Groundwork

Food and drink · County · Kentucky

Restaurants and cafes in Owsley County, KY

Competitor counts, household spending and official business counts for restaurants and cafes in Owsley County, KY, set against other counties and the U.S.

Groundwork market score

Not scored

Counties under 10,000 people aren’t scored, since a few businesses can swing their figures.

Listings
4
0 chain locations (0%)
Official establishments
3
Businesses with payroll, 2023
Household spending a year
$3.6M
On food away from home · $2,284 a household
Spending per listing
$895K
2.4 times the U.S.
Listings per 10k households
25.5
77% below the U.S.
Population, 2025
3,932
−2.5% since 2020

See the restaurants and cafes around any address in Owsley 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 Owsley 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

As of September 2026, map listings count 4 restaurants and cafes in Owsley County. That is 25.5 per 10,000 households, 77% below the U.S. rate of 109.8.

Households in Owsley County spend about $3.6M a year on food away from home, or $2,284 per household, 44% below the U.S. average. Spread across 4 restaurants and cafes, that is $895K per restaurant, 2.4 times the U.S. figure of $371K.

Official counts show 3 businesses with payroll classed as restaurants and other eating places in Owsley County in 2023. That is one for every 522 households, against one for every 209 across the U.S. Official counts also show 4 one-person businesses without payroll.

Population estimates put the population change in Owsley County from 2020 to 2025 at −2.5%, against +3.1% for the U.S. Counties under 10,000 people aren’t given a market score, since a few businesses can swing their figures.

How Owsley 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 Owsley County, KY compared with Kentucky and the U.S.
MeasureOwsley CountyKentuckyU.S.
Listings per 10k households25.589.4109.8
Spending per listing$895K$390K$371K
Households per official establishment522260209
Official establishment growth, 2019–2023n/a+5.0%+6.0%
Population growth, 2020–2025−2.5%+2.2%+3.1%
Spending per household on food away from home$2,284$3,489$4,070
Median household income$22,188$63,726$80,734
Groundwork market scoreNot scored58

Official counts and lending

Businesses

Official establishments, 2019 to 2023
3
Employees, 2023
14
Annual payroll, 2023
$143K
One-person businesses, 2023
4Businesses with no payroll
Map listings, September 2026
40 chain locations
Listings at the U.S. rate for this spending
10The 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 Owsley 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 Owsley County

Population, 2025 estimate
3,932−2.5% since 2020
Households
1,567
Median age
48.0
Homes lived in by their owners
70%
Vehicles per household
1.7
Land area
197 sq. mi.
People per square mile
20
Median household income
$22,188
Average household income
$42,014
Median home value
$80,100
Jobs located here
657
Daytime population
3,656Residents who don’t work, plus everyone whose job is here

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

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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 Owsley 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
Owsley County, KYNot scored425.5$895K−2.5%

Other business types in Owsley County

None has a Groundwork market score here. Counties under 10,000 people aren’t scored, since a few businesses can swing their figures.

Questions

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

Owsley County has 4 restaurants and cafes on map listings as of September 2026. The listings count every restaurant, cafe, bar, bakery and food truck. Official counts show 3 businesses with payroll classed as restaurants and other eating places in 2023. Another 4 one-person businesses have no payroll, by official counts.

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

About $3.6M a year, or $2,284 per household. That is 44% below the U.S. average (an index of 56, where 100 is the U.S. average). Spread across the 4 restaurants and cafes on map listings, it comes to $895K per restaurant. It is estimated from the incomes of the 1,567 households in Owsley County and national spending patterns by income.

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

Owsley County has 25.5 restaurants and cafes per 10,000 households, 77% below the U.S. rate of 109.8. Spending per restaurant is $895K, 2.4 times the U.S. figure of $371K. At the national ratio of restaurants and cafes to household spending, Owsley County would have about 10, against 4 on map listings. There is one business with payroll in the industry for every 522 households, against one for every 209 across the U.S.

How fast is Owsley County, KY growing?

Population estimates put Owsley County at 3,932 people in 2025, down 2.5% since 2020, against +3.1% for the U.S. It has 1,567 households. The median household income in Owsley County is $22,188 a year, 73% 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. 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 score leaves out counties under 10,000 people, where a handful of businesses would swing it.

How can I see the market around a specific site?

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

Screening a site or an acquisition in Owsley 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 Owsley 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.