Food and drink · County · California
Restaurants and cafes in Mono County, CA
How Mono County, CA compares with other counties and the U.S. for restaurants and cafes: competitors, household spending, official counts and growth.
Groundwork market score · out of 100
Score 19 out of 100: Low
Ranked #2,316 of 2,405 scored counties
#52 of 55 scored counties in California
- Listings
- 168
- 26 chain locations (15%)
- Official establishments
- 67
- −6.9% since 2019
- Household spending a year
- $25.6M
- On food away from home · $4,451 a household
- Spending per listing
- $152K
- 59% below the U.S.
- Listings per 10k households
- 292.5
- 2.7 times the U.S.
- Population, 2025
- 12,505
- −5.4% since 2020
See the restaurants and cafes around any address in Mono County
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 Mono County. Signed out, you see a blurred preview; on an account, each report is one action.
Free10 actions over 3 days, no cardSurvey estimates 2020–2024 · population estimates 2025 · official business counts 2023 · map listings September 2026 · Data credits · How we measure
What this means
The Groundwork market score for restaurants and cafes in Mono County is 19 (low), #2,316 of 2,405 scored counties and #52 of 55 scored counties in California. That puts it in the bottom quarter of counties.
Household spending on food away from home in Mono County comes to about $25.6M a year: $4,451 per household, 9% above the U.S. average. Spread across 168 restaurants and cafes, that is $152K per restaurant, 59% below the U.S. figure of $371K.
Mono County has 168 restaurants and cafes on map listings as of September 2026. Chain locations make up 15% of them, against 34% across the U.S. Per 10,000 households, that is 292.5, 2.7 times the U.S. rate of 109.8.
The official count of businesses with payroll classed as restaurants and other eating places in Mono County was 67 in 2023, down 6.9% from 2019. That is one for every 86 households, against one for every 209 across the U.S. Since fiscal 2022, 4 SBA-backed loans worth $3.1M have gone to businesses classed as restaurants and other eating places in Mono County. Between 2020 and 2025, the population of Mono County declined 5.4%, against +3.1% for the U.S.
How Mono County compares
The same measures for California 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.
| Measure | Mono County | California | U.S. |
|---|---|---|---|
| Listings per 10k households | 292.5 | 128.4 | 109.8 |
| Spending per listing | $152K | $355K | $371K |
| Households per official establishment | 86 | 170 | 209 |
| Official establishment growth, 2019–2023 | −6.9% | +3.9% | +6.0% |
| Population growth, 2020–2025 | −5.4% | −0.4% | +3.1% |
| Spending per household on food away from home | $4,451 | $4,559 | $4,070 |
| Median household income | $99,415 | $99,122 | $80,734 |
| Groundwork market score | 19 | 33 |
Official counts and lending
Businesses
- Official establishments, 2019 to 2023
- 72 → 67−6.9% over the period
- Employees, 2023
- 987
- Annual payroll, 2023
- $31.7M
- One-person businesses, 2023
- 9Businesses with no payroll
- Map listings, September 2026
- 16826 chain locations
- Listings at the U.S. rate for this spending
- 69The U.S. ratio of listings to household spending, applied here
SBA-backed loans since fiscal 2022
- Loans
- 4
- Amount
- $3.1M
SBA-backed loans to businesses classed as restaurants and other eating places in Mono County, 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 Mono County
- Population, 2025 estimate
- 12,505−5.4% since 2020
- Households
- 5,744
- Median age
- 43.4
- Homes lived in by their owners
- 65%
- Vehicles per household
- 2.1
- Land area
- 3,049 sq. mi.
- People per square mile
- 4
- Median household income
- $99,415+59.7% vs. 2015–2019, before inflation
- Average household income
- $123,063
- Median home value
- $639,400
- Jobs located here
- 8,322
- Daytime population
- 14,737Residents who don’t work, plus everyone whose job is here
Looking at a specific site in Mono County?
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 Mono County. Signed out, you see a blurred preview; on an account, each report is one action.
