Food and drink · Metro area · New Jersey
Restaurants and cafes in the Trenton-Princeton, NJ metro area
The restaurants and cafes in the Trenton-Princeton, NJ metro area, the household spending behind them and how the market ranks against other metro areas.
Groundwork market score · out of 100
Score 54 out of 100: Upper middle
Ranked #164 of 387 scored metro areas
#1 of 3 scored metro areas based in New Jersey
- Listings
- 1,756
- 487 chain locations (28%)
- Official establishments
- 707
- +4.3% since 2019
- Household spending a year
- $666.1M
- On food away from home · $4,622 a household
- Spending per listing
- $379K
- 2% above the U.S.
- Listings per 10k households
- 121.8
- 11% above the U.S.
- Population, 2025
- 399,289
- +3.3% since 2020
See the restaurants and cafes around any address in the Trenton-Princeton metro 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 Trenton-Princeton metro 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
Map listings as of September 2026 show 1,756 restaurants and cafes in the Trenton-Princeton metro area. Of those, 487 are chain locations, or 28%, against 34% across the U.S. Per 10,000 households, that is 121.8, 11% above the U.S. rate of 109.8.
Household spending on food away from home in the Trenton-Princeton metro area comes to about $666.1M a year: $4,622 per household, 14% above the U.S. average. That is about $379K of household spending for each restaurant on map listings, 2% above the U.S. figure of $371K.
Official counts show 707 businesses with payroll classed as restaurants and other eating places in the Trenton-Princeton metro area in 2023, up 4.3% from 2019. That is one for every 204 households, against one for every 209 across the U.S. Official counts list 226 one-person businesses without payroll. Since fiscal 2022, 36 SBA-backed loans worth $17.9M have gone to businesses classed as restaurants and other eating places in the Trenton-Princeton metro area.
Between 2020 and 2025, the population of the Trenton-Princeton metro area grew 3.3%, in step with the U.S. (+3.1%). The Trenton-Princeton metro area scores 54 (upper middle) on the Groundwork market score for restaurants and cafes, ranking #164 of 387 scored metro areas and #1 of 3 scored metro areas based in New Jersey.
How the Trenton-Princeton metro area compares
The same measures for New Jersey 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 | Trenton-Princeton metro area | New Jersey | U.S. |
|---|---|---|---|
| Listings per 10k households | 121.8 | 126.1 | 109.8 |
| Spending per listing | $379K | $371K | $371K |
| Households per official establishment | 204 | 188 | 209 |
| Official establishment growth, 2019–2023 | +4.3% | +5.8% | +6.0% |
| Population growth, 2020–2025 | +3.3% | +3.0% | +3.1% |
| Spending per household on food away from home | $4,622 | $4,680 | $4,070 |
| Median household income | $100,645 | $103,556 | $80,734 |
| Groundwork market score | 54 | 51 |
Official counts and lending
Businesses
- Official establishments, 2019 to 2023
- 707+4.3% over the period
- Employees, 2023
- 10,512
- Annual payroll, 2023
- $262.6M
- One-person businesses, 2023
- 226Businesses with no payroll
- Map listings, September 2026
- 1,756487 chain locations
- Listings at the U.S. rate for this spending
- 1,797The U.S. ratio of listings to household spending, applied here
SBA-backed loans since fiscal 2022
- Loans
- 36
- Amount
- $17.9M
SBA-backed loans to businesses classed as restaurants and other eating places in the Trenton-Princeton metro 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 Trenton-Princeton metro area
- Population, 2025 estimate
- 399,289+3.3% since 2020
- Households
- 144,114
- Median age
- 40.4
- Homes lived in by their owners
- 62%
- Vehicles per household
- 1.6
- Land area
- 225 sq. mi.
