Volusia County Dining Guide
Nineteen places to eat, from fish camps on the river to a brick-street wine bar.
Volusia County food is mostly unpretentious, and the best of it comes off a boat. Shrimp, flounder and mahi show up on nearly every menu, oysters come from up and down the coast, and the classic way to eat is on a dock over the Halifax or Indian River with the sun going down. The beachfront in Daytona and Daytona Beach Shores leans toward oceanfront bars and grills, while Ponce Inlet and Port Orange hold the old fish houses.
New Smyrna Beach and DeLand have the most interesting independent restaurants for their size. New Smyrna mixes fish camps, a surf-town Tex-Mex institution and tapas, and DeLand’s walkable downtown has a craft brewery, wine bars and cafes with live music. Plan around peak event weeks, when many places in Daytona run limited menus and long waits.
Daytona Beach and the Shores
Oceanfront bars, a historic dining room and a healthy cafe.
A long-running oceanfront restaurant and bar with live music, popular for fish tacos and sunset on the sand.
A casual restaurant on the Sunglow Pier that reopened in 2024 after hurricane damage, with breakfast and seafood over the waves.
A special-occasion Italian restaurant in a 1907 house with ties to President Warren G. Harding.
A Beach Street cafe known for fresh, vegetarian-friendly breakfasts, wraps and smoothies.
Ponce Inlet and Port Orange
River fish houses and a beach bar with racing history.
A Halifax River fish camp restaurant open since the 1970s, where dolphins often swim past the deck.
A beachfront bar and grill on the site of the north turn of the old Daytona beach-and-road race course, with racing memorabilia inside.
A riverside restaurant known for its Southern-style seafood, hush puppies and sweet rolls.
Ormond Beach
A seafood market and a downtown gastropub.
A fish market with a restaurant attached, serving fresh local catch fried, grilled or blackened.
A local favorite on Granada Boulevard since 2013, known for burgers, craft beer and its tiki bar out back.
New Smyrna Beach
Fish camps, a treehouse bar and Flagler Avenue standbys.
Serving the beachside since 1946, with a large wine list and a bar built into a treehouse above the restaurant.
A seafood shack on the Indian River lagoon south of town, near Canaveral National Seashore, with dock seating and kayak rentals.
A Flagler Avenue tavern a block from the beach, good for a casual lunch or dinner.
A Tex-Mex restaurant that has been a New Smyrna Beach tradition for about 40 years.
A small Spanish-style tapas restaurant on the mainland, popular for shared plates and paella.
DeLand and the St. Johns River
Downtown DeLand, a spring-side pancake griddle and a riverfront grill.
A craft brewery and taproom a short walk from Woodland Boulevard, with food trucks and live music.
A wine bar and shop with small plates, a long-standing downtown gathering spot.
A downtown cafe and bar known for showcasing original live music.
Pancakes you pour and cook yourself on table griddles inside the park’s old sugar mill building.
A casual grill on the St. Johns River with dock seating and a seasonal tiki bar.
Restaurants change hours, menus and ownership often — check with the restaurant before you go. Listings are editorial picks, not paid placements.
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Get free trip quotes »Volusia County Dining — FAQ
What food is Volusia County known for?
Local shrimp and fish served at fish camps and riverside restaurants, along with beach bars on the sand. Make-your-own pancakes at De Leon Springs are a local tradition.
Do I need reservations?
For dinner on weekends and during Speedweeks, Bike Week and Biketoberfest, yes, at the better-known places. Fish camps and beach bars usually seat walk-ins, though waits can be long at sunset.
Where can I eat on the water?
Down the Hatch and Aunt Catfish’s sit on the Halifax River, JB’s Fish Camp on the lagoon south of New Smyrna Beach, the Swamp House on the St. Johns, and Ocean Deck and Crabby Joe’s face the ocean.