Groundwork

Food and drink · County · Minnesota

Restaurants and cafes in Chisago County, MN

How Chisago County, MN 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 86 out of 100: High

Ranked #51 of 2,405 scored counties
#8 of 66 scored counties in Minnesota

Listings
148
48 chain locations (32%)
Official establishments
65
−3.0% since 2019
Household spending a year
$95.6M
On food away from home · $4,477 a household
Spending per listing
$646K
74% above the U.S.
Listings per 10k households
69.3
37% below the U.S.
Population, 2025
59,142
+4.3% since 2020

See the restaurants and cafes around any address in Chisago 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 Chisago 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

Chisago County scores 86 (high) on the Groundwork market score for restaurants and cafes, ranking #51 of 2,405 scored counties and #8 of 66 scored counties in Minnesota. That puts it in the top 10% of counties for restaurants and cafes.

Households in Chisago County spend about $95.6M a year on food away from home, or $4,477 per household, 10% above the U.S. average. That is about $646K of household spending for each restaurant on map listings, 74% above the U.S. figure of $371K.

Chisago County has 148 restaurants and cafes on map listings as of September 2026. Chain locations make up 32% of them, against 34% across the U.S. That is 69.3 per 10,000 households, 37% below the U.S. rate of 109.8.

Official counts show 65 businesses with payroll classed as restaurants and other eating places in Chisago County in 2023, down 3.0% from 2019. That is one for every 329 households, against one for every 209 across the U.S. Since fiscal 2022, 4 SBA-backed loans worth $2.2M have gone to businesses classed as restaurants and other eating places in Chisago County. Population estimates put the population change in Chisago County from 2020 to 2025 at +4.3%, faster than the U.S. (+3.1%).

How Chisago County 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.

Restaurants and cafes in Chisago County, MN compared with Minnesota and the U.S.
MeasureChisago CountyMinnesotaU.S.
Listings per 10k households69.384.5109.8
Spending per listing$646K$512K$371K
Households per official establishment329260209
Official establishment growth, 2019–2023−3.0%+2.5%+6.0%
Population growth, 2020–2025+4.3%+2.1%+3.1%
Spending per household on food away from home$4,477$4,330$4,070
Median household income$99,400$89,062$80,734
Groundwork market score8684

Official counts and lending

Businesses

Official establishments, 2019 to 2023
67 → 65−3.0% over the period
Employees, 2023
1,110
Annual payroll, 2023
$23M
One-person businesses, 2023
15Businesses with no payroll
Map listings, September 2026
14848 chain locations
Listings at the U.S. rate for this spending
258The U.S. ratio of listings to household spending, applied here

SBA-backed loans since fiscal 2022

Loans
4
Amount
$2.2M

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

Population, 2025 estimate
59,142+4.3% since 2020
Households
21,364
Median age
41.5
Homes lived in by their owners
86%
Vehicles per household
2.2
Land area
415 sq. mi.
People per square mile
140
Median household income
$99,400+19.1% vs. 2015–2019, before inflation
Average household income
$116,368
Median home value
$351,900
Jobs located here
13,785
Daytime population
41,049Residents who don’t work, plus everyone whose job is here

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

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Restaurants and cafes across Minnesota

Every Minnesota market ranked →

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

Top counties in Minnesota

Counties in Minnesota ranked for restaurants and cafes by Groundwork market score
MarketScoreListingsPer 10k householdsSpending per listingPopulation growthU.S. rank
1Sherburne County, MN9316847.3$983K+6.8%#7 of 2,405
2Wright County, MN9037769.8$671K+11.1%#26 of 2,405
3Isanti County, MN889658.9$693K+7.3%#34 of 2,405
4Carver County, MN8730975.0$702K+6.6%#42 of 2,405
5Anoka County, MN8689164.8$703K+4.7%#48 of 2,405
6Dodge County, MN865061.9$700K+2.3%#49 of 2,405
7Washington County, MN8678374.2$677K+6.9%#50 of 2,405
8Chisago County, MN8614869.3$646K+4.3%#51 of 2,405
9Scott County, MN8541876.0$678K+5.1%#61 of 2,405
10Clay County, MN8517164.7$614K+3.6%#63 of 2,405

Other business types in Chisago County

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

Questions

How many restaurants and cafes are in Chisago County, MN?

Map listings as of September 2026 show 148 restaurants and cafes in Chisago County. 48 of them (32%) are chain locations. The listings count every restaurant, cafe, bar, bakery and food truck. Official counts show 65 businesses with payroll classed as restaurants and other eating places in 2023, down 3.0% from 2019. Another 15 one-person businesses have no payroll, by official counts.

How much do households in Chisago County, MN spend on food away from home?

About $95.6M a year, or $4,477 per household. That is 10% above the U.S. average (an index of 110, where 100 is the U.S. average). Spread across the 148 restaurants and cafes on map listings, it comes to $646K per restaurant. It is estimated from the incomes of the 21,364 households in Chisago County and national spending patterns by income.

How does Chisago County, MN compare with the U.S. for restaurants and cafes?

Chisago County has 69.3 restaurants and cafes per 10,000 households, 37% below the U.S. rate of 109.8. Spending per restaurant is $646K, 74% above the U.S. figure of $371K. At the U.S. ratio of restaurants and cafes to household spending, Chisago County would have about 258, against 148 on map listings. There is one business with payroll in the industry for every 329 households, against one for every 209 across the U.S. The official count fell 3.0% from 2019 to 2023, against +6.0% for the U.S.

How fast is Chisago County, MN growing?

Population estimates put Chisago County at 59,142 people in 2025, up 4.3% since 2020, faster than the U.S. (+3.1%). It has 21,364 households. Median household income in Chisago County is $99,400, 23% above the U.S. median of $80,734. Against the 2015–2019 survey, the median rose 19.1%, 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. Chisago County scores 86 for restaurants and cafes (high), #51 of 2,405 scored counties.

How can I see the market around a specific site?

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

Screening a site or an acquisition in Chisago 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 Chisago 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.