La Jolla is the so-called crown jewel of San Diego with its upscale homes, walkable commercial district, and rugged beautiful coastline. Rightfully so, La Jolla draws crowds from all over the world – they come for the seals, the sunsets, and the salacious wealth on display.

But this guide is not a list of the tourist attractions in La Jolla. This is a guide to a romantic date night in La Jolla that will hopefully take you away from the maddening crowds so you can focus a bit on each other. So if you are visiting San Diego without the kids, or live here and want to explore a new neighborhood, or just want a romantic night by yourself (who are we to judge), this guide is for you – a romantic (and surprisingly Italian) date night in La Jolla.

If you are looking for the best hotel in La Jolla, we recommend The Pantai Inn. It is quaint and feels residential, like you have a vacation property in La Jolla. For a splurge, La Valencia is beautiful with a lively poolside bar that is worth the price tag alone.

The Itinerary

1. Watch The Sunset At We Olive And Wine Bar
2. Dinner At Marisi
3. Gelato At Bobboi And Walk The Alleys
4. Walk Along La Jolla Cove
5. Map to this itinerary

Watch The Sunset At We Olive And Wine Bar

There are plenty of places to watch the sunset in La Jolla, but we think We Olive and Wine Bar is the best. A wine and olive shop in front with a cozy restaurant and wine bar in back, this quaint establishment offers a lovely setting for any date night or intimate gathering. The prized seats are on the rear balcony, bar stools and a couple of tables that face west out to the expansive Pacific Ocean.

We Olive is low-key and charming and the staff are always more than friendly. They offer typical wine-paired tapas like cheese and charcuterie boards, crostinis, and dips, as well as salads, sandwiches, and flatbread pizzas. The wine here is exceptional and the staff’s knowledge will ensure you make a good choice.

So grab a seat outside, order a few tapas and a glass of wine, and watch as the western sky turns an explosive pink and orange at the end of the day. We Olive and Wine Bar is truly a hidden gem among the many options in La Jolla.

Have A Romantic Dinner At Marisi

One of the newer restaurants in La Jolla, opened by the same people behind Puesto, Marisi serves elevated Italian food in a cozy but elegant setting. The dishes span most of the regions of Italian cuisine, with a focus on homemade pasta (delicious). The dining room is small without feeling crowded and you can also sit at the bar or out on the patio. We recommend the dining room because they have an open kitchen which always adds a sense of warmth to a restaurant (possibly literal warmth from the ovens and stove tops).

Get Gelato At Bobboi And Walk The Alleys

After dinner you can’t go wrong with a gelato. In La Jolla the best place to get a gelato is Bobboi Natural Gelato on Girard Ave. Bobboi is a local San Diego gelato store with a few different locations, all of which serve some of the best gelato you can get.

Grab a scoop or four to go, but DON’T immediately head to the cove just down the street. Walk back up the hill and across the crosswalk, north, and find one of the many hidden staircases or walkways that leads through the houses and hotels down to the cove (see our map). These little alleyways feel like you are in the alleys of Rome, if Rome was only a few decades old. Walk past the windows of people enjoying their nights in and savor getting lost briefly in the cozy latticework of passageways. If you keep going downhill you will always end up at the cove, but it is worth the meander. Walk shoulder to shoulder as you eat your gelato and take it slow.

Walk Around La Jolla Cove At Night

La Jolla Cove is a very popular place during the day, as people come from around the world to the tiny beach to watch seals bark at each other, but it is, in our opinion, much better at night.

For one, the smell of pelican poop has taken a damper, possibly from not baking in the sun anymore, but the best part is there are no crowds anymore. There are still floodlights on the beach so you can see the seals and this is the time the seals are more active anyway, frolicking in the waves down below.

From here you can look north over the Matlahuayl State Marine Reserve (previously known as the La Jolla Underwater Park) toward the glittering lights of the multi-million dollar mansions that line the La Jolla Shores hills while you eat your gelato, talk, and listen to the calming waves.

This is the time to hold hands. Or even sneak in a kiss. Just make sure you aren’t covered in melted gelato first.