Davidson's Main Street and the few blocks around it have a surprisingly varied dining scene for a town of 13,000 — driven partly by the college and partly by the wealthy lake-house crowd from the surrounding suburbs.
Kindred is the local star — a James Beard-finalist restaurant from a husband-and-wife chef team, serving inventive American cooking in a former 1914 pharmacy. Reserve well ahead. Toast Cafe does the brunch business; Davidson Soda Shop, on Main Street since 1947, is the place to go for an old-school milkshake and burger. Summit Coffee is the morning gathering point, particularly for the local hiking and running crowd; their cold-brew is genuinely good.
For something casual, North Harbor Club sits on the water at Lake Norman, ten minutes' drive away, with a deck where you can watch the boats come in.