Food and drink · Small-town market · Oregon
Restaurants and cafes in The Dalles, OR area
The restaurants and cafes in The Dalles, OR area, the household spending behind them and how the market ranks against other small-town markets.
Groundwork market score · out of 100
Score 20 out of 100: Low
Ranked #517 of 538 scored small-town markets
#10 of 12 scored small-town markets based in Oregon
- Listings
- 155
- 35 chain locations (23%)
- Official establishments
- 59
- +13.5% since 2019
- Household spending a year
- $36.6M
- On food away from home · $3,464 a household
- Spending per listing
- $236K
- 36% below the U.S.
- Listings per 10k households
- 146.7
- 34% above the U.S.
- Population, 2025
- 26,310
- −1.1% since 2020
See the restaurants and cafes around any address in The Dalles 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 Dalles 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
The Groundwork market score for restaurants and cafes in The Dalles area is 20 (low), #517 of 538 scored small-town markets and #10 of 12 scored small-town markets based in Oregon. That puts it in the bottom quarter of small-town markets.
As of September 2026, map listings count 155 restaurants and cafes in The Dalles area. Of those, 35 are chain locations, or 23%, against 34% across the U.S. Per 10,000 households, that is 146.7, 34% above the U.S. rate of 109.8.
At $3,464 per household (15% below the U.S. average), households in The Dalles area spend about $36.6M a year on food away from home. Spread across 155 restaurants and cafes, that is $236K per restaurant, 36% below the U.S. figure of $371K.
The official count of businesses with payroll classed as restaurants and other eating places in The Dalles area was 59 in 2023, up 13.5% from 2019. That is one for every 179 households, against one for every 209 across the U.S. Since fiscal 2022, 2 SBA-backed loans worth $75K have gone to businesses classed as restaurants and other eating places in The Dalles area. Population estimates put the population change in The Dalles area from 2020 to 2025 at −1.1%, against +3.1% for the U.S.
How The Dalles area compares
The same measures for Oregon 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 | The Dalles area | Oregon | U.S. |
|---|---|---|---|
| Listings per 10k households | 146.7 | 130.4 | 109.8 |
| Spending per listing | $236K | $312K | $371K |
| Households per official establishment | 179 | 184 | 209 |
| Official establishment growth, 2019–2023 | +13.5% | +2.8% | +6.0% |
| Population growth, 2020–2025 | −1.1% | +0.7% | +3.1% |
| Spending per household on food away from home | $3,464 | $4,070 | $4,070 |
| Median household income | $64,175 | $83,011 | $80,734 |
| Groundwork market score | 20 | 22 |
Official counts and lending
Businesses
- Official establishments, 2019 to 2023
- 59+13.5% over the period
- Employees, 2023
- 856
- Annual payroll, 2023
- $21.4M
- One-person businesses, 2023
- 4Businesses with no payroll
- Map listings, September 2026
- 15535 chain locations
- Listings at the U.S. rate for this spending
- 99The U.S. ratio of listings to household spending, applied here
SBA-backed loans since fiscal 2022
- Loans
- 2
- Amount
- $75K
SBA-backed loans to businesses classed as restaurants and other eating places in The Dalles 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 Dalles area
- Population, 2025 estimate
- 26,310−1.1% since 2020
- Households
- 10,563
- Median age
- 42.2
- Homes lived in by their owners
- 68%
- Vehicles per household
- 2.1
- Land area
- 2,381 sq. mi.
- People per square mile
- 11
- Median household income
- $64,175+20.9% vs. 2015–2019, before inflation
- Average household income
- $93,059
- Median home value
- $367,400
- Jobs located here
- 10,091
- Daytime population
- 24,380Residents who don’t work, plus everyone whose job is here
Looking at a specific site in The Dalles 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 Dalles 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 Oregon
Every Oregon market ranked →The highest-scoring small-town markets in Oregon for restaurants and cafes, numbered among those based in Oregon, with The Dalles area marked.
Top small-town markets in Oregon
| Market | Score | Listings | Per 10k households | Spending per listing | Population growth | U.S. rank |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1Hermiston-Pendleton, OR | 44 | 367 | 111.1 | $320K | +1.8% | #338 of 538 |
| 2Roseburg, OR | 41 | 490 | 103.1 | $330K | +0.6% | #364 of 538 |
| 3Ontario, OR-ID | 41 | 205 | 102.6 | $326K | +5.0% | #365 of 538 |
| 4La Grande, OR | 39 | 110 | 100.9 | $349K | −1.0% | #382 of 538 |
| 5Coos Bay-North Bend, OR | 34 | 298 | 103.7 | $330K | −1.5% | #425 of 538 |
| 6Klamath Falls, OR | 34 | 310 | 106.9 | $309K | +0.9% | #430 of 538 |
| 7Hood River, OR | 27 | 231 | 258.4 | $169K | −0.7% | #480 of 538 |
| 8Astoria, OR | 23 | 434 | 241.3 | $154K | −0.6% | #500 of 538 |
| 9Baker City, OR | 21 | 87 | 118.3 | $279K | −0.4% | #513 of 538 |
| 10The Dalles, OR | 20 | 155 | 146.7 | $236K | −1.1% | #517 of 538 |
Other business types in The Dalles area
Each with its Groundwork market score here, out of 100, where it has one.
Food and drink
- Restaurants and cafes20
- Sit-down restaurants24
- Fast food and sandwich shops51
- Pizza51
- Coffee shops and cafes23
- Bakeries and dessert shops25
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 Dalles, OR area?
The Dalles area has 155 restaurants and cafes on map listings as of September 2026. 35 of them (23%) are chain locations. The listings count every restaurant, cafe, bar, bakery and food truck. Official counts show 59 businesses with payroll classed as restaurants and other eating places in 2023, up 13.5% from 2019. Official counts list 4 one-person businesses without payroll.
How much do households in The Dalles, OR area spend on food away from home?
About $36.6M a year, or $3,464 per household. That is 15% below the U.S. average (an index of 85, where 100 is the U.S. average). Spread across the 155 restaurants and cafes on map listings, it comes to $236K per restaurant. It is estimated from the incomes of the 10,563 households in The Dalles area and national spending patterns by income.
How does The Dalles, OR area compare with the U.S. for restaurants and cafes?
The Dalles area has 146.7 restaurants and cafes per 10,000 households, 34% above the U.S. rate of 109.8. Spending per restaurant is $236K, 36% below the U.S. figure of $371K. At the national ratio of restaurants and cafes to household spending, The Dalles area would have about 99, against 155 on map listings. There is one business with payroll in the industry for every 179 households, against one for every 209 across the U.S. The official count rose 13.5% from 2019 to 2023, against +6.0% for the U.S.
How fast is The Dalles, OR area growing?
Population estimates put The Dalles area at 26,310 people in 2025, down 1.1% since 2020, against +3.1% for the U.S. It has 10,563 households. The median household income in The Dalles area is $64,175 a year, 21% below the U.S. median of $80,734. That rose 20.9% 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. 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 Dalles area scores 20 for restaurants and cafes (low), #517 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 Dalles 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 Dalles area
Screening a site or an acquisition in The Dalles 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 Dalles 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.