Out to eat

In the summer, restaurant patios are where it's at

When it's hot outside and it's time for dinner, you have two options: sitting in front of the air conditioner with the windows closed or heading to a patio in hopes of catching a breeze. The air conditioner may keep you cooler, but there's nothing like hanging out at an outdoor table, sipping a cold drink, and watching the world go by.

In anticipation of summer, which officially begins on Saturday, we've been surveying restaurant patios around Boston - from Newbury Street hot spots to Mission Hill secret gardens. Here's what we found.

Back Bay

The undisputed supreme ruler of outdoor eating in Boston is Stephanie's on Newbury (190 Newbury St., 617-236-0990. stephaniesonnewbury.com). The outdoor tables here fill up fast, probably because the see-and-be-seen quotient is so high. The best-dressed people in Boston walk by this spot, from women in little black numbers and spiked heels to men in lambskin jackets and Armani knits. Don't forget to tear your eyes away from the scenery and try the duck pizzetta salad - duck confit with baby arugula, pumpkin, carrots, and cranberries with orange Dijon dressing on soft pizza dough.

Honestly, we were always more into the nearby Armani Café than Stephanie's, mostly because of the 24/7 party overflowing with Europeans who all seemed to know and love one another. Alas, Armani Café is no more, but two of its managers recently opened Cafeteria Boston (279a Newbury St. 617-536-2233. cafeteriaboston.com). It's not quite the same as Armani, but it still offers a good opportunity to sit under an umbrella and eat a Kobe beef burger while you show off those new Prada sunglasses.

Vox Populi (755 Boylston St. 617-424-8300. voxboston.com) isn't as expensive as other places in the area, and you still get a good view of the Newbury elite walking by. Stop by for tuna tartar and tomato gorgonzola salad after shopping at the Prudential Center; you probably won't even have to wait for a seat. In fact, on a recent Sunday night, no one was sitting outside.

A much livelier outdoor scene can be found at Cottonwood Cafe (222 Berkeley St. 617-247-2225), where the enclosed patio is big enough for a few dozen people. The crowd is friendly and the servers are excel lent - and they serve the best margaritas in the city. The Southwestern fare is good too: Try the barbacoa - chicken and shrimp with yellow rice and a baked banana on the side. Amazing.

Fenway

If the craziness of Lansdowne Street isn't your thing, walk over to Thornton's Fenway Grille (100 Peterborough St. 617-421-0104). Its location doesn't exactly stick out on a tourist map, which makes it a good hideaway. The plastic deck chairs give the place a homey feel, and the menu is chock full of tasty dishes like a baked brie plate with fruit and bread and the fire house salad - buffalo chicken with bacon over greens. On one visit, the cutie waitress sat down at our table to chit-chat. It's that kind of place.

Allston/Brighton

Now that the Boston University students have gone home for the summer, it's the perfect time of year to make a jaunt down Commonwealth Avenue to Sunset Cantina (917 Commonwealth Ave. 617-731-8646). Just be prepared to listen to the B line rumbling, dinging, and honking past every few minutes. On our visit, the real noise pollution came from the two lone businessmen on either side of us jabbering away on their BlackBerries about who owes who money. Along with a Tex-Mex menu that includes overstuffed burritos, grilled fish, and chicken a dozen different ways, Sunset has 69 varieties of tequila and 38 beers on tap - just the thing to make you forget you've been cooped up in an office all day.

South End

The fairly new Beehive (541 Tremont St. 617-423-0069. beehiveboston.com) has already built up a buzzing nightlife scene, and now it has a new summertime attraction as well, the 80-seat Beehive BEEch. Located out on the busy brick plaza shared with the Boston Center for the Arts, it has a sort of "picnic in Times Square" feel. The entrees are packed in jars and served in a picnic basket. A pitcher of sangria is a great accompaniment to the signature Picnic Chicken - fried chicken served cold.

Down the road, the modern Mexican restaurant Masa (439 Tremont St. 617-338-8884. masarestaurant.com) has a few tables right on the street. The service is excellent, and the barbecue chicken quesadilla is memorable, but a word of warning: We often couldn't hear the waiter over the sounds of ambulances, motorcycles, and delivery trucks screaming by.

Faneuil Hall

Faneuil Hall is often avoided by locals, but it's one of Boston's liveliest districts for eating, drinking, and dancing - and a great place to sit outdoors and count the tourists wearing two-for-a-dollar "Boston" T-shirts. Ned Devine's (1 Faneuil Hall Market Place. 617- 248-8800) patio is right next to Ames Plow Tavern's much larger setup, so a lot of people miss it. Try a 60-60 Guinness - Guinness with a shot of Van Gogh double espresso vodka. The chicken fingers are a good staple, but don't overlook the butternut squash ravioli or pressed paninis.

North End/Waterfront

On New York's Mulberry Street, just about every Italian eatery has outdoor seating. Our Little Italy doesn't offer much in the way of outdoor dining - unless you count eating near big, open windows - but if you're in the area, Tia's (200 Atlantic Ave. 617-227-0828) on the waterfront is the place to go, especially for big groups. Everyone seems to know each other here. It's a high-energy place, where you can eat everything from lobster to boneless buffalo wings and you're bound to catch some sort of radio station promotion. The views along the water are nice, too. As you stare at the waterfront condos and watch the commuter boats motoring in and out of the harbor, you may even find yourself thinking, "Gee, I wish I lived there." At least we did.

Mission Hill/Roxbury/Dorchester

If it's a garden patio you're after, try the Savant Project (1625 Tremont St. 617-566-5958. thesavantproject.com), a relative newcomer in Mission Hill. The backyard patio has tall, viney flowers and gas heaters for cold nights, all surrounded by a tall picket fence and an urban view of buildings and fire escapes. The tiny bistro tables force you to sit close to the rest of your party, giving the place an intimate feel, and at night, candlelight adds a touch of romance. If it's food you're after, try the cheddar-stuffed burger and the truffled polenta logs.

Across town at the Ashmont Grill (555 Talbot Ave. 617-825-4300. ashmontgrill.com), you can sit by a fire on the big garden patio out back. You won't believe you're in Dorchester. It's a comfortable place, with metal chairs and tables that make you feel like you're sitting on the family deck. Oh, and they serve hot dogs, too.

John Guilfoil can be reached at jguilfoil @globe.com