Food and drink · County · Virginia
Restaurants and cafes in Hanover County, VA
How Hanover County, VA compares with other counties and the U.S. for restaurants and cafes: competitors, household spending, official counts and growth.
Groundwork market score · out of 100
Score 73 out of 100: Upper middle
Ranked #306 of 2,405 scored counties
#38 of 115 scored counties in Virginia
- Listings
- 391
- 180 chain locations (46%)
- Official establishments
- 190
- +2.7% since 2019
- Household spending a year
- $201.5M
- On food away from home · $4,721 a household
- Spending per listing
- $515K
- 39% above the U.S.
- Listings per 10k households
- 91.6
- 17% below the U.S.
- Population, 2025
- 116,423
- +5.6% since 2020
See the restaurants and cafes around any address in Hanover 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 Hanover County. 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 391 restaurants and cafes in Hanover County. Of those, 180 are chain locations, or 46%, against 34% across the U.S. That is 91.6 per 10,000 households, 17% below the U.S. rate of 109.8.
Households in Hanover County spend about $201.5M a year on food away from home, or $4,721 per household, 16% above the U.S. average. Spread across 391 restaurants and cafes, that is $515K per restaurant, 39% above the U.S. figure of $371K.
Official counts show 190 businesses with payroll classed as restaurants and other eating places in Hanover County in 2023, up 2.7% from 2019. That is one for every 225 households, against one for every 209 across the U.S. Official counts also show 41 one-person businesses without payroll. Since fiscal 2022, 6 SBA-backed loans worth $6.1M have gone to businesses classed as restaurants and other eating places in Hanover County.
Population estimates put the population change in Hanover County from 2020 to 2025 at +5.6%, faster than the U.S. (+3.1%). Hanover County scores 73 (upper middle) on the Groundwork market score for restaurants and cafes, ranking #306 of 2,405 scored counties and #38 of 115 scored counties in Virginia. That puts it in the top quarter of counties.
How Hanover County compares
The same measures for Virginia 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 | Hanover County | Virginia | U.S. |
|---|---|---|---|
| Listings per 10k households | 91.6 | 97.9 | 109.8 |
| Spending per listing | $515K | $447K | $371K |
| Households per official establishment | 225 | 211 | 209 |
| Official establishment growth, 2019–2023 | +2.7% | +4.2% | +6.0% |
| Population growth, 2020–2025 | +5.6% | +2.8% | +3.1% |
| Spending per household on food away from home | $4,721 | $4,372 | $4,070 |
| Median household income | $112,805 | $93,170 | $80,734 |
| Groundwork market score | 73 | 71 |
Official counts and lending
Businesses
- Official establishments, 2019 to 2023
- 185 → 190+2.7% over the period
- Employees, 2023
- 3,568
- Annual payroll, 2023
- $78.8M
- One-person businesses, 2023
- 41Businesses with no payroll
- Map listings, September 2026
- 391180 chain locations
- Listings at the U.S. rate for this spending
- 544The U.S. ratio of listings to household spending, applied here
SBA-backed loans since fiscal 2022
- Loans
- 6
- Amount
- $6.1M
SBA-backed loans to businesses classed as restaurants and other eating places in Hanover 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 Hanover County
- Population, 2025 estimate
- 116,423+5.6% since 2020
- Households
- 42,688
- Median age
- 43.4
- Homes lived in by their owners
- 82%
- Vehicles per household
- 2.3
- Land area
- 468 sq. mi.
- People per square mile
- 241
- Median household income
- $112,805+26.2% vs. 2015–2019, before inflation
- Average household income
- $139,805
- Median home value
- $400,400
- Jobs located here
- 61,897
- Daytime population
- 116,596Residents who don’t work, plus everyone whose job is here
Looking at a specific site in Hanover 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 Hanover County. 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 Virginia
Every Virginia market ranked →The highest-scoring counties in Virginia for restaurants and cafes, numbered among those based in Virginia, with Hanover County marked.
Top counties in Virginia
| Market | Score | Listings | Per 10k households | Spending per listing | Population growth | U.S. rank |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1Goochland County, VA | 96 | 56 | 54.1 | $930K | +17.4% | #3 of 2,405 |
| 2Fluvanna County, VA | 94 | 36 | 34.9 | $1.2M | +6.2% | #4 of 2,405 |
| 3Caroline County, VA | 93 | 63 | 52.6 | $773K | +11.3% | #9 of 2,405 |
| 4Powhatan County, VA | 92 | 59 | 52.1 | $895K | +7.0% | #11 of 2,405 |
| 5New Kent County, VA | 92 | 57 | 61.5 | $783K | +21.2% | #12 of 2,405 |
| 6Louisa County, VA | 92 | 85 | 54.6 | $745K | +13.6% | #14 of 2,405 |
| 7King George County, VA | 91 | 66 | 65.1 | $731K | +10.5% | #18 of 2,405 |
| 8Frederick County, VA | 90 | 245 | 69.2 | $636K | +8.8% | #28 of 2,405 |
| 9Stafford County, VA | 89 | 369 | 70.5 | $758K | +8.3% | #29 of 2,405 |
| 10Dinwiddie County, VA | 87 | 39 | 36.6 | $1M | +3.6% | #38 of 2,405 |
| 38Hanover County, VA | 73 | 391 | 91.6 | $515K | +5.6% | #306 of 2,405 |
Other business types in Hanover County
Each with its Groundwork market score here, out of 100, where it has one.
Food and drink
- Restaurants and cafes73
- Sit-down restaurants72
- Fast food and sandwich shops62
- Pizza71
- Coffee shops and cafes87
- Bakeries and dessert shops66
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 Hanover County, VA?
There are 391 restaurants and cafes on map listings in Hanover County as of September 2026. 180 of them (46%) are chain locations. The listings count every restaurant, cafe, bar, bakery and food truck. Official counts show 190 businesses with payroll classed as restaurants and other eating places in 2023, up 2.7% from 2019. Another 41 one-person businesses have no payroll, by official counts.
How much do households in Hanover County, VA spend on food away from home?
About $201.5M a year, or $4,721 per household. That is 16% above the U.S. average (an index of 116, where 100 is the U.S. average). Spread across the 391 restaurants and cafes on map listings, it comes to $515K per restaurant. It is estimated from the incomes of the 42,688 households in Hanover County and national spending patterns by income.
How does Hanover County, VA compare with the U.S. for restaurants and cafes?
Hanover County has 91.6 restaurants and cafes per 10,000 households, 17% below the U.S. rate of 109.8. Spending per restaurant is $515K, 39% above the U.S. figure of $371K. At the national ratio of restaurants and cafes to household spending, Hanover County would have about 544, against 391 on map listings. There is one business with payroll in the industry for every 225 households, against one for every 209 across the U.S. The official count rose 2.7% from 2019 to 2023, against +6.0% for the U.S.
How fast is Hanover County, VA growing?
Population estimates put Hanover County at 116,423 people in 2025, up 5.6% since 2020, faster than the U.S. (+3.1%). It has 42,688 households. The median household income in Hanover County is $112,805 a year, 40% above the U.S. median of $80,734. That rose 26.2% 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. Hanover County scores 73 for restaurants and cafes (upper middle), #306 of 2,405 scored counties.
How can I see the market around a specific site?
Run a Groundwork site report on an address in Hanover 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 Hanover County
Screening a site or an acquisition in Hanover 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 Hanover 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.