Best Patios for a Summer Evening in Ann Arbor, MI
Updated September 24, 2026
Ann Arbor's outdoor seating splits into three areas: downtown, the Jackson Avenue corridor and the near west side. Pick the one closest to you and stay put.
## Downtown [The Grotto - Watering Hole](/places/the-grotto-watering-hole) at 303 S Ashley St and [Spencer](/places/spencer) at 113 E Liberty St are a few minutes apart, both off the busiest part of Main Street. [Blue LLama Jazz Club and Restaurant](/places/blue-llama-jazz-club-and-restaurant) at 314 S Main St puts you on Main itself, next door to [The Ark](/places/the-ark) at 316 S Main St if you want music afterwards. [Aventura](/places/aventura) at 216 E Washington St and [Mani Osteria and Bar](/places/mani-osteria-and-bar) at 341 E Liberty St round out the walkable set.
## Jackson Avenue and the west side [HOMES Brewery - Brewpub](/places/homes-brewery-brewpub) at 2321 Jackson Ave is the west-side anchor, and it's the one to choose when downtown parking looks grim. [The Jefferson Market](/places/the-jefferson-market) at 609 W Jefferson St is the quieter Old West Side stop, better for early evening than late.
## South State [Biercamp](/places/biercamp) at 1643 S State St is the south-side option, close to the Briarwood side of town. [Zingerman's Coffee Company](/places/zingerman-s-coffee-company) at 3723 Plaza Dr #5 is nearby and works earlier in the day.
## Making an evening of it Any of the downtown stops above is within a few blocks of [Nightcap](/places/nightcap) at 220 S Main St and [The Ravens Club](/places/the-ravens-club) at 207 S Main St, so you can start outside and finish indoors without moving the car.
The full ranked set is at [patios in Ann Arbor, MI](/best/patios), with more in [breweries](/best/breweries) and [bars](/best/bars).
