Groundwork

Food and drink · County · Minnesota

Restaurants and cafes in Mower County, MN

How Mower 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 77 out of 100: High

Ranked #189 of 2,405 scored counties
#17 of 66 scored counties in Minnesota

Listings
94
40 chain locations (43%)
Official establishments
48
+2.1% since 2019
Household spending a year
$59.2M
On food away from home · $3,767 a household
Spending per listing
$630K
70% above the U.S.
Listings per 10k households
59.8
46% below the U.S.
Population, 2025
40,971
+2.3% since 2020

See the restaurants and cafes around any address in Mower 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 Mower 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

Mower County scores 77 (high) on the Groundwork market score for restaurants and cafes, ranking #189 of 2,405 scored counties and #17 of 66 scored counties in Minnesota. That puts it in the top 10% of counties for restaurants and cafes.

As of September 2026, map listings count 94 restaurants and cafes in Mower County. Of those, 40 are chain locations, or 43%, against 34% across the U.S. That comes to 59.8 for every 10,000 households, 46% below the U.S. rate of 109.8.

At $3,767 per household (7% below the U.S. average), households in Mower County spend about $59.2M a year on food away from home. Spread across 94 restaurants and cafes, that is $630K per restaurant, 70% above the U.S. figure of $371K.

In 2023, official counts showed 48 businesses with payroll in Mower County classed as restaurants and other eating places, up 2.1% from 2019. That is one for every 327 households, against one for every 209 across the U.S. Since fiscal 2022, 4 SBA-backed loans worth $1.2M have gone to businesses classed as restaurants and other eating places in Mower County. Population estimates show Mower County grew 2.3% from 2020 to 2025, slower than the U.S. (+3.1%).

How Mower 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 Mower County, MN compared with Minnesota and the U.S.
MeasureMower CountyMinnesotaU.S.
Listings per 10k households59.884.5109.8
Spending per listing$630K$512K$371K
Households per official establishment327260209
Official establishment growth, 2019–2023+2.1%+2.5%+6.0%
Population growth, 2020–2025+2.3%+2.1%+3.1%
Spending per household on food away from home$3,767$4,330$4,070
Median household income$73,074$89,062$80,734
Groundwork market score7784

Official counts and lending

Businesses

Official establishments, 2019 to 2023
47 → 48+2.1% over the period
Employees, 2023
822
Annual payroll, 2023
$15.7M
One-person businesses, 2023
3Businesses with no payroll
Map listings, September 2026
9440 chain locations
Listings at the U.S. rate for this spending
160The U.S. ratio of listings to household spending, applied here

SBA-backed loans since fiscal 2022

Loans
4
Amount
$1.2M

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

Population, 2025 estimate
40,971+2.3% since 2020
Households
15,719
Median age
39.6
Homes lived in by their owners
78%
Vehicles per household
2.0
Land area
711 sq. mi.
People per square mile
57
Median household income
$73,074+34.6% vs. 2015–2019, before inflation
Average household income
$93,253
Median home value
$185,200
Jobs located here
15,578
Daytime population
36,121Residents who don’t work, plus everyone whose job is here

Looking at a specific site in Mower 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 Mower 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 Mower 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
17Mower County, MN779459.8$630K+2.3%#189 of 2,405

Other business types in Mower County

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

Questions

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

Mower County has 94 restaurants and cafes on map listings as of September 2026. 40 of them (43%) are chain locations. The listings count every restaurant, cafe, bar, bakery and food truck. Official counts show 48 businesses with payroll classed as restaurants and other eating places in 2023, up 2.1% from 2019. Official counts also show 3 one-person businesses without payroll.

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

About $59.2M a year, or $3,767 per household. That is 7% below the U.S. average (an index of 93, where 100 is the U.S. average). Spread across the 94 restaurants and cafes on map listings, it comes to $630K per restaurant. It is estimated from the incomes of the 15,719 households in Mower County and national spending patterns by income.

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

Mower County has 59.8 restaurants and cafes per 10,000 households, 46% below the U.S. rate of 109.8. Spending per restaurant is $630K, 70% above the U.S. figure of $371K. At the national ratio of restaurants and cafes to household spending, Mower County would have about 160, against 94 on map listings. There is one business with payroll in the industry for every 327 households, against one for every 209 across the U.S. The official count rose 2.1% from 2019 to 2023, against +6.0% for the U.S.

How fast is Mower County, MN growing?

Population estimates put Mower County at 40,971 people in 2025, up 2.3% since 2020, slower than the U.S. (+3.1%). It has 15,719 households. The median household income in Mower County is $73,074 a year, 9% below the U.S. median of $80,734. That rose 34.6% 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. Mower County scores 77 for restaurants and cafes (high), #189 of 2,405 scored counties.

How can I see the market around a specific site?

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

Screening a site or an acquisition in Mower 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 Mower 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.