Picnics, BBQ & Permits

Larz Anderson Park has 12 individual BBQ sites (one table and one charcoal grill each, for up to 8 adults) and a covered picnic shelter for up to 85 people, all reserved through Brookline Recreation. A BBQ site costs $45 for a half day or $90 for a full day for Brookline residents ($90 / $180 for non-residents); the shelter is $175 / $350 for residents and $275 / $550 for non-residents. Half days run 10 am – 2:30 pm or 3 – 7:30 pm; a full day is 10 am – 7:30 pm. Your sales receipt is your permit. Fees are Brookline Recreation's, read October 18, 2026.

The BBQ Sites

The 12 BBQ areas are spread through the park, and the Town's brochure map numbers them 1 to 12. Each has one picnic table and one charcoal grill and is sized for up to 8 adults, so they suit a family lunch or a small birthday. Reserve one for a half or full day; trash barrels sit at each site, and the Town asks you to take your trash home when you leave.

The Picnic Shelter

The Larz Anderson Shelter is the park's group picnic spot: a covered structure for up to 85 people with 8 covered picnic tables, 3 uncovered tables, 6 charcoal grills and one electrical outlet. It sits near the restrooms and the enclosed play area, which makes it handy for children's parties. Cars can't park at the shelter or drive on the paths; the brochure mentions a hand-truck kept for unloading.

Fees

• Individual BBQ area: $45 / $90 (resident, half / full day); $90 / $180 (non-resident)
• Shelter area: $175 / $350 (resident); $275 / $550 (non-resident)
• Wedding ceremony sites are booked the same way; see the weddings page.

The Town's older brochure says refunds are not given for bad weather and dates can't be moved, so pick your date with care.

How to Reserve

• Online, through Brookline Recreation's reservation system (the Reserve Online button on its Reservations page).
• In person at the Brookline Recreation Office, 133 Eliot St., Brookline.
• By phone: 617-730-2069.

Keep the receipt with you at your site; a Park Ranger patrols and may ask to see it. If you'll have a caterer or entertainment, you need a special events permit instead, and the brochure says caterers must carry $1,000,000 liability insurance naming the Town and must use the park's fixed grills.

Do You Need a Permit at All?

Not for a casual picnic on the grass: the lawns are open dawn to dusk. You need one to hold a BBQ site or the shelter, and Brookline's park rules require a permit for any party, picnic or gathering of 15 or more people, for amplified sound, for selling anything, for putting up a tent or structure, and for using a grill. Athletic fields are not included with a BBQ or shelter permit; they're first come, first served unless a league holds them.

Grills, Fire and Food Rules

• Fires only in the park's own grills. No portable grills or hibachis, and no ground fires.
• Propane by permit only, for religious-observance needs: one grill, one 20-pound tank plus one spare, cooking from 10 am to dusk and ending 30 minutes before the permit does (Town brochure).
• No alcohol, a Town-wide park rule.
• No inflatables, fireworks, farm animals or amplified sound without a permit.
• Pop-up tents, sun shelters and volleyball or badminton nets are fine if they don't get in other people's way.

Accessibility

The Town's brochure offers a portable accessible picnic table on request from the Park Ranger, first come, first served. Restrooms are by the play area, and the Town's map labels them as the permit check-in point.

Ideas for a Picnic Day

Book a site near the playground for small kids, then walk up to the Top of the Hill for the Boston view or down to the lagoon. On a summer weekend, a car show on the museum lawn makes an easy add-on (lawn events), but expect parking to be tight. Dogs must stay out of the BBQ sites and shelter (dog rules).