Hawthorne, CA Special Events & Permits: Sidewalk Dining & Cafés (2026)

Chapter 5.66 (Outdoor Restaurants) defines an outdoor restaurant as any public eating place that provides for, or permits, consumption of food or beverages on any part of the premises outside a fully enclosed building meeting the Uniform Building Code (Section 5.66.010). The city council made findings that outdoor restaurants sit close to residences, draw crowds that congregate and loiter, and that nighttime operation has repeatedly disturbed the peace and created nuisances, justifying regulation (Section 5.66.020). Section 5.66.030 requires a permit from the city council before operating during the restricted hours: 11:00 p.m. to 6:00 a.m. any night, and from 12:00 p.m.

Friday and Saturday through 6:00 a.m. the following morning. The permit is in addition to every other food-establishment requirement in the code (Section 5.66.040). Applications go to the director of licensing and code enforcement and must include the applicant's identity, employer, ownership details, a personal description, the nature of the business, and proposed hours (Section 5.66.070). Within thirty days, the city council investigates the applicant and neighborhood and must find the application complete and truthful, that the restaurant creates no apparent health or safety danger, that its hours won't disturb the peace of the vicinity, and that it won't conflict with state or city law before issuing the permit (Section 5.66.080). Permits run through December 31st of the issuance year unless suspended or revoked, and cannot be assigned to another person (Sections 5.66.050, 5.66.060).