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Savor Scout › Campuses › California › Santa Monica, CA › Santa Monica College

Restaurants near campus

Restaurants near Santa Monica College (SMC)

137 places to eat within a mile of Santa Monica College, closest first, including Eat Street, Hungry Pocket Falafel House and Campos Famous Burritos.

The 50 places to eat closest to SMC

Closest first, out of 137 within a mile. Distances are straight-line from the campus, so a walk runs a little longer.

Right by campus · about a 5-minute walk (15)

About a 10-minute walk · a quarter to half a mile (24)

A 10- to 20-minute walk · half a mile to a mile (11)

Listings from Overture Maps open data (September 2026), open places with a street address only. Hours and openings change, so check before you go. Want one picked for what you're craving instead? Ask Savor Scout near SMC.

Can't decide between them? Say what you're craving and Savor Scout picks one near Santa Monica, CA.

The food scene around SMC

137places to eat within 1 mile
68%independent, not chains
9coffee shops and cafés

Open listings put 137 places to eat within 1 mile of SMC, 37 within a ten-minute walk (half a mile), and 1,735 within 3 miles. The most common: Mexican (11). 8 are fast-food counters; the rest are sit-down restaurants, cafés, bakeries and takeaway spots.

Where to walk: the streets with the most places to eat within 1 mile are Pico Blvd (35), Ocean Park Blvd (33), Lincoln Blvd (31) and Colorado Ave (12).

What stands out around SMC is frozen yogurt, Mediterranean and burgers — types that are listed here at 2 to 6 times the national rate.

By type of food — tap one for what to order and how to spot a good one:

Mexican 11 Burgers 9 Coffee 9 Pizza 9 American 7 Mediterranean 5 Sandwiches 5 Sushi 4 Chicken 4 Italian 4

Popular cravings near SMC, within 1 mile: Asian food (18 places), Mexican food (11), Korean food (2) and Vietnamese food (2). Each guide covers what to order and how to tell a good kitchen from an average one.

Food guides for SMC

Asian Food near SMC 18 Mexican Food near SMC 11

Eating on a student budget near SMC

Cheap and bad overlap much less than price filters suggest. Of the places listed nearby, 8 are fast-food counters: the cheapest default, rarely the cheapest good meal. The value is usually in lunch specials, counter service, short menus and dishes built on rice, noodles, bread or beans. Where to eat when you're broke covers what to look for, or search cheap eats near SMC.

Need somewhere open right now? These listings do not carry live opening hours, and late at night a fair share of what is listed as open is not. The late-night guide covers how to check before you go, or search late-night food near SMC and call ahead.

The campus

  • Location — Santa Monica, CA
  • Other names, current or former — SMC
  • Setting — in a city
  • Size — 20,000 students or more
  • Type — Public four-year institution

Campus figures are from IPEDS, the US Department of Education's institutional survey. Size is reported as the survey's own bracket rather than an exact headcount, because that is what the public dataset gives and we would rather quote it than estimate.

Nearby cities

Guides worth reading

What to eat during finals week Where to eat when you're broke Where to eat late at night Where to take visiting family and friends Eating out with a dietary restriction

Questions about eating near SMC

What restaurants are near SMC?
A few to start with, nearest first: Hungry Pocket Falafel House (mediterranean, 0.2 mi), Campos Famous Burritos (mexican, 0.2 mi), Mom & Bop (korean, 0.2 mi), SaMo Pizza (pizza, 0.2 mi) and Rocco's Cheesecake (dessert shop, 0.2 mi). They are chosen local-first, then listed by distance; a starting point, not a ranking.
How many places to eat are near SMC?
Open map listings put 137 places to eat within 1 mile, 37 of them within a ten-minute walk, and 1,735 within 3 miles. About 68% are independent rather than chains; 9 are coffee shops or cafés and 8 are fast-food counters.
Where is the food near SMC?
The busiest streets are Pico Blvd (35 places), Ocean Park Blvd (33 places), Lincoln Blvd (31 places) and Colorado Ave (12 places).
What kind of food is near SMC?
The most common types are Mexican (11), burgers (9), coffee (9) and pizza (9). Unusually common compared with the rest of the country: frozen yogurt, Mediterranean and burgers.

Nearby campuses

Comparing schools, or eating with friends across town? These are the closest campuses to SMC.