Michelangelo Ristorante has been a Silver Lake fixture since 1997, serving straightforward Italian food in a dining room that actually feels like somewhere you’d want to linger. The chefs work with fresh ingredients to turn out homemade pasta, wood-fired pizzas, and the kind of desserts that make you glad you saved room. It’s the type of place where the lighting is warm, the tables are close enough that there’s real energy in the room, but not so close you’re eating with strangers.

The real draw for anyone visiting with a dog is their outdoor patio, which sits right in the neighborhood rather than tucked away somewhere. Dogs can settle in next to your table while you work through a plate of pasta or wait for pizza to come out of the oven. The patio has that casual neighborhood feeling—you’re not isolated from Silver Lake’s street life, which some people find appealing. The servers here seem used to having dogs around and don’t make a fuss about it, which means you can actually relax instead of worrying whether your dog’s presence is annoying anyone.

Silver Lake itself is walkable, so you could easily arrive by foot from nearby streets and parks. The restaurant’s been around long enough that it’s clearly doing something right, and it hasn’t tried to become something it’s not. It’s just a solid neighborhood Italian spot where you can bring your dog to the patio, order something that tastes like actual food, and spend an afternoon that feels unhurried.

The patio’s open during their service hours, and the restaurant typically gets busier in the evening, so if you prefer a quieter meal, an earlier arrival works better. They take reservations, which is worth doing if you’re coming on a weekend.