Groundwork

Food and drink · County · Tennessee

Restaurants and cafes in Blount County, TN

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

Groundwork market score · out of 100

Score 77 out of 100: High

Ranked #206 of 2,405 scored counties
#12 of 87 scored counties in Tennessee

Listings
413
200 chain locations (48%)
Official establishments
194
+16.9% since 2019
Household spending a year
$211.5M
On food away from home · $3,809 a household
Spending per listing
$512K
38% above the U.S.
Listings per 10k households
74.4
32% below the U.S.
Population, 2025
143,820
+6.0% since 2020

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

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

What this means

Blount County scores 77 (high) on the Groundwork market score for restaurants and cafes, ranking #206 of 2,405 scored counties and #12 of 87 scored counties in Tennessee. That puts it in the top 10% of counties for restaurants and cafes.

Households in Blount County spend about $211.5M a year on food away from home, or $3,809 per household, 6% below the U.S. average. Spread across 413 restaurants and cafes, that is $512K per restaurant, 38% above the U.S. figure of $371K.

Blount County has 413 restaurants and cafes on map listings as of September 2026. Of those, 200 are chain locations, or 48%, against 34% across the U.S. Per 10,000 households, that is 74.4, 32% below the U.S. rate of 109.8.

The official count of businesses with payroll classed as restaurants and other eating places in Blount County was 194 in 2023, up 16.9% from 2019. That is one for every 286 households, against one for every 209 across the U.S. Since fiscal 2022, 10 SBA-backed loans worth $7.6M have gone to businesses classed as restaurants and other eating places in Blount County. Population estimates put the population change in Blount County from 2020 to 2025 at +6.0%, faster than the U.S. (+3.1%).

How Blount County compares

The same measures for Tennessee 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 Blount County, TN compared with Tennessee and the U.S.
MeasureBlount CountyTennesseeU.S.
Listings per 10k households74.4102.9109.8
Spending per listing$512K$357K$371K
Households per official establishment286229209
Official establishment growth, 2019–2023+16.9%+9.9%+6.0%
Population growth, 2020–2025+6.0%+5.6%+3.1%
Spending per household on food away from home$3,809$3,670$4,070
Median household income$77,365$69,595$80,734
Groundwork market score7749

Official counts and lending

Businesses

Official establishments, 2019 to 2023
166 → 194+16.9% over the period
Employees, 2023
4,939
Annual payroll, 2023
$106.1M
One-person businesses, 2023
32Businesses with no payroll
Map listings, September 2026
413200 chain locations
Listings at the U.S. rate for this spending
570The U.S. ratio of listings to household spending, applied here

SBA-backed loans since fiscal 2022

Loans
10
Amount
$7.6M

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

Population, 2025 estimate
143,820+6.0% since 2020
Households
55,522
Median age
44.2
Homes lived in by their owners
77%
Vehicles per household
2.1
Land area
559 sq. mi.
People per square mile
249
Median household income
$77,365+36.5% vs. 2015–2019, before inflation
Average household income
$101,400
Median home value
$320,500
Jobs located here
56,831
Daytime population
134,383Residents who don’t work, plus everyone whose job is here

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

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Restaurants and cafes across Tennessee

Every Tennessee market ranked →

The highest-scoring counties in Tennessee for restaurants and cafes, numbered among those based in Tennessee, with Blount County marked.

Top counties in Tennessee

Counties in Tennessee ranked for restaurants and cafes by Groundwork market score
MarketScoreListingsPer 10k householdsSpending per listingPopulation growthU.S. rank
1Fayette County, TN919655.8$719K+7.7%#19 of 2,405
2Roane County, TN8413358.4$623K+7.0%#69 of 2,405
3Loudon County, TN8417773.6$540K+15.6%#77 of 2,405
4Meigs County, TN812547.8$694K+10.8%#115 of 2,405
5Hickman County, TN814749.8$687K+5.0%#116 of 2,405
6Union County, TN803847.9$689K+8.1%#130 of 2,405
7Cheatham County, TN8011470.0$567K+4.1%#138 of 2,405
8Grainger County, TN774647.6$645K+9.2%#187 of 2,405
9Macon County, TN774851.0$635K+9.5%#188 of 2,405
10Smith County, TN775265.6$539K+5.1%#201 of 2,405
12Blount County, TN7741374.4$512K+6.0%#206 of 2,405

Other business types in Blount County

Each with its Groundwork market score here, out of 100, where it has one.

Questions

How many restaurants and cafes are in Blount County, TN?

Map listings as of September 2026 show 413 restaurants and cafes in Blount County. 200 of them (48%) are chain locations. The listings count every restaurant, cafe, bar, bakery and food truck. Official counts show 194 businesses with payroll classed as restaurants and other eating places in 2023, up 16.9% from 2019. Official counts list 32 one-person businesses without payroll.

How much do households in Blount County, TN spend on food away from home?

About $211.5M a year, or $3,809 per household. That is 6% below the U.S. average (an index of 94, where 100 is the U.S. average). Spread across the 413 restaurants and cafes on map listings, it comes to $512K per restaurant. It is estimated from the incomes of the 55,522 households in Blount County and national spending patterns by income.

How does Blount County, TN compare with the U.S. for restaurants and cafes?

Blount County has 74.4 restaurants and cafes per 10,000 households, 32% below the U.S. rate of 109.8. Spending per restaurant is $512K, 38% above the U.S. figure of $371K. At the U.S. ratio of restaurants and cafes to household spending, Blount County would have about 570, against 413 on map listings. There is one business with payroll in the industry for every 286 households, against one for every 209 across the U.S. The official count rose 16.9% from 2019 to 2023, against +6.0% for the U.S.

How fast is Blount County, TN growing?

Population estimates put Blount County at 143,820 people in 2025, up 6.0% since 2020, faster than the U.S. (+3.1%). It has 55,522 households. Median household income in Blount County is $77,365, 4% below the U.S. median of $80,734. Against the 2015–2019 survey, the median rose 36.5%, 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. Blount County scores 77 for restaurants and cafes (high), #206 of 2,405 scored counties.

How can I see the market around a specific site?

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

Screening a site or an acquisition in Blount 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 Blount 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.