Date night in Ventura County, by the kind of night you want.

Aloha Steakhouse

Ventura

On the Ventura Promenade facing the beach, and the restaurant says every table has an ocean view. It's an island-themed steak and seafood house: the rib eye and New York strip are $43, and the tableside filet mignon ($62) comes with a bit of a show. Get a drink on the bar patio first and let dinner run into the sunset.

Happy hour is 3 to 6 PM on weekdays.

Brophy Bros.

Ventura

A seafood house and clam bar on Ventura Harbor since 2007, busy and friendly rather than hushed. The menu runs on chowder and oysters; the cioppino is $21.50 and the blackened sea bass is $32.95. The dock for the lighted night pedal boats is right out front, if you want something to do after.

Get on the Yelp waitlist before you drive over on a weekend night.

Waterside Restaurant & Wine Bar

Oxnard

In Marine Emporium Landing on Channel Islands Harbor, with a patio on the water and live music some nights. The menu is broad and fairly priced: cioppino is $27, grilled salmon is $30, and a filet mignon tops the steaks at $59.

It closes at 9 every night it's open, so book an early table. The patio and live music are described by Marine Emporium Landing's site rather than the restaurant's own.

The Oak at Ojai Valley Inn

Ojai

The resort's indoor-outdoor restaurant. The outdoor tables sit under a pergola looking across old oaks and the golf course to the Topatopa Mountains, which is the view to book for. The fall menu has seared diver scallops with polenta ($45) and a 14 oz Harris Ranch ribeye ($72), and the resort says its produce is organic, most of it from Ojai farms.

Resort pricing: most entrees are $36 to $45 and sides are extra. The phone number is the resort's main line.

Mediterraneo

Westlake Village

The restaurant at the Westlake Village Inn, and its own site pitches the lakeside setting for a sunset dinner. The menu runs from short rib pappardelle to whole branzino and a 16 oz prime ribeye, there's a sommelier on staff, and some evenings have live music. With a dress code and a preference for reservations, it's a dress-up night.

Prices aren't posted online, so $$$ is our estimate from the menu.

Yār on the Lake

Westlake Village

New in 2026 in the old Zin Bistro space at The Landing, with tables by Westlake Lake and Mediterranean plates built for sharing. Start with the charred Greek octopus or the lamb lollies, then split a whole branzino. Dinner starts at 4 on Tuesdays and Wednesdays, early enough to eat while it's still light out.

It opened in spring 2026, so hours may still shift. Prices aren't posted online; $$$ is our estimate.

House of Bamboo

Camarillo

Old Town Camarillo's tiki bar: lava rock, carved teak and the glowing lanterns in the photo at the top of this page, with a rum-heavy menu that runs from a Mai Tai ($17) to a three-rum Zombie ($21). Last seating is 9:30, so make it the first stop of the night and split a pupu plate if dinner comes later.

Strictly 21 and over. Closed Monday and Tuesday. When we booked in the spring, weekend tables were two weeks out.

Bank of Italy Cocktail Trust

Ventura

An Italian-leaning cocktail bar in the old Bank of Italy building on Main Street, with drinks built on amaro and vermouth plus a natural wine list. After dinner, the Coffee Negroni is made with Coastal Coffee Collective cold brew. Cocktails are $13 to $15, and it's the latest-open room on this page.

Strange Beast, a Japanese-style highball bar that also serves ramen late, is in the same building if you want a second stop.

The Cave at Ventura Wine Company

Ventura

A candlelit wine bar hidden inside a wine shop in an industrial park off McGrath Street, and the plain outside gives nothing away. About 40 wines pour by the ounce or the glass, or you can pull a bottle off the shelves and drink it at your table for a corkage fee. There's a real kitchen too, with braised short ribs and a pepper-crusted Wagyu sirloin.

Live music starts at 5:30 most nights, so it isn't silent. Closed Sunday and Monday.

Oak & Iron

Thousand Oaks

A craft cocktail bar on Thousand Oaks Boulevard since 2018, with a downstairs speakeasy room it uses for parties and tastings. The Smokey Edward is bourbon, orange and bitters served smoked, and if you can't decide, Dealer's Choice has the bartender build something around what you like. Cocktails are $16 to $20.

Tuesdays and Dodger game nights run drink specials, so those nights are busier.

Prosperous Penny

Westlake Village

The cocktail bar inside the Four Seasons, with a list built around 1920s Prohibition-era drinks, like the Flapper's Fancy (Auchentoshan 12-year single malt, Fernet-Branca, cucumber, lime and honey). Come on a Tuesday or Thursday for the 8 to 10 PM jazz set.

