Groundwork

Food and drink · County · South Dakota

Restaurants and cafes in Mellette County, SD

The restaurants and cafes in Mellette County, SD, the household spending behind them and how the market ranks against other counties.

Groundwork market score

Not scored

Counties under 10,000 people aren’t scored, since a few businesses can swing their figures.

Listings
4
1 chain location (25%)
Official establishments
n/a
Fewer than 3, or not published
Household spending a year
$2.2M
On food away from home · $3,373 a household
Spending per listing
$540K
46% above the U.S.
Listings per 10k households
62.4
43% below the U.S.
Population, 2025
2,137
+11.5% since 2020

See the restaurants and cafes around any address in Mellette 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 Mellette County. Signed out, you see a blurred preview; on an account, each report is one action.

Free10 actions over 3 days, no card

Survey estimates 2020–2024 · population estimates 2025 · official business counts 2023 · map listings September 2026 · Data credits · How we measure

What this means

Households in Mellette County spend about $2.2M a year on food away from home, or $3,373 per household, 17% below the U.S. average. That is about $540K of household spending for each restaurant on map listings, 46% above the U.S. figure of $371K.

Mellette County has 4 restaurants and cafes on map listings as of September 2026. That comes to 62.4 for every 10,000 households, 43% below the U.S. rate of 109.8.

Official counts don’t publish a figure for restaurants and other eating places in Mellette County, since they leave out counts under 3.

Population estimates show Mellette County grew 11.5% from 2020 to 2025, faster than the U.S. (+3.1%). Counties under 10,000 people aren’t given a market score, since a few businesses can swing their figures.

How Mellette County compares

The same measures for South Dakota 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 Mellette County, SD compared with South Dakota and the U.S.
MeasureMellette CountySouth DakotaU.S.
Listings per 10k households62.4106.8109.8
Spending per listing$540K$361K$371K
Households per official establishmentn/a232209
Official establishment growth, 2019–2023n/a+6.4%+6.0%
Population growth, 2020–2025+11.5%+5.3%+3.1%
Spending per household on food away from home$3,373$3,849$4,070
Median household income$54,076$75,081$80,734
Groundwork market scoreNot scored56

Official counts and lending

Businesses

Official establishments, 2019 to 2023
n/a
Employees, 2023
n/a
Annual payroll, 2023
n/a
One-person businesses, 2023
0Businesses with no payroll
Map listings, September 2026
41 chain location
Listings at the U.S. rate for this spending
6The U.S. ratio of listings to household spending, applied here

SBA-backed loans since fiscal 2022

Loans
0
Amount
$0

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

Population, 2025 estimate
2,137+11.5% since 2020
Households
641
Median age
37.1
Homes lived in by their owners
60%
Vehicles per household
2.1
Land area
1,307 sq. mi.
People per square mile
1
Median household income
$54,076
Average household income
$74,230
Median home value
$84,100
Jobs located here
295
Daytime population
1,769Residents who don’t work, plus everyone whose job is here

Looking at a specific site in Mellette 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 Mellette County. Signed out, you see a blurred preview; on an account, each report is one action.

Free10 actions over 3 days, no card

Restaurants and cafes across South Dakota

Every South Dakota market ranked →

The highest-scoring counties in South Dakota for restaurants and cafes, numbered among those based in South Dakota, with Mellette County marked.

Top counties in South Dakota

Counties in South Dakota ranked for restaurants and cafes by Groundwork market score
MarketScoreListingsPer 10k householdsSpending per listingPopulation growthU.S. rank
1Lincoln County, SD9418265.3$694K+17.5%#6 of 2,405
2Union County, SD816791.7$471K+3.3%#128 of 2,405
3Meade County, SD759982.7$469K+2.7%#249 of 2,405
4Minnehaha County, SD55892105.2$377K+7.6%#982 of 2,405
5Brown County, SD5314387.8$425K−1.7%#1,045 of 2,405
6Oglala Lakota County, SD511965.0$431K−2.3%#1,127 of 2,405
7Beadle County, SD517396.9$369K+2.4%#1,156 of 2,405
8Hughes County, SD4977106.2$374K−0.9%#1,237 of 2,405
9Brookings County, SD49160116.0$324K+9.6%#1,252 of 2,405
10Lake County, SD4749103.9$374K−0.2%#1,314 of 2,405
Mellette County, SDNot scored462.4$540K+11.5%

Other business types in Mellette County

None has a Groundwork market score here. Counties under 10,000 people aren’t scored, since a few businesses can swing their figures.

Questions

How many restaurants and cafes are in Mellette County, SD?

Map listings as of September 2026 show 4 restaurants and cafes in Mellette County. The listings count every restaurant, cafe, bar, bakery and food truck. No official count is published for restaurants and other eating places in Mellette County: counts under 3 are left out.

How much do households in Mellette County, SD spend on food away from home?

About $2.2M a year, or $3,373 per household. That is 17% below the U.S. average (an index of 83, where 100 is the U.S. average). Spread across the 4 restaurants and cafes on map listings, it comes to $540K per restaurant. It is estimated from the incomes of the 641 households in Mellette County and national spending patterns by income.

How does Mellette County, SD compare with the U.S. for restaurants and cafes?

Mellette County has 62.4 restaurants and cafes per 10,000 households, 43% below the U.S. rate of 109.8. Spending per restaurant is $540K, 46% above the U.S. figure of $371K. At the U.S. ratio of restaurants and cafes to household spending, Mellette County would have about 6, against 4 on map listings.

How fast is Mellette County, SD growing?

Population estimates put Mellette County at 2,137 people in 2025, up 11.5% since 2020, faster than the U.S. (+3.1%). It has 641 households. Median household income in Mellette County is $54,076, 33% below the U.S. median of $80,734.

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 score leaves out counties under 10,000 people, where a handful of businesses would swing it.

How can I see the market around a specific site?

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

Screening a site or an acquisition in Mellette 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 Mellette 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.