Food and drink · Small-town market · Minnesota
Restaurants and cafes in the Brainerd, MN area
Competitor counts, household spending and official business counts for restaurants and cafes in the Brainerd, MN area, set against other small-town markets and the U.S.
Groundwork market score · out of 100
Score 57 out of 100: Upper middle
Ranked #193 of 538 scored small-town markets
#18 of 18 scored small-town markets based in Minnesota
- Listings
- 461
- 136 chain locations (30%)
- Official establishments
- 197
- +10.1% since 2019
- Household spending a year
- $159.9M
- On food away from home · $3,782 a household
- Spending per listing
- $347K
- 6% below the U.S.
- Listings per 10k households
- 109.0
- In line with the U.S.
- Population, 2025
- 100,562
- +4.3% since 2020
See the restaurants and cafes around any address in the Brainerd 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 Brainerd 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
At $3,782 per household (7% below the U.S. average), households in the Brainerd area spend about $159.9M a year on food away from home. That works out to $347K per restaurant, 6% below the U.S. figure of $371K.
The Brainerd area has 461 restaurants and cafes on map listings as of September 2026. Of those, 136 are chain locations, or 30%, against 34% across the U.S. Per 10,000 households, that is 109.0, in line with the U.S. rate of 109.8.
In 2023, official counts showed 197 businesses with payroll in the Brainerd area classed as restaurants and other eating places, up 10.1% from 2019. That is one for every 215 households, against one for every 209 across the U.S. Official counts list 13 one-person businesses without payroll. Since fiscal 2022, 9 SBA-backed loans worth $3.4M have gone to businesses classed as restaurants and other eating places in the Brainerd area.
Population estimates show the Brainerd area grew 4.3% from 2020 to 2025, faster than the U.S. (+3.1%). The Groundwork market score for restaurants and cafes in the Brainerd area is 57 (upper middle), #193 of 538 scored small-town markets and #18 of 18 scored small-town markets based in Minnesota.
How the Brainerd area compares
The same measures for Minnesota 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 | Brainerd area | Minnesota | U.S. |
|---|---|---|---|
| Listings per 10k households | 109.0 | 84.5 | 109.8 |
| Spending per listing | $347K | $512K | $371K |
| Households per official establishment | 215 | 260 | 209 |
| Official establishment growth, 2019–2023 | +10.1% | +2.5% | +6.0% |
| Population growth, 2020–2025 | +4.3% | +2.1% | +3.1% |
| Spending per household on food away from home | $3,782 | $4,330 | $4,070 |
| Median household income | $71,384 | $89,062 | $80,734 |
| Groundwork market score | 57 | 84 |
Official counts and lending
Businesses
- Official establishments, 2019 to 2023
- 197+10.1% over the period
- Employees, 2023
- 3,034
- Annual payroll, 2023
- $73M
- One-person businesses, 2023
- 13Businesses with no payroll
- Map listings, September 2026
- 461136 chain locations
- Listings at the U.S. rate for this spending
- 431The U.S. ratio of listings to household spending, applied here
SBA-backed loans since fiscal 2022
- Loans
- 9
- Amount
- $3.4M
SBA-backed loans to businesses classed as restaurants and other eating places in the Brainerd 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 Brainerd area
- Population, 2025 estimate
- 100,562+4.3% since 2020
- Households
- 42,276
- Median age
- 46.9
- Homes lived in by their owners
- 80%
- Vehicles per household
- 2.0
- Land area
- 3,020 sq. mi.
- People per square mile
- 33
- Median household income
- $71,384+29.4% vs. 2015–2019, before inflation
- Average household income
- $93,780
- Median home value
- $301,000
- Jobs located here
- 39,612
- Daytime population
- 95,720Residents who don’t work, plus everyone whose job is here
Looking at a specific site in the Brainerd 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 Brainerd 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 Minnesota
Every Minnesota market ranked →The highest-scoring small-town markets in Minnesota for restaurants and cafes, numbered among those based in Minnesota (a market based in another state is listed without a number), with the Brainerd area marked.
Top small-town markets in Minnesota
| Market | Score | Listings | Per 10k households | Spending per listing | Population growth | U.S. rank |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1Austin, MN | 88 | 94 | 59.8 | $630K | +2.3% | #6 of 538 |
| 2Faribault-Northfield, MN | 86 | 199 | 84.7 | $482K | +4.2% | #9 of 538 |
| 3Hutchinson, MN | 82 | 114 | 74.9 | $527K | −0.3% | #20 of 538 |
| 4Detroit Lakes, MN | 82 | 120 | 83.3 | $455K | +0.9% | #23 of 538 |
| 5Willmar, MN | 81 | 144 | 81.8 | $473K | +2.3% | #25 of 538 |
| 6Red Wing, MN | 81 | 171 | 86.7 | $464K | +1.3% | #26 of 538 |
| 7Grand Rapids, MN | 79 | 144 | 77.7 | $470K | +0.9% | #32 of 538 |
| 8Owatonna, MN | 76 | 131 | 86.5 | $466K | +0.2% | #46 of 538 |
| 9Bemidji, MN | 74 | 144 | 79.2 | $467K | +1.8% | #55 of 538 |
| Wahpeton, ND-MN | 73 | 90 | 94.7 | $404K | 0.0% | #62 of 538 |
| 18Brainerd, MN | 57 | 461 | 109.0 | $347K | +4.3% | #193 of 538 |
Other business types in the Brainerd area
Each with its Groundwork market score here, out of 100, where it has one.
Food and drink
- Restaurants and cafes57
- Sit-down restaurants51
- Fast food and sandwich shops85
- Pizza67
- Coffee shops and cafes53
- Bakeries and dessert shops75
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 Brainerd, MN area?
Map listings as of September 2026 show 461 restaurants and cafes in the Brainerd area. 136 of them (30%) are chain locations. The listings count every restaurant, cafe, bar, bakery and food truck. Official counts show 197 businesses with payroll classed as restaurants and other eating places in 2023, up 10.1% from 2019. Official counts also show 13 one-person businesses without payroll.
How much do households in the Brainerd, MN area spend on food away from home?
About $159.9M a year, or $3,782 per household. That is 7% below the U.S. average (an index of 93, where 100 is the U.S. average). Spread across the 461 restaurants and cafes on map listings, it comes to $347K per restaurant. It is estimated from the incomes of the 42,276 households in the Brainerd area and national spending patterns by income.
How does the Brainerd, MN area compare with the U.S. for restaurants and cafes?
The Brainerd area has 109.0 restaurants and cafes per 10,000 households, in line with the U.S. rate of 109.8. Spending per restaurant is $347K, 6% below the U.S. figure of $371K. At the U.S. ratio of restaurants and cafes to household spending, the Brainerd area would have about 431, against 461 on map listings. There is one business with payroll in the industry for every 215 households, against one for every 209 across the U.S. The official count rose 10.1% from 2019 to 2023, against +6.0% for the U.S.
How fast is the Brainerd, MN area growing?
Population estimates put the Brainerd area at 100,562 people in 2025, up 4.3% since 2020, faster than the U.S. (+3.1%). It has 42,276 households. Median household income in the Brainerd area is $71,384, 12% below the U.S. median of $80,734. Against the 2015–2019 survey, the median rose 29.4%, 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. 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 Brainerd area scores 57 for restaurants and cafes (upper middle), #193 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 Brainerd 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 Brainerd area
Screening a site or an acquisition in the Brainerd 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 Brainerd 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.