12 Outdoor Dining Space Ideas
Now that the outside of our house is finally painted, my next goal is to create an intimate dining space in the backyard. Our yard at the back of our house is small and there’s really not much you can do with it. We own the lot next to our house so the vegetable gardening, games of catch with the grand kids, or other outdoor activities take place in that lot, or what we call our “side yard.” I’ve decided in 2015 to turn our backyard into a place we can dine alfresco, and I found 12 outdoor dining ideas on Houzz to help inspire me.
Eclectic Patio by Beverly Hills Interior Designers & Decorators Sandy Koepke
This intimate dining area has beautiful chippy metal chairs and a great wood table.
Hanging lights and lanterns create a romantic ambiance. Love!
Mediterranean Patio by Tustin Landscape Architects & Landscape Designers Site Design Studio
In this alfresco dining space, a pergola of sorts is created with trees.
I’ve always loved a pebble patio like this and am leaning toward doing that in our yard.
It allows rainwater to sink into the earth, which is better for the environment than a concrete patio.
Mediterranean Patio by Other Metro Photographers Tongue in Cheek Antiques
I don’t know what it is about billowing curtains that sweep me away but I love this.
My only problem is … how do you keep them clean or from getting moldy?
If you know a secret, let me know in the comments below!
Contemporary Deck by Adelaide Media & Bloggers Jeni Lee
A simple deck helps define a dining space and I love this one with its brick background.
Mediterranean Landscape by New York Architects & Building Designers Oscar Interiors
Would you love a view like this from your outdoor dining space? I know I would!
This photo is exactly why I want to travel to Italy and dine alfresco at a vineyard.
I could easily spend all day here.
Farmhouse Landscape by Other Metro Interior Stylists Catherine Sandin
Speaking of vineyards, there’s one just 5 miles down the road that has a view similar to this.
Hubby and I love to go there and eat out on the patio and enjoy the view of the grapevines.
That’s the type of experience and ambiance I want to create in my backyard.
Eclectic Landscape by Winters Photographers Dave Adams Photography
This is probably close to what my backyard will look like.
I want lots of plants and flowers, with a pebble patio and maybe a little bit of grass.
A bubbling fountain would be nice too.
Traditional Porch by Savannah Interior Designers & Decorators Linn Gresham Haute Decor
This outdoor dining space is a charmer. I love the brick patio, the wicker chair, the lantern on the table, the twinkling lights overhead, and the greenery in the background. I think I’m going to add wicker chairs to my list of must-haves for my alfresco dining space.
This Boho Chic space adds fun color to the summer dining experience.
Note the use of  several colorful rugs underfoot.
Contemporary Deck by Spokane Architects & Building Designers Uptic Studios
Okay, how cool is this idea? I love this little bar space where you can serve guests right from your kitchen window! Granted, a few bugs might fly in so maybe this concept works best with a screened porch.
Why not bring your dining room chairs outside for a dinner party?
Lanterns overhead add a festive touch.
Eclectic Landscape by Other Metro Media & Bloggers Adrienne DeRosa
So what do you think? Do you like dining al fresco? If you do, I’d love to hear what you’ve done with your outdoor dining space to make it as enjoyable as possible.
Lovely! I do love dining out and have several outdoor living areas, 2 with dining tables. We live in a wooded area, though, so bugs are a pretty big nuisance. One of our areas is a screen porch off the kitchen. I have outdoor curtains, and they did look a little worse for the wear at the end of the season. I just washed them with a little bleach before packing them away, and they came out okay. I like them so much that I would replace them every season if I have to. Easy for me to say, I make my own and have a great source for nice fabric at fire sale prices. Thank you for sharing these charming bits of outdoor inspiration!
You’ve got me dreaming of those long summer evenings!!
Beautiful.
Will you be starting from scratch, or is there already a deck or porch or patio that you need to incorporate into the design? Will you need access to a kitchen, or will you have an outdoor kitchen? Where we live, a screened in area at night would be best because of the mosquitoes in the summer.
I love every example you have posted! I can’t wait to see what you do.
I tried the pea gravel paths in my garden once and it looked great for one season. Then the nutsedge took over. And I’ve discovered that its virtually impossible to eradicate. It came through multiple layers of landscape fabric with newspapers on top of that, so I redid it and this time used thick cardboard. Still came through. I was so disappointed.
If you get it to work for you I will be so excited and eager to learn how.
I have a patio at the rear of the house. It has flagstone and in between the stones is pea gravel….makes it easy to zap weeds and grass that will grow in there. And in some spots I have creeping sedum growing there and its pretty. Can’t wait to see what you do!!!
Gorgeous inspiration Jennifer! I notice many of the spaces are covered, that’s so nice for when it rains. I’m excited to see your finished outdoor space.
Sally
We built a pergola in our small backyard, with cobblestones underneath. I planted a Wisteria to grow up it for shade, greenery and those lovely hanging flowers. I also hung outdoor patio lights that give it a magical quality at night. One day I would love to hang drapery panels like above. I love wicker furniture. I’m on the lookout for chairs that have a wingback. I saw them on another blog and fell for them. If anyone knows where I can purchase them, I’d love a heads up.
Can’t wait to see what you do with your small footprint.
Lots of beautiful inspiration…….thank you!
Carolyn
Open the bottle of wine, Jennifer! I’ll meet you in the photo of Italy! 🙂
I agree with Nikki, pea gravel does not make a good patio. We did it, too. Looked nice for one year, then after winter snow melt and spring rains, much of it washed away into the grass surrounding the patio. we loved the idea of it, but it just didn’t work for us, so we scooped all the gravel out and laid down patio block/holland pavers. We also found that pea gravel is not the best thing to walk on or set chairs on–they have a tendency to sink. I used the leftover gravel to mulch around shrubs, with raised brick edging to keep the gravel from washing out into the lawn.
Being from Houston, we spend so many evenings outside – the weather is often perfect. I love these outdoor patio ideas, you’ve sent my mind to work planning how to transform our backyard.
Some of these ideas are absolutely stunning. I have such a tiny garden but I would love to do something like the above to it. I adore outdoor dining and have recently bought a Lotus Grill BBQ which is small and compact, perfect for my garden 😉 You can get them here – http://www.cuckooland.com/dnc/cuckooland/brand/450/lotus-grill