Groundwork

Food and drink · County · Kentucky

Restaurants and cafes in Ohio County, KY

How Ohio County, KY 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 65 out of 100: Upper middle

Ranked #537 of 2,405 scored counties
#34 of 99 scored counties in Kentucky

Listings
51
27 chain locations (53%)
Official establishments
23
−11.5% since 2019
Household spending a year
$28.9M
On food away from home · $3,172 a household
Spending per listing
$566K
53% above the U.S.
Listings per 10k households
56.0
49% below the U.S.
Population, 2025
23,934
+0.8% since 2020

See the restaurants and cafes around any address in Ohio 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 Ohio County. Signed out, you see a blurred preview; on an account, each report is one action.

Free10 actions over 3 days, no card

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 51 restaurants and cafes in Ohio County. 27 of them (53%) are chain locations, against 34% across the U.S. That is 56.0 per 10,000 households, 49% below the U.S. rate of 109.8.

Households in Ohio County spend about $28.9M a year on food away from home, or $3,172 per household, 22% below the U.S. average. That works out to $566K per restaurant, 53% above the U.S. figure of $371K.

In 2023, official counts showed 23 businesses with payroll in Ohio County classed as restaurants and other eating places, down 11.5% from 2019. That is one for every 396 households, against one for every 209 across the U.S.

Population estimates put the population change in Ohio County from 2020 to 2025 at +0.8%, slower than the U.S. (+3.1%). The Groundwork market score for restaurants and cafes in Ohio County is 65 (upper middle), #537 of 2,405 scored counties and #34 of 99 scored counties in Kentucky. That puts it in the top quarter of counties.

How Ohio County compares

The same measures for Kentucky 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 Ohio County, KY compared with Kentucky and the U.S.
MeasureOhio CountyKentuckyU.S.
Listings per 10k households56.089.4109.8
Spending per listing$566K$390K$371K
Households per official establishment396260209
Official establishment growth, 2019–2023−11.5%+5.0%+6.0%
Population growth, 2020–2025+0.8%+2.2%+3.1%
Spending per household on food away from home$3,172$3,489$4,070
Median household income$57,798$63,726$80,734
Groundwork market score6558

Official counts and lending

Businesses

Official establishments, 2019 to 2023
26 → 23−11.5% over the period
Employees, 2023
409
Annual payroll, 2023
$6.5M
One-person businesses, 2023
0Businesses with no payroll
Map listings, September 2026
5127 chain locations
Listings at the U.S. rate for this spending
78The 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 Ohio 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 Ohio County

Population, 2025 estimate
23,934+0.8% since 2020
Households
9,107
Median age
39.8
Homes lived in by their owners
77%
Vehicles per household
2.2
Land area
587 sq. mi.
People per square mile
40
Median household income
$57,798+26.9% vs. 2015–2019, before inflation
Average household income
$73,240
Median home value
$121,400
Jobs located here
7,171
Daytime population
21,627Residents who don’t work, plus everyone whose job is here

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

Free10 actions over 3 days, no card

Restaurants and cafes across Kentucky

Every Kentucky market ranked →

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

Top counties in Kentucky

Counties in Kentucky ranked for restaurants and cafes by Groundwork market score
MarketScoreListingsPer 10k householdsSpending per listingPopulation growthU.S. rank
1Spencer County, KY943142.4$1M+7.7%#5 of 2,405
2Oldham County, KY8715165.6$763K+4.9%#41 of 2,405
3Bullitt County, KY8520865.5$593K+5.0%#64 of 2,405
4Henry County, KY793150.4$662K+4.8%#145 of 2,405
5Scott County, KY7918782.6$492K+8.2%#159 of 2,405
6Meade County, KY786559.1$637K+2.2%#169 of 2,405
7Jessamine County, KY7812663.3$600K+7.8%#171 of 2,405
8Lincoln County, KY773839.2$792K+4.6%#185 of 2,405
9Allen County, KY774657.2$559K+9.5%#197 of 2,405
10Garrard County, KY774059.7$544K+7.3%#200 of 2,405
34Ohio County, KY655156.0$566K+0.8%#537 of 2,405

Other business types in Ohio County

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

Questions

How many restaurants and cafes are in Ohio County, KY?

There are 51 restaurants and cafes on map listings in Ohio County as of September 2026. 27 of them (53%) are chain locations. The listings count every restaurant, cafe, bar, bakery and food truck. Official counts show 23 businesses with payroll classed as restaurants and other eating places in 2023, down 11.5% from 2019.

How much do households in Ohio County, KY spend on food away from home?

About $28.9M a year, or $3,172 per household. That is 22% below the U.S. average (an index of 78, where 100 is the U.S. average). Spread across the 51 restaurants and cafes on map listings, it comes to $566K per restaurant. It is estimated from the incomes of the 9,107 households in Ohio County and national spending patterns by income.

How does Ohio County, KY compare with the U.S. for restaurants and cafes?

Ohio County has 56.0 restaurants and cafes per 10,000 households, 49% below the U.S. rate of 109.8. Spending per restaurant is $566K, 53% above the U.S. figure of $371K. At the national ratio of restaurants and cafes to household spending, Ohio County would have about 78, against 51 on map listings. There is one business with payroll in the industry for every 396 households, against one for every 209 across the U.S. The official count fell 11.5% from 2019 to 2023, against +6.0% for the U.S.

How fast is Ohio County, KY growing?

Population estimates put Ohio County at 23,934 people in 2025, up 0.8% since 2020, slower than the U.S. (+3.1%). It has 9,107 households. The median household income in Ohio County is $57,798 a year, 28% below the U.S. median of $80,734. That rose 26.9% 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. Ohio County scores 65 for restaurants and cafes (upper middle), #537 of 2,405 scored counties.

How can I see the market around a specific site?

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

Screening a site or an acquisition in Ohio 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 Ohio 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.