Drink prices aren't posted online, so $$$$ is our estimate. Expect Four Seasons pricing.

Ox & Ocean at Zachari Dunes

Oxnard

The restaurant and bar at Zachari Dunes on Mandalay Beach. Come for sunset, then take a drink out to the fire pit on the open-air patio; the Pacific Fog Old Fashioned (Elijah Craig with peach-cinnamon syrup, $20) suits a cool night by the fire. Dinner leans on Oxnard produce and seafood if you want to stay.

Cocktails are $18 to $20. Happy hour is Sunday to Thursday, 4 to 6 PM, at the bar and patio only.

Snug Bar at Hotel El Roblar

Ojai

The small lobby bar at Hotel El Roblar on Ojai Avenue, set up for a slow drink before dinner or a quiet nightcap after. Classic cocktails, a strong agave list, and wines from California, Baja and Spain. Condor Bar, the hotel's wood-fired grill, is just past the lobby if you want to eat first.

Drink prices aren't posted online, so $$$ is our estimate.

Nectar of the Dogs Wine

Simi Valley

The tasting room for a small dog-rescue winery, and by its own count Simi Valley's only one. Afternoons are a relaxed tasting (six wines for $30), and evenings turn into a wine bar with trivia on Wednesdays, a jam night on Thursdays and live music on weekends. You can bring your own dinner in.

21 and over, with a $25 minimum per person. It moved to a bigger space in spring 2026, so older map listings may show the old address.

Sunset on the Ventura Pier

Ventura

Park near Surfers Point and walk the beachfront promenade east to the pier. Beach House Tacos has a counter and a patio right on the planks, and at happy hour a Baja fish taco is $5 and three street tacos are $6. The kitchen closes at 8, so in summer eat first and walk out to the end of the pier for the sunset after.

Then eat: Beach House Tacos, on the pier

The math, from its posted menu: two Baja fish tacos, two orders of street tacos and chips come to $25 at happy hour, or about $30 for four tacos at regular prices.

Free Friday at Ventura Botanical Gardens

Ventura

The gardens drop their $15 admission on Fridays. Walk the hillside path above downtown in the late afternoon for the ocean view, then, when the lot closes at 5, move the car to the free structure at Poli and Oak and walk over to Moby's On Main for pinball, old arcade games and Thrifty ice cream.

Then eat: Moby's On Main, 369 E Main St

Games at Moby's are $1 to $5 each, so a $20 card covers a few rounds for both of you. The gardens close on rainy days and Mondays.

The pink moment from Libbey Park

Ojai

On a clear evening the Topatopa Mountains east of town turn pink for a few minutes around sunset, and Libbey Park in the middle of downtown is a free place to watch. Get there 20 minutes early and take a bench, then walk east on Ojai Avenue to Ojai Pizza, in town since 1995, and split a medium pie.

Then eat: Ojai Pizza, 331 E Ojai Ave

The math: a medium cheese pizza ($22.35) and two fountain drinks ($8) come to $30.35. It only works when it's clear.

Sunset on the Hueneme Pier

Port Hueneme

Walk out the Hueneme Pier for sunset with the Channel Islands on the horizon, then follow the beach walkway from Surfside Drive toward the harbor entrance and the Point Hueneme Lighthouse. The pier never closes, so there's no rush to leave after dark.

Parking is paid at machines in Lots A to E and on Surfside Drive. Surfside Seafood at the foot of the pier has live music Wednesdays 4 to 7, but it doesn't post prices online.

The harbor path to Silver Strand Beach

Oxnard

A paved path runs from Kiddie Beach Park along the Channel Islands Harbor entrance out to Silver Strand, the surf beach on the east side of the harbor. Walk it an hour before sunset, watch the boats come and go through the channel, and stay on the sand until the sun's down.

Park before sunset, since the free lot closes then; there's street parking too.

Golden hour at Conejo Valley Botanic Garden

Thousand Oaks

A 33-acre garden on a hill in the middle of Thousand Oaks, with 15 themed gardens on the slopes and a view from the top. Start the climb in the last hour of daylight, bring sandwiches from home, and eat at the peak while the valley goes gold.

It closes at sunset and when the trails are wet. The garden asks for donations rather than charging admission.

Stargazing at Rancho Sierra Vista/Satwiwa

Newbury Park

A National Park Service site at the south end of Newbury Park, with open, rolling trails and views of Boney Mountain. Walk the hikers-only Satwiwa Loop in the late afternoon, then stay after dark: the park service invites people to come for the night sky, and says you can park in front of the gate once it closes.

Bring a layer and a flashlight. Cell service is spotty in the canyons.