Waterfront Restaurants in Clermont: Where to Eat Near the Water

The Waterfront Core

Waterfront Park on Lake Minneola is the anchor—swimming, fishing piers, and a playground that keeps the scene family-loud rather than resort-quiet. The restaurants within walking distance lean casual, and the best of them treat the lake as a backdrop, not a gimmick.

The Crooked Spoon sits at 200 Citrus Tower Blvd, close enough to the park that you can hear the splash from the swim area. It’s the most locally-minded of the bunch, with a menu that changes with what’s available. Expect a wait on weekends; the patio fills early.

Pepe's Cantina Clermont at 794 W Minneola Ave is the other walkable option, a Mexican spot that’s been packing in families and post-paddle crowds. The outdoor seating faces the lake, and the margarita list is long—though you’ll have to ask what’s in season.

The Highway 27 Corridor

If you’re driving in from the south, the cluster around S Hwy 27 is where the volume lives. These aren’t waterfront in the literal sense—they’re a few minutes from the lake—but they’re the reliable post-ride stops for the National Training Center crowd that gave Clermont its “Choice of Champions” slogan in 2014.

Keke's Breakfast Cafe at 2435 S Hwy 27 is the breakfast stop, with a 4.7 rating from nearly 3,900 reviews. IHOP at 2589 S Hwy 27 is the 24-hour fallback, rated 4.7 from over 7,600 reviews—the highest count on this list. Texas Roadhouse at 2457 S Hwy 27 and Olive Garden Italian Restaurant at 2495 S Hwy 27 sit side by side, both pulling 4.5 and 4.4 ratings respectively from thousands of diners.

Fazoli's at 1913 S Hwy 27 is the budget pick, rated 4.7 from 2,483 reviews—a fast-casual Italian chain that outperforms its category.

The FL-50 Stretch

East of downtown, FL-50 is a strip of national names that service the commuter crowd heading toward Orlando. Outback Steakhouse at 1625 E Hwy 50 (4.6, 5,048 reviews) and Cracker Barrel Old Country Store at 1520 E Hwy 50 (4.2, 3,584 reviews) are the anchors. Carrabba's Italian Grill at 2240 FL-50 (4.5, 3,025 reviews) and Ruby Tuesday at 2650 FL-50 (4.2, 3,070 reviews) round out the sit-down options.

Steak 'n Shake at 2545 FL-50 is the outlier—rated 3.8 from 3,103 reviews, the lowest on this list, but it’s open late and cheap.

The South End

Sr. Tequila Mexican Grill at 16745 Cagan Crossings Blvd (4.1, 2,870 reviews) is the go-to for the Cagan Crossings neighborhood, a newer residential area that’s grown fast since the 2000s. It’s not waterfront, but it’s the closest thing to a local haunt south of the turnpike.

Miller's Ale House at 1555 S Grand Hwy (4.6, 3,640 reviews) is the sports bar of record, with a patio that catches the breeze off the lake even if it’s not lakefront proper.

Culver’s at 1431 Johns Lake Rd (4.4, 3,290 reviews) is the butterburger stop for the Johns Lake crowd, a few minutes from the boat ramps.

Denny's Restaurant at 25 Town Center Blvd (4.0, 3,990 reviews) is the 24-hour option in the Four Corners area, serving the tourist corridor that bleeds into the Disney-adjacent developments.

What the Numbers Say

Clermont’s 44,984 residents have a median age of 42.4 and a median household income of $79,789. The median home value is $368,600, and the median gross rent runs $1,774. The unemployment rate sits at 5.9 percent, and 35.7 percent of residents hold a bachelor’s degree or higher.

Of the 18,718 housing units, 558 are held for seasonal or recreational use—a small slice, but it tells you the lake draws second-home money. Another 1,800 units sit vacant, a reminder that the boom years left some inventory behind.

The Bigger Picture

The Florida Citrus Tower, built in 1956, still stands over a landscape whose groves have largely gone—one of Florida’s earliest roadside landmarks outliving the industry it was built to celebrate. The hills that once carried oranges now carry subdivisions and training camps. The restaurants here reflect that shift: national chains that serve the commuter and tourist base, with a few local spots holding the line.

The Verdict

For actual waterfront dining, The Crooked Spoon and Pepe's Cantina Clermont are the only true lakefront options, and both are worth the walk from the park. For everything else, the Highway 27 and FL-50 corridors deliver consistency over character. Clermont isn’t a food destination—it’s a town that eats well enough, with a view that does the heavy lifting.