- People per square mile
- 1,719
- Median household income
- $100,645+24.2% vs. 2015–2019, before inflation
- Average household income
- $142,372
- Median home value
- $377,700
- Jobs located here
- 262,034
- Daytime population
- 469,892Residents who don’t work, plus everyone whose job is here
Looking at a specific site in the Trenton-Princeton metro area?
These figures cover the whole metro area. 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 Trenton-Princeton metro 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 New Jersey
Every New Jersey market ranked →The highest-scoring metro areas in New Jersey for restaurants and cafes, numbered among those based in New Jersey (a market based in another state is listed without a number), with the Trenton-Princeton metro area marked.
Top metro areas in New Jersey
| Market | Score | Listings | Per 10k households | Spending per listing | Population growth | U.S. rank |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Allentown-Bethlehem-Easton, PA-NJ | 62 | 3,527 | 103.8 | $396K | +3.0% | #116 of 387 |
| Philadelphia-Camden-Wilmington, PA-NJ-DE-MD | 60 | 26,413 | 107.0 | $407K | +1.4% | #128 of 387 |
| 1Trenton-Princeton, NJ | 54 | 1,756 | 121.8 | $379K | +3.3% | #164 of 387 |
| 2Vineland, NJ | 51 | 540 | 100.4 | $361K | +2.2% | #189 of 387 |
| New York-Newark-Jersey City, NY-NJ | 34 | 101,299 | 137.0 | $336K | +0.6% | #305 of 387 |
| 3Atlantic City-Hammonton, NJ | 22 | 3,257 | 210.9 | $193K | +0.8% | #367 of 387 |
Other business types in the Trenton-Princeton metro area
Each with its Groundwork market score here, out of 100, where it has one.
Food and drink
- Restaurants and cafes54
- Sit-down restaurants44
- Fast food and sandwich shops69
- Pizza63
- Coffee shops and cafes62
- Bakeries and dessert shops46
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 Trenton-Princeton, NJ metro area?
There are 1,756 restaurants and cafes on map listings in the Trenton-Princeton metro area as of September 2026. 487 of them (28%) are chain locations. The listings count every restaurant, cafe, bar, bakery and food truck. Official counts show 707 businesses with payroll classed as restaurants and other eating places in 2023, up 4.3% from 2019. Official counts also show 226 one-person businesses without payroll.
How much do households in the Trenton-Princeton, NJ metro area spend on food away from home?
About $666.1M a year, or $4,622 per household. That is 14% above the U.S. average (an index of 114, where 100 is the U.S. average). Spread across the 1,756 restaurants and cafes on map listings, it comes to $379K per restaurant. It is estimated from the incomes of the 144,114 households in the Trenton-Princeton metro area and national spending patterns by income.
How does the Trenton-Princeton, NJ metro area compare with the U.S. for restaurants and cafes?
The Trenton-Princeton metro area has 121.8 restaurants and cafes per 10,000 households, 11% above the U.S. rate of 109.8. Spending per restaurant is $379K, 2% above the U.S. figure of $371K. At the national ratio of restaurants and cafes to household spending, the Trenton-Princeton metro area would have about 1,797, against 1,756 on map listings. There is one business with payroll in the industry for every 204 households, against one for every 209 across the U.S. The official count rose 4.3% from 2019 to 2023, against +6.0% for the U.S.
How fast is the Trenton-Princeton, NJ metro area growing?
Population estimates put the Trenton-Princeton metro area at 399,289 people in 2025, up 3.3% since 2020, in step with the U.S. (+3.1%). It has 144,114 households. The median household income in the Trenton-Princeton metro area is $100,645 a year, 25% above the U.S. median of $80,734. That rose 24.2% 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. The Trenton-Princeton metro area scores 54 for restaurants and cafes (upper middle), #164 of 387 scored metro areas.
How can I see the market around a specific site?
Run a Groundwork site report on an address in the Trenton-Princeton metro 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 Trenton-Princeton metro area
Screening a site or an acquisition in the Trenton-Princeton metro 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 Trenton-Princeton metro 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.