Food and drink · Small-town market · Kansas
Restaurants and cafes in the Garden City, KS area
The restaurants and cafes in the Garden City, KS area, the household spending behind them and how the market ranks against other small-town markets.
Groundwork market score · out of 100
Score 31 out of 100: Lower middle
Ranked #453 of 538 scored small-town markets
#9 of 13 scored small-town markets based in Kansas
- Listings
- 167
- 72 chain locations (43%)
- Official establishments
- 72
- −1.4% since 2019
- Household spending a year
- $50.5M
- On food away from home · $3,818 a household
- Spending per listing
- $302K
- 18% below the U.S.
- Listings per 10k households
- 126.2
- 15% above the U.S.
- Population, 2025
- 37,505
- −2.1% since 2020
See the restaurants and cafes around any address in the Garden City 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 Garden City 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
For restaurants and cafes, the Garden City area has a Groundwork market score of 31 (lower middle): #453 of 538 scored small-town markets and #9 of 13 scored small-town markets based in Kansas. That puts it in the bottom quarter of small-town markets.
As of September 2026, map listings count 167 restaurants and cafes in the Garden City area. 72 of them (43%) are chain locations, against 34% across the U.S. Per 10,000 households, that is 126.2, 15% above the U.S. rate of 109.8.
Household spending on food away from home in the Garden City area comes to about $50.5M a year: $3,818 per household, 6% below the U.S. average. That works out to $302K per restaurant, 18% below the U.S. figure of $371K.
In 2023, official counts showed 72 businesses with payroll in the Garden City area classed as restaurants and other eating places, down 1.4% from 2019. That is one for every 184 households, against one for every 209 across the U.S. Population estimates put the population change in the Garden City area from 2020 to 2025 at −2.1%, against +3.1% for the U.S.
How the Garden City area compares
The same measures for Kansas 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 | Garden City area | Kansas | U.S. |
|---|---|---|---|
| Listings per 10k households | 126.2 | 98.4 | 109.8 |
| Spending per listing | $302K | $397K | $371K |
| Households per official establishment | 184 | 229 | 209 |
| Official establishment growth, 2019–2023 | −1.4% | +6.6% | +6.0% |
| Population growth, 2020–2025 | −2.1% | +1.3% | +3.1% |
| Spending per household on food away from home | $3,818 | $3,910 | $4,070 |
| Median household income | $73,009 | $74,275 | $80,734 |
| Groundwork market score | 31 | 58 |
Official counts and lending
Businesses
- Official establishments, 2019 to 2023
- 72−1.4% over the period
- Employees, 2023
- 1,389
- Annual payroll, 2023
- $26.2M
- One-person businesses, 2023
- 14Businesses with no payroll
- Map listings, September 2026
- 16772 chain locations
- Listings at the U.S. rate for this spending
- 136The 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 the Garden City 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 Garden City area
- Population, 2025 estimate
- 37,505−2.1% since 2020
- Households
- 13,229
- Median age
- 33.2
- Homes lived in by their owners
- 65%
- Vehicles per household
- 2.1
- Land area
- 1,302 sq. mi.
- People per square mile
- 29
- Median household income
- $73,009
- Average household income
- $91,638
- Median home value
- $201,400
- Jobs located here
- 19,852
- Daytime population
- 39,125Residents who don’t work, plus everyone whose job is here
Looking at a specific site in the Garden City area?
These figures cover the whole small-town market. 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 Garden City 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 Kansas
Every Kansas market ranked →The highest-scoring small-town markets in Kansas for restaurants and cafes, numbered among those based in Kansas, with the Garden City area marked.
Top small-town markets in Kansas
| Market | Score | Listings | Per 10k households | Spending per listing | Population growth | U.S. rank |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1Ottawa, KS | 69 | 93 | 89.3 | $416K | +1.1% | #85 of 538 |
| 2McPherson, KS | 65 | 112 | 92.1 | $415K | −0.4% | #125 of 538 |
| 3Arkansas City-Winfield, KS | 62 | 110 | 82.2 | $410K | −0.4% | #150 of 538 |
| 4Atchison, KS | 47 | 57 | 99.4 | $343K | −0.9% | #295 of 538 |
| 5Hutchinson, KS | 46 | 227 | 88.7 | $380K | −0.6% | #304 of 538 |
| 6Salina, KS | 44 | 245 | 98.3 | $362K | −1.4% | #332 of 538 |
| 7Great Bend, KS | 34 | 109 | 105.0 | $319K | −2.5% | #428 of 538 |
| 8Pittsburg, KS | 34 | 162 | 102.3 | $312K | +0.1% | #429 of 538 |
| 9Garden City, KS | 31 | 167 | 126.2 | $302K | −2.1% | #453 of 538 |
| 10Hays, KS | 28 | 154 | 125.7 | $279K | +0.4% | #474 of 538 |
Other business types in the Garden City area
Each with its Groundwork market score here, out of 100, where it has one.
Food and drink
- Restaurants and cafes31
- Sit-down restaurants33
- Fast food and sandwich shops46
- Pizza48
- Coffee shops and cafes35
- Bakeries and dessert shops25
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 the Garden City, KS area?
The Garden City area has 167 restaurants and cafes on map listings as of September 2026. 72 of them (43%) are chain locations. The listings count every restaurant, cafe, bar, bakery and food truck. Official counts show 72 businesses with payroll classed as restaurants and other eating places in 2023, down 1.4% from 2019. Official counts list 14 one-person businesses without payroll.
How much do households in the Garden City, KS area spend on food away from home?
About $50.5M a year, or $3,818 per household. That is 6% below the U.S. average (an index of 94, where 100 is the U.S. average). Spread across the 167 restaurants and cafes on map listings, it comes to $302K per restaurant. It is estimated from the incomes of the 13,229 households in the Garden City area and national spending patterns by income.
How does the Garden City, KS area compare with the U.S. for restaurants and cafes?
The Garden City area has 126.2 restaurants and cafes per 10,000 households, 15% above the U.S. rate of 109.8. Spending per restaurant is $302K, 18% below the U.S. figure of $371K. At the national ratio of restaurants and cafes to household spending, the Garden City area would have about 136, against 167 on map listings. There is one business with payroll in the industry for every 184 households, against one for every 209 across the U.S. The official count fell 1.4% from 2019 to 2023, against +6.0% for the U.S.
How fast is the Garden City, KS area growing?
Population estimates put the Garden City area at 37,505 people in 2025, down 2.1% since 2020, against +3.1% for the U.S. It has 13,229 households. The median household income in the Garden City area is $73,009 a year, 10% below 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. A small-town market is a town of 10,000 to 50,000 people and the county or counties tied to it by commuting. 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 Garden City area scores 31 for restaurants and cafes (lower middle), #453 of 538 scored small-town markets.
How can I see the market around a specific site?
Run a Groundwork site report on an address in the Garden City 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 Garden City area
Screening a site or an acquisition in the Garden City 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 Garden City 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.