Groundwork

Food and drink · County · Iowa

Restaurants and cafes in Mitchell County, IA

The restaurants and cafes in Mitchell County, IA, the household spending behind them and how the market ranks against other counties.

Groundwork market score · out of 100

Score 62 out of 100: Upper middle

Ranked #695 of 2,405 scored counties
#19 of 72 scored counties in Iowa

Listings
44
8 chain locations (18%)
Official establishments
13
Businesses with payroll, 2023
Household spending a year
$17.4M
On food away from home · $3,785 a household
Spending per listing
$395K
7% above the U.S.
Listings per 10k households
95.7
13% below the U.S.
Population, 2025
10,650
+0.6% since 2020

See the restaurants and cafes around any address in Mitchell 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 Mitchell County. 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

Map listings as of September 2026 show 44 restaurants and cafes in Mitchell County. Of those, 8 are chain locations, or 18%, against 34% across the U.S. Per 10,000 households, that is 95.7, 13% below the U.S. rate of 109.8.

At $3,785 per household (7% below the U.S. average), households in Mitchell County spend about $17.4M a year on food away from home. That works out to $395K per restaurant, 7% above the U.S. figure of $371K.

The official count of businesses with payroll classed as restaurants and other eating places in Mitchell County was 13 in 2023. That is one for every 354 households, against one for every 209 across the U.S. Another 3 one-person businesses have no payroll, by official counts.

Between 2020 and 2025, the population of Mitchell County grew 0.6%, slower than the U.S. (+3.1%). The Groundwork market score for restaurants and cafes in Mitchell County is 62 (upper middle), #695 of 2,405 scored counties and #19 of 72 scored counties in Iowa.

How Mitchell County compares

The same measures for Iowa 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 Mitchell County, IA compared with Iowa and the U.S.
MeasureMitchell CountyIowaU.S.
Listings per 10k households95.7103.1109.8
Spending per listing$395K$377K$371K
Households per official establishment354245209
Official establishment growth, 2019–2023n/a+3.4%+6.0%
Population growth, 2020–2025+0.6%+1.5%+3.1%
Spending per household on food away from home$3,785$3,880$4,070
Median household income$71,365$75,059$80,734
Groundwork market score6257

Official counts and lending

Businesses

Official establishments, 2019 to 2023
16 → 13
Employees, 2023
105
Annual payroll, 2023
$1.4M
One-person businesses, 2023
3Businesses with no payroll
Map listings, September 2026
448 chain locations
Listings at the U.S. rate for this spending
47The U.S. ratio of listings to household spending, applied here

SBA-backed loans since fiscal 2022

Loans
0
Amount
$0

SBA-backed loans to businesses classed as restaurants and other eating places in Mitchell 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 Mitchell County

Population, 2025 estimate
10,650+0.6% since 2020
Households
4,597
Median age
41.5
Homes lived in by their owners
80%
Vehicles per household
2.3
Land area
469 sq. mi.
People per square mile
23
Median household income
$71,365+22.4% vs. 2015–2019, before inflation
Average household income
$96,151
Median home value
$175,100
Jobs located here
3,761
Daytime population
9,436Residents who don’t work, plus everyone whose job is here

Looking at a specific site in Mitchell 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 Mitchell County. Signed out, you see a blurred preview; on an account, each report is one action.

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Restaurants and cafes across Iowa

Every Iowa market ranked →

The highest-scoring counties in Iowa for restaurants and cafes, numbered among those based in Iowa, with Mitchell County marked.

Top counties in Iowa

Counties in Iowa ranked for restaurants and cafes by Groundwork market score
MarketScoreListingsPer 10k householdsSpending per listingPopulation growthU.S. rank
1Warren County, IA8716881.2$535K+9.0%#46 of 2,405
2Benton County, IA845755.9$734K+1.8%#66 of 2,405
3Madison County, IA815785.1$490K+3.8%#127 of 2,405
4Dallas County, IA8040194.4$504K+17.8%#142 of 2,405
5Mills County, IA784787.1$489K+2.6%#181 of 2,405
6Boone County, IA768375.9$528K+0.4%#220 of 2,405
7Butler County, IA743458.0$648K−2.0%#255 of 2,405
8Buchanan County, IA736173.9$510K+1.3%#308 of 2,405
9Grundy County, IA734282.1$493K+0.2%#315 of 2,405
10Hancock County, IA702451.4$693K−2.2%#389 of 2,405
19Mitchell County, IA624495.7$395K+0.6%#695 of 2,405

Other business types in Mitchell County

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

Questions

How many restaurants and cafes are in Mitchell County, IA?

There are 44 restaurants and cafes on map listings in Mitchell County as of September 2026. 8 of them (18%) are chain locations. The listings count every restaurant, cafe, bar, bakery and food truck. Official counts show 13 businesses with payroll classed as restaurants and other eating places in 2023. Official counts list 3 one-person businesses without payroll.

How much do households in Mitchell County, IA spend on food away from home?

About $17.4M a year, or $3,785 per household. That is 7% below the U.S. average (an index of 93, where 100 is the U.S. average). Spread across the 44 restaurants and cafes on map listings, it comes to $395K per restaurant. It is estimated from the incomes of the 4,597 households in Mitchell County and national spending patterns by income.

How does Mitchell County, IA compare with the U.S. for restaurants and cafes?

Mitchell County has 95.7 restaurants and cafes per 10,000 households, 13% below the U.S. rate of 109.8. Spending per restaurant is $395K, 7% above the U.S. figure of $371K. At the national ratio of restaurants and cafes to household spending, Mitchell County would have about 47, against 44 on map listings. There is one business with payroll in the industry for every 354 households, against one for every 209 across the U.S.

How fast is Mitchell County, IA growing?

Population estimates put Mitchell County at 10,650 people in 2025, up 0.6% since 2020, slower than the U.S. (+3.1%). It has 4,597 households. The median household income in Mitchell County is $71,365 a year, 12% below the U.S. median of $80,734. That rose 22.4% 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. Mitchell County scores 62 for restaurants and cafes (upper middle), #695 of 2,405 scored counties.

How can I see the market around a specific site?

Run a Groundwork site report on an address in Mitchell 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 Mitchell County

Screening a site or an acquisition in Mitchell 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 Mitchell 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.