Food and drink · County · Minnesota
Restaurants and cafes in Wadena County, MN
How Wadena 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 49 out of 100: Lower middle
Ranked #1,233 of 2,405 scored counties
#61 of 66 scored counties in Minnesota
- Listings
- 54
- 11 chain locations (20%)
- Official establishments
- 23
- −8.0% since 2019
- Household spending a year
- $20.7M
- On food away from home · $3,404 a household
- Spending per listing
- $383K
- 3% above the U.S.
- Listings per 10k households
- 88.8
- 19% below the U.S.
- Population, 2025
- 14,388
- +1.9% since 2020
See the restaurants and cafes around any address in Wadena 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 Wadena County. 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 $3,404 per household (16% below the U.S. average), households in Wadena County spend about $20.7M a year on food away from home. That works out to $383K per restaurant, 3% above the U.S. figure of $371K.
Wadena County has 54 restaurants and cafes on map listings as of September 2026. Chain locations make up 20% of them, against 34% across the U.S. That is 88.8 per 10,000 households, 19% below the U.S. rate of 109.8.
The official count of businesses with payroll classed as restaurants and other eating places in Wadena County was 23 in 2023, down 8.0% from 2019. That is one for every 264 households, against one for every 209 across the U.S. Since fiscal 2022, 6 SBA-backed loans worth $466K have gone to businesses classed as restaurants and other eating places in Wadena County.
Population estimates put the population change in Wadena County from 2020 to 2025 at +1.9%, slower than the U.S. (+3.1%). Wadena County scores 49 (lower middle) on the Groundwork market score for restaurants and cafes, ranking #1,233 of 2,405 scored counties and #61 of 66 scored counties in Minnesota.
How Wadena 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.
| Measure | Wadena County | Minnesota | U.S. |
|---|---|---|---|
| Listings per 10k households | 88.8 | 84.5 | 109.8 |
| Spending per listing | $383K | $512K | $371K |
| Households per official establishment | 264 | 260 | 209 |
| Official establishment growth, 2019–2023 | −8.0% | +2.5% | +6.0% |
| Population growth, 2020–2025 | +1.9% | +2.1% | +3.1% |
| Spending per household on food away from home | $3,404 | $4,330 | $4,070 |
| Median household income | $61,467 | $89,062 | $80,734 |
| Groundwork market score | 49 | 84 |
Official counts and lending
Businesses
- Official establishments, 2019 to 2023
- 25 → 23−8.0% over the period
- Employees, 2023
- 312
- Annual payroll, 2023
- $6M
- One-person businesses, 2023
- 0Businesses with no payroll
- Map listings, September 2026
- 5411 chain locations
- Listings at the U.S. rate for this spending
- 56The U.S. ratio of listings to household spending, applied here
SBA-backed loans since fiscal 2022
- Loans
- 6
- Amount
- $466K
SBA-backed loans to businesses classed as restaurants and other eating places in Wadena 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 Wadena County
- Population, 2025 estimate
- 14,388+1.9% since 2020
- Households
- 6,081
- Median age
- 41.2
- Homes lived in by their owners
- 74%
- Vehicles per household
- 2.1
- Land area
- 536 sq. mi.
- People per square mile
- 27
- Median household income
- $61,467+31.9% vs. 2015–2019, before inflation
- Average household income
- $77,288
- Median home value
- $173,000
- Jobs located here
- 5,599
- Daytime population
- 13,890Residents who don’t work, plus everyone whose job is here
Looking at a specific site in Wadena 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 Wadena County. 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 counties in Minnesota for restaurants and cafes, numbered among those based in Minnesota, with Wadena County marked.
Top counties in Minnesota
| Market | Score | Listings | Per 10k households | Spending per listing | Population growth | U.S. rank |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1Sherburne County, MN | 93 | 168 | 47.3 | $983K | +6.8% | #7 of 2,405 |
| 2Wright County, MN | 90 | 377 | 69.8 | $671K | +11.1% | #26 of 2,405 |
| 3Isanti County, MN | 88 | 96 | 58.9 | $693K | +7.3% | #34 of 2,405 |
| 4Carver County, MN | 87 | 309 | 75.0 | $702K | +6.6% | #42 of 2,405 |
| 5Anoka County, MN | 86 | 891 | 64.8 | $703K | +4.7% | #48 of 2,405 |
| 6Dodge County, MN | 86 | 50 | 61.9 | $700K | +2.3% | #49 of 2,405 |
| 7Washington County, MN | 86 | 783 | 74.2 | $677K | +6.9% | #50 of 2,405 |
| 8Chisago County, MN | 86 | 148 | 69.3 | $646K | +4.3% | #51 of 2,405 |
| 9Scott County, MN | 85 | 418 | 76.0 | $678K | +5.1% | #61 of 2,405 |
| 10Clay County, MN | 85 | 171 | 64.7 | $614K | +3.6% | #63 of 2,405 |
| 61Wadena County, MN | 49 | 54 | 88.8 | $383K | +1.9% | #1,233 of 2,405 |
Other business types in Wadena County
Each with its Groundwork market score here, out of 100, where it has one.
Food and drink
- Restaurants and cafes49
- Sit-down restaurants64
- Fast food and sandwich shops49
- Pizza
- Coffee shops and cafes44
- Bakeries and dessert shops40
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 Wadena County, MN?
Map listings as of September 2026 show 54 restaurants and cafes in Wadena County. 11 of them (20%) 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 8.0% from 2019.
How much do households in Wadena County, MN spend on food away from home?
About $20.7M a year, or $3,404 per household. That is 16% below the U.S. average (an index of 84, where 100 is the U.S. average). Spread across the 54 restaurants and cafes on map listings, it comes to $383K per restaurant. It is estimated from the incomes of the 6,081 households in Wadena County and national spending patterns by income.
How does Wadena County, MN compare with the U.S. for restaurants and cafes?
Wadena County has 88.8 restaurants and cafes per 10,000 households, 19% below the U.S. rate of 109.8. Spending per restaurant is $383K, 3% above the U.S. figure of $371K. At the U.S. ratio of restaurants and cafes to household spending, Wadena County would have about 56, against 54 on map listings. There is one business with payroll in the industry for every 264 households, against one for every 209 across the U.S. The official count fell 8.0% from 2019 to 2023, against +6.0% for the U.S.
How fast is Wadena County, MN growing?
Population estimates put Wadena County at 14,388 people in 2025, up 1.9% since 2020, slower than the U.S. (+3.1%). It has 6,081 households. Median household income in Wadena County is $61,467, 24% below the U.S. median of $80,734. Against the 2015–2019 survey, the median rose 31.9%, 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. Wadena County scores 49 for restaurants and cafes (lower middle), #1,233 of 2,405 scored counties.
How can I see the market around a specific site?
Run a Groundwork site report on an address in Wadena 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 Wadena County
Screening a site or an acquisition in Wadena 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 Wadena 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.