outdoor Dining Guide.

“The city values our partnership and works in coordination with the Convention Center and Visitors Bureau,” said Pasadena Public Information Officer Lisa Derderian. “They have and continue to reach out to our businesses and restaurateurs to promote their efforts to help them succeed during these trying times”

This is the fourth online publication designed to support the business community during the crisis caused by the Coronavirus.

“Dine Pasadena” and “Shop Pasadena” promote local restaurants and small retail businesses open for business. “Connect Pasadena,” provides a list of educational and engaging virtual activities from Pasadena businesses and cultural institutions.

The directories have received over 25,000 page views and feature over 300 Pasadena businesses.

“We are excited because we’re seeing so much innovation and so much creativity from our restaurants, trying to make sure that they can open up,” said Christine Susa, director of marketing & communications at the Pasadena Convention & Visitors Bureau.

“And I know the city is doing so much to support and find a way that we can help our restaurants thrive during these times.”

Last week, the Pasadena City Council voted to cap fees charged by third party delivery services like Grubhub and Doordash to stop local restaurants from being gouged by those services.

“We’ve seen a lot of businesses opening up into the streets and finding new ways that we can have our household gather safely and still enjoy all the things that Pasadena has to offer,” Susa said.

The guide can be found at https://www.visitpasadena.com/food-drink/outdoor-dining/