Food and drink · Metro area · Connecticut
Restaurants and cafes in the Waterbury-Shelton, CT metro area
The restaurants and cafes in the Waterbury-Shelton, CT metro area, the household spending behind them and how the market ranks against other metro areas.
Groundwork market score · out of 100
Score 73 out of 100: Upper middle
Ranked #46 of 387 scored metro areas
#1 of 5 scored metro areas based in Connecticut
- Listings
- 1,725
- 426 chain locations (25%)
- Official establishments
- 783
- Businesses with payroll, 2023
- Household spending a year
- $757.3M
- On food away from home · $4,205 a household
- Spending per listing
- $439K
- 18% above the U.S.
- Listings per 10k households
- 95.8
- 13% below the U.S.
- Population, 2025
- 463,349
- +3.2% since 2020
See the restaurants and cafes around any address in the Waterbury-Shelton metro area
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 the Waterbury-Shelton metro area. 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
Households in the Waterbury-Shelton metro area spend about $757.3M a year on food away from home, or $4,205 per household, 3% above the U.S. average. That is about $439K of household spending for each restaurant on map listings, 18% above the U.S. figure of $371K.
The Waterbury-Shelton metro area has 1,725 restaurants and cafes on map listings as of September 2026. Of those, 426 are chain locations, or 25%, against 34% across the U.S. That comes to 95.8 for every 10,000 households, 13% below the U.S. rate of 109.8.
In 2023, official counts showed 783 businesses with payroll in the Waterbury-Shelton metro area classed as restaurants and other eating places. That is one for every 230 households, against one for every 209 across the U.S. Official counts also show 206 one-person businesses without payroll. Since fiscal 2022, 21 SBA-backed loans worth $5.6M have gone to businesses classed as restaurants and other eating places in the Waterbury-Shelton metro area.
Population estimates put the population change in the Waterbury-Shelton metro area from 2020 to 2025 at +3.2%, in step with the U.S. (+3.1%). The Groundwork market score for restaurants and cafes in the Waterbury-Shelton metro area is 73 (upper middle), #46 of 387 scored metro areas and #1 of 5 scored metro areas based in Connecticut. That puts it in the top quarter of metro areas.
How the Waterbury-Shelton metro area compares
The same measures for Connecticut 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 | Waterbury-Shelton metro area | Connecticut | U.S. |
|---|---|---|---|
| Listings per 10k households | 95.8 | 112.3 | 109.8 |
| Spending per listing | $439K | $401K | $371K |
| Households per official establishment | 230 | 190 | 209 |
| Official establishment growth, 2019–2023 | n/a | +3.5% | +6.0% |
| Population growth, 2020–2025 | +3.2% | +3.0% | +3.1% |
| Spending per household on food away from home | $4,205 | $4,498 | $4,070 |
| Median household income | $86,191 | $95,781 | $80,734 |
| Groundwork market score | 73 | 61 |
Official counts and lending
Businesses
- Official establishments, 2019 to 2023
- 783
- Employees, 2023
- 10,388
- Annual payroll, 2023
- $248.1M
- One-person businesses, 2023
- 206Businesses with no payroll
- Map listings, September 2026
- 1,725426 chain locations
- Listings at the U.S. rate for this spending
- 2,043The U.S. ratio of listings to household spending, applied here
SBA-backed loans since fiscal 2022
- Loans
- 21
- Amount
- $5.6M
SBA-backed loans to businesses classed as restaurants and other eating places in the Waterbury-Shelton metro area, 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 the Waterbury-Shelton metro area
- Population, 2025 estimate
- 463,349+3.2% since 2020
- Households
- 180,116
- Median age
- 42.6
- Homes lived in by their owners
- 69%
- Vehicles per household
- 1.7
- Land area
- 413 sq. mi.
- People per square mile
- 1,102
- Median household income
- $86,191
- Average household income
- $114,324
- Median home value
- $317,700
- Jobs located here
- 164,434
- Daytime population
- 395,318Residents who don’t work, plus everyone whose job is here
Looking at a specific site in the Waterbury-Shelton metro area?
These figures cover the whole metro area. 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 the Waterbury-Shelton metro area. 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 Connecticut
Every Connecticut market ranked →The highest-scoring metro areas in Connecticut for restaurants and cafes, numbered among those based in Connecticut, with the Waterbury-Shelton metro area marked.
Top metro areas in Connecticut
| Market | Score | Listings | Per 10k households | Spending per listing | Population growth | U.S. rank |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1Waterbury-Shelton, CT | 73 | 1,725 | 95.8 | $439K | +3.2% | #46 of 387 |
| 2Hartford-West Hartford-East Hartford, CT | 61 | 4,920 | 105.8 | $421K | +3.0% | #121 of 387 |
| 3Bridgeport-Stamford-Danbury, CT | 56 | 4,453 | 125.4 | $398K | +3.7% | #149 of 387 |
| 4Norwich-New London-Willimantic, CT | 39 | 1,361 | 117.6 | $354K | +2.0% | #266 of 387 |
| 5New Haven, CT | 39 | 2,879 | 124.8 | $344K | +2.5% | #268 of 387 |
Other business types in the Waterbury-Shelton metro area
Each with its Groundwork market score here, out of 100, where it has one.
Food and drink
- Restaurants and cafes73
- Sit-down restaurants66
- Fast food and sandwich shops73
- Pizza56
- Coffee shops and cafes69
- Bakeries and dessert shops60
Groceries and convenience
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Beauty and personal care
Fitness and classes
Health care
Child care
Clothing and laundry
Home services
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Questions
How many restaurants and cafes are in the Waterbury-Shelton, CT metro area?
Map listings as of September 2026 show 1,725 restaurants and cafes in the Waterbury-Shelton metro area. 426 of them (25%) are chain locations. The listings count every restaurant, cafe, bar, bakery and food truck. Official counts show 783 businesses with payroll classed as restaurants and other eating places in 2023. Another 206 one-person businesses have no payroll, by official counts.
How much do households in the Waterbury-Shelton, CT metro area spend on food away from home?
About $757.3M a year, or $4,205 per household. That is 3% above the U.S. average (an index of 103, where 100 is the U.S. average). Spread across the 1,725 restaurants and cafes on map listings, it comes to $439K per restaurant. It is estimated from the incomes of the 180,116 households in the Waterbury-Shelton metro area and national spending patterns by income.
How does the Waterbury-Shelton, CT metro area compare with the U.S. for restaurants and cafes?
The Waterbury-Shelton metro area has 95.8 restaurants and cafes per 10,000 households, 13% below the U.S. rate of 109.8. Spending per restaurant is $439K, 18% above the U.S. figure of $371K. At the U.S. ratio of restaurants and cafes to household spending, the Waterbury-Shelton metro area would have about 2,043, against 1,725 on map listings. There is one business with payroll in the industry for every 230 households, against one for every 209 across the U.S.
How fast is the Waterbury-Shelton, CT metro area growing?
Population estimates put the Waterbury-Shelton metro area at 463,349 people in 2025, up 3.2% since 2020, in step with the U.S. (+3.1%). It has 180,116 households. Median household income in the Waterbury-Shelton metro area is $86,191, 7% above the U.S. median of $80,734.
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. The Waterbury-Shelton metro area scores 73 for restaurants and cafes (upper middle), #46 of 387 scored metro areas.
How can I see the market around a specific site?
Run a Groundwork site report on an address in the Waterbury-Shelton metro area. 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 the Waterbury-Shelton metro area
Screening a site or an acquisition in the Waterbury-Shelton metro area?
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 the Waterbury-Shelton metro area. 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.