Groundwork

Food and drink · County · Alaska

Restaurants and cafes in Kenai Peninsula Borough, AK

Competitor counts, household spending and official business counts for restaurants and cafes in Kenai Peninsula Borough, AK, set against other counties and the U.S.

Groundwork market score · out of 100

Score 35 out of 100: Lower middle

Ranked #1,849 of 2,405 scored counties
#8 of 9 scored counties in Alaska

Listings
374
45 chain locations (12%)
Official establishments
173
+11.6% since 2019
Household spending a year
$97.4M
On food away from home · $3,998 a household
Spending per listing
$261K
30% below the U.S.
Listings per 10k households
153.5
40% above the U.S.
Population, 2025
61,951
+5.1% since 2020

See the restaurants and cafes around any address in Kenai Peninsula Borough

The site report maps the restaurants and cafes on map listings near the address, by name and distance, and sizes the households and spending around it. Or open the report at the center of Kenai Peninsula Borough. Signed out, you see a blurred preview; on an account, each report is one action.

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Survey estimates 2020–2024 · population estimates 2025 · official business counts 2023 · map listings September 2026 · Data credits · How we measure

What this means

Kenai Peninsula Borough scores 35 (lower middle) on the Groundwork market score for restaurants and cafes, ranking #1,849 of 2,405 scored counties and #8 of 9 scored counties in Alaska. That puts it in the bottom quarter of counties.

Map listings as of September 2026 show 374 restaurants and cafes in Kenai Peninsula Borough. Of those, 45 are chain locations, or 12%, against 34% across the U.S. That is 153.5 per 10,000 households, 40% above the U.S. rate of 109.8.

At $3,998 per household (2% below the U.S. average), households in Kenai Peninsula Borough spend about $97.4M a year on food away from home. That is about $261K of household spending for each restaurant on map listings, 30% below the U.S. figure of $371K.

The official count of businesses with payroll classed as restaurants and other eating places in Kenai Peninsula Borough was 173 in 2023, up 11.6% from 2019. That is one for every 141 households, against one for every 209 across the U.S. Since fiscal 2022, 5 SBA-backed loans worth $1.3M have gone to businesses classed as restaurants and other eating places in Kenai Peninsula Borough. Between 2020 and 2025, the population of Kenai Peninsula Borough grew 5.1%, faster than the U.S. (+3.1%).

How Kenai Peninsula Borough compares

The same measures for Alaska and the whole U.S. Spending per listing divides a year of household spending on all food away from home by the restaurants and cafes counted, so it measures the demand for each competitor, not any business’s revenue. Households per establishment does the same with the official count.

Restaurants and cafes in Kenai Peninsula Borough, AK compared with Alaska and the U.S.
MeasureKenai Peninsula BoroughAlaskaU.S.
Listings per 10k households153.5117.3109.8
Spending per listing$261K$368K$371K
Households per official establishment141196209
Official establishment growth, 2019–2023+11.6%+3.8%+6.0%
Population growth, 2020–2025+5.1%+0.6%+3.1%
Spending per household on food away from home$3,998$4,320$4,070
Median household income$80,538$92,788$80,734
Groundwork market score3541

Official counts and lending

Businesses

Official establishments, 2019 to 2023
155 → 173+11.6% over the period
Employees, 2023
1,254
Annual payroll, 2023
$40.8M
One-person businesses, 2023
40Businesses with no payroll
Map listings, September 2026
37445 chain locations
Listings at the U.S. rate for this spending
263The U.S. ratio of listings to household spending, applied here

SBA-backed loans since fiscal 2022

Loans
5
Amount
$1.3M

SBA-backed loans to businesses classed as restaurants and other eating places in Kenai Peninsula Borough, through June 2026, placed by the borrower’s ZIP code. Official establishments are businesses with payroll; the official counts leave out places with fewer than 3.

Population and households in Kenai Peninsula Borough

Population, 2025 estimate
61,951+5.1% since 2020
Households
24,371
Median age
42.1
Homes lived in by their owners
77%
Vehicles per household
2.1
Land area
16,017 sq. mi.
People per square mile
4
Median household income
$80,538+21.9% vs. 2015–2019, before inflation
Average household income
$105,973
Median home value
$323,200
Jobs located here
n/a
Daytime population
n/aResidents who don’t work, plus everyone whose job is here

Looking at a specific site in Kenai Peninsula Borough?

These figures cover the whole county. A site report draws rings around one address and counts what’s inside them: households, spending, jobs, and the restaurants and cafes on map listings by name and distance.