Free10 actions over 3 days, no cardRestaurants and cafes across California
Every California market ranked →The highest-scoring counties in California for restaurants and cafes, numbered among those based in California, with Mono County marked.
Top counties in California
| Market | Score | Listings | Per 10k households | Spending per listing | Population growth | U.S. rank |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1Yuba County, CA | 86 | 179 | 62.5 | $606K | +8.2% | #52 of 2,405 |
| 2San Benito County, CA | 70 | 209 | 101.6 | $482K | +8.6% | #405 of 2,405 |
| 3Contra Costa County, CA | 64 | 3,869 | 93.4 | $555K | +0.3% | #585 of 2,405 |
| 4San Joaquin County, CA | 62 | 2,489 | 101.5 | $423K | +5.5% | #685 of 2,405 |
| 5Merced County, CA | 60 | 729 | 84.7 | $418K | +5.1% | #766 of 2,405 |
| 6Placer County, CA | 60 | 1,914 | 121.2 | $405K | +8.9% | #769 of 2,405 |
| 7Solano County, CA | 59 | 1,544 | 98.0 | $460K | +0.6% | #791 of 2,405 |
| 8Riverside County, CA | 59 | 7,943 | 102.4 | $422K | +5.0% | #802 of 2,405 |
| 9Madera County, CA | 58 | 450 | 99.2 | $387K | +7.4% | #849 of 2,405 |
| 10Lassen County, CA | 56 | 67 | 72.5 | $483K | −13.1% | #903 of 2,405 |
| 52Mono County, CA | 19 | 168 | 292.5 | $152K | −5.4% | #2,316 of 2,405 |
Other business types in Mono County
Each with its Groundwork market score here, out of 100, where it has one.
Food and drink
- Restaurants and cafes19
- Sit-down restaurants19
- Fast food and sandwich shops33
- Pizza23
- Coffee shops and cafes19
- Bakeries and dessert shops20
Groceries and convenience
Auto
Beauty and personal care
Fitness and classes
Health care
Child care
Clothing and laundry
Home services
Real estate
Funeral services
Questions
How many restaurants and cafes are in Mono County, CA?
Map listings as of September 2026 show 168 restaurants and cafes in Mono County. 26 of them (15%) are chain locations. The listings count every restaurant, cafe, bar, bakery and food truck. Official counts show 67 businesses with payroll classed as restaurants and other eating places in 2023, down 6.9% from 2019. Another 9 one-person businesses have no payroll, by official counts.
How much do households in Mono County, CA spend on food away from home?
About $25.6M a year, or $4,451 per household. That is 9% above the U.S. average (an index of 109, where 100 is the U.S. average). Spread across the 168 restaurants and cafes on map listings, it comes to $152K per restaurant. It is estimated from the incomes of the 5,744 households in Mono County and national spending patterns by income.
How does Mono County, CA compare with the U.S. for restaurants and cafes?
Mono County has 292.5 restaurants and cafes per 10,000 households, 2.7 times the U.S. rate of 109.8. Spending per restaurant is $152K, 59% below the U.S. figure of $371K. At the U.S. ratio of restaurants and cafes to household spending, Mono County would have about 69, against 168 on map listings. There is one business with payroll in the industry for every 86 households, against one for every 209 across the U.S. The official count fell 6.9% from 2019 to 2023, against +6.0% for the U.S.
How fast is Mono County, CA growing?
Population estimates put Mono County at 12,505 people in 2025, down 5.4% since 2020, against +3.1% for the U.S. It has 5,744 households. Median household income in Mono County is $99,415, 23% above the U.S. median of $80,734. Against the 2015–2019 survey, the median rose 59.7%, 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. Mono County scores 19 for restaurants and cafes (low), #2,316 of 2,405 scored counties.
How can I see the market around a specific site?
Run a Groundwork site report on an address in Mono County. 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 Mono County
Screening a site or an acquisition in Mono County?
A site report maps the competitors on map listings near an address and sizes the households and spending around it.
The button opens the report at the center of Mono County. Signed out, you see a blurred preview; on an account, each report is one action.
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.