Best Restaurants near me in Windermere, FL
Looking for the best restaurants in Windermere? The town's options stretch from its small Main Street downtown to Gotha and the Dr. Phillips edge. Dixie Cream Cafe is the breakfast pick with a dog-friendly patio, Yellow Dog Eats has served Gotha since 1995, and Hawkers brings shared Asian street-food plates to the area.
4 picks · Updated October 2026
The ranked list
- 1
Dixie Cream Cafe
Restaurant in Downtown Windermere
Scratch-made Southern breakfast and lunch in a 1950s saw-tooth-roof building on Main Street, with Bananas Foster French toast, fried chicken and grits, and an espresso bar.
- Breakfast
- Southern
- American
- Coffee
- 2
Yellow Dog Eats
Restaurant in Gotha
A Gotha institution since 1995 for smoked meats, a smoked chicken Cobb and a Reuben on marble rye, with craft cocktails, weekday happy hour and a dog-friendly attitude.
- BBQ
- Sandwiches
- American
- Lunch
- 3
Hawkers Asian Street Food Windermere
Restaurant in Dr. Phillips
The dinner pick for groups, with roti canai, soup dumplings and Hong Kong sticky ribs meant for sharing, plus a VIP room for parties.
- Chinese
- Thai
- Vietnamese
- Korean
- 4
Piesanos Stone Fired Pizza Windermere
Restaurant
A reliable family option with stone-fired pizza, pasta and a full bar, and lunch specials from 11am to 4pm daily.
- Pizza
- Italian
- Lunch
- Dinner
Where to eat in Windermere
Windermere's downtown is small, a few blocks around Main Street with brick roads, the town hall and lakes on every side. Dixie Cream Cafe is the anchor there, and it is a breakfast and lunch place, so plan dinner elsewhere. A few minutes north, the unincorporated community of Gotha is home to Yellow Dog Eats, a quirky local favorite that is worth the short drive.
Most dinner options sit along the Windermere edges of Dr. Phillips and the roads toward Horizon West, including Hawkers and Piesanos. These are in shopping centers with easier parking than downtown. Dog owners will like both Dixie Cream's patio and Yellow Dog Eats, and weekend mornings at Dixie Cream are busiest, so go early.
To choose, think about the time of day. Mornings belong to Dixie Cream, lunch and happy hour to Yellow Dog Eats, and dinner to Hawkers or Piesanos. Hawkers suits adults who want cocktails and shared plates, while Piesanos is the simpler choice with kids. Both Hawkers and Piesanos handle groups, and Yellow Dog Eats and Piesanos cater.
About this list
Every place here is a locally run business in Orange County with its own website, which we checked for hours, menus and contact details. We leave national chains off our best-of lists and favor places with a clear specialty.
This page covers 4 restaurants in Windermere. You'll find them in Downtown Windermere, Gotha and Dr. Phillips.
About Windermere
Windermere is a small lakeside town in southwest Orange County on the Butler Chain of Lakes, close to Dr. Phillips and Horizon West, with a quiet downtown and nearby family-run businesses.
Frequently asked questions
Where can I get breakfast in Windermere?
Dixie Cream Cafe on Windermere's Main Street serves scratch-made Southern breakfast and lunch, including Bananas Foster French toast and fried chicken with cheddar grits. It has an espresso bar and a dog-friendly patio, and has been open since 2010. Weekend mornings are busiest.
Is Yellow Dog Eats in Windermere or Gotha?
Yellow Dog Eats is in Gotha, a small community just north of the town of Windermere that shares a Windermere mailing area. It has been serving sandwiches, smoked meats and craft cocktails since 1995 and runs a weekday happy hour.
What are family-friendly restaurants in Windermere?
Piesanos Stone Fired Pizza is kid-friendly, with pizza, pasta, salads and soups plus daily lunch specials. Dixie Cream Cafe is a good family breakfast stop, and Hawkers works for bigger groups who want to share many small plates. Piesanos also offers takeout and delivery.
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