Or open the report at the center of Kenai Peninsula Borough. Signed out, you see a blurred preview; on an account, each report is one action.

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Restaurants and cafes across Alaska

Every Alaska market ranked →

The highest-scoring counties in Alaska for restaurants and cafes, numbered among those based in Alaska, with Kenai Peninsula Borough marked.

Top counties in Alaska

Counties in Alaska ranked for restaurants and cafes by Groundwork market score
MarketScoreListingsPer 10k householdsSpending per listingPopulation growthU.S. rank
1Bethel Census Area, AK761326.9$1.4M−1.5%#212 of 2,405
2Matanuska-Susitna Borough, AK7237594.1$455K+10.4%#351 of 2,405
3North Slope Borough, AK5425109.6$417K−3.8%#1,006 of 2,405
4Anchorage Municipality, AK431,294119.2$385K−1.3%#1,486 of 2,405
5Fairbanks North Star Borough, AK42424116.6$362K−1.4%#1,533 of 2,405
6Kodiak Island Borough, AK4150107.8$375K−5.0%#1,568 of 2,405
7Juneau City and Borough, AK37171129.9$347K−1.8%#1,738 of 2,405
8Kenai Peninsula Borough, AK35374153.5$261K+5.1%#1,849 of 2,405
9Ketchikan Gateway Borough, AK23107186.7$226K−2.6%#2,236 of 2,405

Other business types in Kenai Peninsula Borough

Each with its Groundwork market score here, out of 100, where it has one.

Funeral services

Questions

How many restaurants and cafes are in Kenai Peninsula Borough, AK?

There are 374 restaurants and cafes on map listings in Kenai Peninsula Borough as of September 2026. 45 of them (12%) are chain locations. The listings count every restaurant, cafe, bar, bakery and food truck. Official counts show 173 businesses with payroll classed as restaurants and other eating places in 2023, up 11.6% from 2019. Official counts also show 40 one-person businesses without payroll.

How much do households in Kenai Peninsula Borough, AK spend on food away from home?

About $97.4M a year, or $3,998 per household. That is 2% below the U.S. average (an index of 98, where 100 is the U.S. average). Spread across the 374 restaurants and cafes on map listings, it comes to $261K per restaurant. It is estimated from the incomes of the 24,371 households in Kenai Peninsula Borough and national spending patterns by income.

How does Kenai Peninsula Borough, AK compare with the U.S. for restaurants and cafes?

Kenai Peninsula Borough has 153.5 restaurants and cafes per 10,000 households, 40% above the U.S. rate of 109.8. Spending per restaurant is $261K, 30% below the U.S. figure of $371K. At the national ratio of restaurants and cafes to household spending, Kenai Peninsula Borough would have about 263, against 374 on map listings. There is one business with payroll in the industry for every 141 households, against one for every 209 across the U.S. The official count rose 11.6% from 2019 to 2023, against +6.0% for the U.S.

How fast is Kenai Peninsula Borough, AK growing?

Population estimates put Kenai Peninsula Borough at 61,951 people in 2025, up 5.1% since 2020, faster than the U.S. (+3.1%). It has 24,371 households. The median household income in Kenai Peninsula Borough is $80,538 a year, in line with the U.S. median of $80,734. That rose 21.9% from the 2015–2019 survey, before inflation.

What is the Groundwork market score?

The Groundwork market score runs from 0 to 100 and compares a market with others of its kind for one business type: states with states, metro areas with metro areas, small-town markets and counties with their own. It weighs household spending per competitor (35%), households per business with payroll (25%), population growth (20%) and spending power (20%), each ranked against those peers. A higher score means that, taken together, the market has more household spending and more households for each business already there, faster population growth and more spending per household than similar markets. It describes a market, not any one site or deal. Kenai Peninsula Borough scores 35 for restaurants and cafes (lower middle), #1,849 of 2,405 scored counties.

How can I see the market around a specific site?

Run a Groundwork site report on an address in Kenai Peninsula Borough. It maps the restaurants and cafes on map listings near the site and sizes the households and spending within the distance you choose. New accounts get 10 actions over 3 days, no card.

How the score works · Top markets for restaurants and cafes · All 56 business types in Kenai Peninsula Borough

Screening a site or an acquisition in Kenai Peninsula Borough?

A site report maps the competitors on map listings near an address and sizes the households and spending around it.

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This product uses the Census Bureau Data API but is not endorsed or certified by the Census Bureau.

Figures are estimates for research only. Not investment or real estate advice.