This Japanese restaurant is on the rooftop of the $700-a-night St. Regis Hotel in Lakeshore East. The view of the skyline is incredible, and the service is even better. Miru's food isn't amazing (the long menu ranges from just-OK sushi to not-very-good entrees like burnt miso cod), but great food isn't why you're here. It's to admire the view, have a bunch of drinks or dessert, and feel like you can afford to throw money off said rooftop.

Tetto is a rooftop from the Recess team, who’ve proven they know what’s required of a fun outdoor space: lots of places to sit, a great sound system, and strong drinks. That all applies here, including little cabanas with couches and the option to buy bottle service. But what makes this West Loop rooftop someplace we want to be is that it serves food from Professor Pizza. The (former) takeout-only spot is now operating out of Tetto.

After a three-year hiatus, Best Intentions quietly reopened this year, simply writing “we back” on a teeny note posted outside their building. This also included this Logan Square bar's secluded back patio. And that cute outdoor space happens to be an ideal place to drink $10 cocktails (which are way better than they have a right to be) and eat $6 smashburgers—you can even get a baker’s dozen for $72.

If you’re familiar with Big Star, then you pretty much know what to expect from Big Star Mariscos in West Town: wooden booths, a large patio, and a menu full of margaritas and tacos. But as the name suggests, this iteration of Big Star is more seafood-focused, with a selection of ceviche, aguachile, and coctels. The food is about on par with the original (kind of average) but the service is good and it’s a lovely outdoor space to grab some cocktails and share lime-marinated corvina.

Pizza Lobo’s original Logan Square location has great pizza-by-the-slice, pitchers of beer, and a large outdoor patio. And their new Andersonville location is the same, including an enormous back patio that has firepits, astroturf, and (probably) a bunch of cute dogs. They serve thin crust (for Chicago at least) pies, and have solid red sauce options like the “amatrice yo-self” (roasted tomato, pancetta, and Calabrian chile), and white pies. Plus, they're open until midnight.

RPM Seafood checks all the boxes. It has great seafood, solid cocktails, a lively crowd, and a large riverfront patio with umbrellas to protect you from the elements. And because it’s at street level, it doesn’t suffer from the smell of sewage wafting from the underside of the Clark Street bridge. Instead, you’re treated to an elevated river view surrounded by beautiful architecture and high rises reflecting the water.

The inside of Middle Brow in Logan Square is decorated like a DIY wedding—with tea lights, wooden tables, and decorative plants in birdcages. And this brewpub/pizza spot’s huge patio has the same charming instead-of-wedding-cake-let’s-make-s’mores aesthetic. It’s a partially covered mish mash picnic tables and rustic outdoor furniture with a cute wooden bar and fire pits. It’s perfect for small groups of friends, or anytime you feel sad that you don’t have a giant backyard of your own.

This iconic Lincoln Park spot that’s famous for its take-no-shit staff and wild late-night atmosphere now has a spacious back patio, and it’s wonderful. The partially-covered backyard has tons of tables, a full bar, mini basketball court, ping pong table, TVs, and heaters. Just know that you can’t order food from the bar, so hit up the regular ol’ Wiener Circle line for a char dog and some good-natured verbal abuse—then head towards that great patio.

The Lardon is a salumeria, so the menu is full of salumi, cheese, and various meats they cure in-house. Basically a bunch of fun, snack foods that are perfect for a solo meal while getting some work done, or a casual date. Sit out on their patio, order a meat and cheese spread (which come with housemade accouterments like onion jam), some wine, and wave a cornichon around to emphasize a hilarious-yet-charmingly-relatable point you’re making.

Rose Mary is a great Croatian spot in the West Loop and reservations are hard to get. But now they’re a little bit easier thanks to extra seating on their outdoor patio. Those new outdoor tables are all covered with large umbrellas to protect you from the sun, and decorated with string lights to distract you from noticing all the construction cranes swinging around the neighborhood. The menu has dishes like delicious crni rizot topped with grilled squid and incredible pastas.