Food and drink · Small-town market · Pennsylvania
Restaurants and cafes in the St. Marys, PA area
The restaurants and cafes in the St. Marys, PA area, the household spending behind them and how the market ranks against other small-town markets.
Groundwork market score · out of 100
Score 41 out of 100: Lower middle
Ranked #363 of 538 scored small-town markets
#19 of 20 scored small-town markets based in Pennsylvania
- Listings
- 137
- 26 chain locations (19%)
- Official establishments
- 50
- +4.2% since 2019
- Household spending a year
- $45.2M
- On food away from home · $3,390 a household
- Spending per listing
- $330K
- 11% below the U.S.
- Listings per 10k households
- 102.8
- 6% below the U.S.
- Population, 2025
- 29,926
- −3.3% since 2020
See the restaurants and cafes around any address in the St. Marys 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 St. Marys 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
Household spending on food away from home in the St. Marys area comes to about $45.2M a year: $3,390 per household, 17% below the U.S. average. Spread across 137 restaurants and cafes, that is $330K per restaurant, 11% below the U.S. figure of $371K.
There are 137 restaurants and cafes on map listings in the St. Marys area as of September 2026. 26 of them (19%) are chain locations, against 34% across the U.S. That comes to 102.8 for every 10,000 households, 6% below the U.S. rate of 109.8.
In 2023, official counts showed 50 businesses with payroll in the St. Marys area classed as restaurants and other eating places, up 4.2% from 2019. That is one for every 267 households, against one for every 209 across the U.S. Official counts list 6 one-person businesses without payroll. Since fiscal 2022, 1 SBA-backed loan worth $125K has gone to businesses classed as restaurants and other eating places in the St. Marys area.
Population estimates show the St. Marys area declined 3.3% from 2020 to 2025, against +3.1% for the U.S. The Groundwork market score for restaurants and cafes in the St. Marys area is 41 (lower middle), #363 of 538 scored small-town markets and #19 of 20 scored small-town markets based in Pennsylvania.
How the St. Marys area compares
The same measures for Pennsylvania 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 | St. Marys area | Pennsylvania | U.S. |
|---|---|---|---|
| Listings per 10k households | 102.8 | 100.2 | 109.8 |
| Spending per listing | $330K | $397K | $371K |
| Households per official establishment | 267 | 237 | 209 |
| Official establishment growth, 2019–2023 | +4.2% | +1.5% | +6.0% |
| Population growth, 2020–2025 | −3.3% | +0.5% | +3.1% |
| Spending per household on food away from home | $3,390 | $3,973 | $4,070 |
| Median household income | $66,380 | $77,971 | $80,734 |
| Groundwork market score | 41 | 61 |
Official counts and lending
Businesses
- Official establishments, 2019 to 2023
- 50+4.2% over the period
- Employees, 2023
- 637
- Annual payroll, 2023
- $9.3M
- One-person businesses, 2023
- 6Businesses with no payroll
- Map listings, September 2026
- 13726 chain locations
- Listings at the U.S. rate for this spending
- 122The U.S. ratio of listings to household spending, applied here
SBA-backed loans since fiscal 2022
- Loans
- 1
- Amount
- $125K
SBA-backed loans to businesses classed as restaurants and other eating places in the St. Marys 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 St. Marys area
- Population, 2025 estimate
- 29,926−3.3% since 2020
- Households
- 13,325
- Median age
- 47.8
- Homes lived in by their owners
- 80%
- Vehicles per household
- 1.9
- Land area
- 827 sq. mi.
- People per square mile
- 37
- Median household income
- $66,380+24.2% vs. 2015–2019, before inflation
- Average household income
- $81,773
- Median home value
- $133,600
- Jobs located here
- 12,876
- Daytime population
- 29,443Residents who don’t work, plus everyone whose job is here
Looking at a specific site in the St. Marys 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 St. Marys 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 Pennsylvania
Every Pennsylvania market ranked →The highest-scoring small-town markets in Pennsylvania for restaurants and cafes, numbered among those based in Pennsylvania, with the St. Marys area marked.
Top small-town markets in Pennsylvania
| Market | Score | Listings | Per 10k households | Spending per listing | Population growth | U.S. rank |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1Hemlock Farms, PA | 94 | 181 | 74.6 | $534K | +7.2% | #1 of 538 |
| 2Sayre, PA | 72 | 179 | 72.7 | $480K | −0.6% | #64 of 538 |
| 3Pottsville, PA | 71 | 521 | 89.8 | $391K | +1.5% | #77 of 538 |
| 4Sunbury, PA | 67 | 353 | 77.2 | $450K | −1.7% | #102 of 538 |
| 5Lock Haven, PA | 67 | 128 | 83.0 | $409K | +1.3% | #104 of 538 |
| 6Huntingdon, PA | 66 | 122 | 74.7 | $466K | −2.4% | #107 of 538 |
| 7Oil City, PA | 65 | 147 | 68.7 | $480K | −2.0% | #118 of 538 |
| 8Lewistown, PA | 63 | 138 | 74.6 | $444K | 0.0% | #138 of 538 |
| 9Warren, PA | 60 | 119 | 73.8 | $448K | −3.8% | #163 of 538 |
| 10Lewisburg, PA | 56 | 141 | 96.9 | $394K | −0.8% | #199 of 538 |
| 19St. Marys, PA | 41 | 137 | 102.8 | $330K | −3.3% | #363 of 538 |
Other business types in the St. Marys area
Each with its Groundwork market score here, out of 100, where it has one.
Food and drink
- Restaurants and cafes41
- Sit-down restaurants34
- Fast food and sandwich shops64
- Pizza43
- Coffee shops and cafes59
- Bakeries and dessert shops32
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 St. Marys, PA area?
As of September 2026, map listings count 137 restaurants and cafes in the St. Marys area. 26 of them (19%) are chain locations. The listings count every restaurant, cafe, bar, bakery and food truck. Official counts show 50 businesses with payroll classed as restaurants and other eating places in 2023, up 4.2% from 2019. Official counts also show 6 one-person businesses without payroll.
How much do households in the St. Marys, PA area spend on food away from home?
About $45.2M a year, or $3,390 per household. That is 17% below the U.S. average (an index of 83, where 100 is the U.S. average). Spread across the 137 restaurants and cafes on map listings, it comes to $330K per restaurant. It is estimated from the incomes of the 13,325 households in the St. Marys area and national spending patterns by income.
How does the St. Marys, PA area compare with the U.S. for restaurants and cafes?
The St. Marys area has 102.8 restaurants and cafes per 10,000 households, 6% below the U.S. rate of 109.8. Spending per restaurant is $330K, 11% below the U.S. figure of $371K. At the U.S. ratio of restaurants and cafes to household spending, the St. Marys area would have about 122, against 137 on map listings. There is one business with payroll in the industry for every 267 households, against one for every 209 across the U.S. The official count rose 4.2% from 2019 to 2023, against +6.0% for the U.S.
How fast is the St. Marys, PA area growing?
Population estimates put the St. Marys area at 29,926 people in 2025, down 3.3% since 2020, against +3.1% for the U.S. It has 13,325 households. Median household income in the St. Marys area is $66,380, 18% below the U.S. median of $80,734. Against the 2015–2019 survey, the median rose 24.2%, 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 St. Marys area scores 41 for restaurants and cafes (lower middle), #363 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 St. Marys 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 St. Marys area
Screening a site or an acquisition in the St. Marys 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 St. Marys 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.