Food and drink · Small-town market · Washington
Restaurants and cafes in the Port Townsend, WA area
How the Port Townsend, WA area compares with other small-town markets and the U.S. for restaurants and cafes: competitors, household spending, official counts and growth.
Groundwork market score · out of 100
Score 61 out of 100: Upper middle
Ranked #162 of 538 scored small-town markets
#5 of 10 scored small-town markets based in Washington
- Listings
- 177
- 18 chain locations (10%)
- Official establishments
- 70
- −4.1% since 2019
- Household spending a year
- $63M
- On food away from home · $3,856 a household
- Spending per listing
- $356K
- 4% below the U.S.
- Listings per 10k households
- 108.3
- In line with the U.S.
- Population, 2025
- 33,970
- +2.7% since 2020
See the restaurants and cafes around any address in the Port Townsend 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 Port Townsend 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
As of September 2026, map listings count 177 restaurants and cafes in the Port Townsend area. 18 of them (10%) are chain locations, against 34% across the U.S. Per 10,000 households, that is 108.3, in line with the U.S. rate of 109.8.
Household spending on food away from home in the Port Townsend area comes to about $63M a year: $3,856 per household, 5% below the U.S. average. Spread across 177 restaurants and cafes, that is $356K per restaurant, 4% below the U.S. figure of $371K.
The official count of businesses with payroll classed as restaurants and other eating places in the Port Townsend area was 70 in 2023, down 4.1% from 2019. That is one for every 233 households, against one for every 209 across the U.S. Official counts also show 8 one-person businesses without payroll. Since fiscal 2022, 1 SBA-backed loan worth $202K has gone to businesses classed as restaurants and other eating places in the Port Townsend area.
Between 2020 and 2025, the population of the Port Townsend area grew 2.7%, in step with the U.S. (+3.1%). For restaurants and cafes, the Port Townsend area has a Groundwork market score of 61 (upper middle): #162 of 538 scored small-town markets and #5 of 10 scored small-town markets based in Washington.
How the Port Townsend area compares
The same measures for Washington 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 | Port Townsend area | Washington | U.S. |
|---|---|---|---|
| Listings per 10k households | 108.3 | 107.4 | 109.8 |
| Spending per listing | $356K | $419K | $371K |
| Households per official establishment | 233 | 204 | 209 |
| Official establishment growth, 2019–2023 | −4.1% | +4.8% | +6.0% |
| Population growth, 2020–2025 | +2.7% | +3.6% | +3.1% |
| Spending per household on food away from home | $3,856 | $4,501 | $4,070 |
| Median household income | $74,048 | $98,141 | $80,734 |
| Groundwork market score | 61 | 70 |
Official counts and lending
Businesses
- Official establishments, 2019 to 2023
- 70−4.1% over the period
- Employees, 2023
- 694
- Annual payroll, 2023
- $21M
- One-person businesses, 2023
- 8Businesses with no payroll
- Map listings, September 2026
- 17718 chain locations
- Listings at the U.S. rate for this spending
- 170The U.S. ratio of listings to household spending, applied here
SBA-backed loans since fiscal 2022
- Loans
- 1
- Amount
- $202K
SBA-backed loans to businesses classed as restaurants and other eating places in the Port Townsend 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 Port Townsend area
- Population, 2025 estimate
- 33,970+2.7% since 2020
- Households
- 16,340
- Median age
- 58.3
- Homes lived in by their owners
- 79%
- Vehicles per household
- 2.0
- Land area
- 1,804 sq. mi.
- People per square mile
- 19
- Median household income
- $74,048
- Average household income
- $104,756
- Median home value
- $535,000
- Jobs located here
- 8,967
- Daytime population
- 30,032Residents who don’t work, plus everyone whose job is here
Looking at a specific site in the Port Townsend 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 Port Townsend 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 Washington
Every Washington market ranked →The highest-scoring small-town markets in Washington for restaurants and cafes, numbered among those based in Washington, with the Port Townsend area marked.
Top small-town markets in Washington
| Market | Score | Listings | Per 10k households | Spending per listing | Population growth | U.S. rank |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1Shelton, WA | 91 | 191 | 73.4 | $545K | +7.8% | #3 of 538 |
| 2Oak Harbor, WA | 73 | 291 | 80.9 | $518K | −1.5% | #58 of 538 |
| 3Port Angeles, WA | 61 | 305 | 87.0 | $423K | +1.1% | #158 of 538 |
| 4Centralia, WA | 61 | 323 | 98.1 | $380K | +6.7% | #161 of 538 |
| 5Port Townsend, WA | 61 | 177 | 108.3 | $356K | +2.7% | #162 of 538 |
| 6Pullman, WA | 56 | 177 | 94.5 | $365K | +1.5% | #203 of 538 |
| 7Moses Lake, WA | 48 | 407 | 115.0 | $317K | +6.3% | #283 of 538 |
| 8Aberdeen, WA | 44 | 318 | 103.8 | $334K | +3.0% | #337 of 538 |
| 9Othello, WA | 41 | 74 | 117.7 | $300K | +4.3% | #370 of 538 |
| 10Ellensburg, WA | 40 | 287 | 143.6 | $272K | +4.2% | #380 of 538 |
Other business types in the Port Townsend area
Each with its Groundwork market score here, out of 100, where it has one.
Food and drink
- Restaurants and cafes61
- Sit-down restaurants56
- Fast food and sandwich shops92
- Pizza92
- Coffee shops and cafes40
- Bakeries and dessert shops69
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 Port Townsend, WA area?
The Port Townsend area has 177 restaurants and cafes on map listings as of September 2026. 18 of them (10%) are chain locations. The listings count every restaurant, cafe, bar, bakery and food truck. Official counts show 70 businesses with payroll classed as restaurants and other eating places in 2023, down 4.1% from 2019. Another 8 one-person businesses have no payroll, by official counts.
How much do households in the Port Townsend, WA area spend on food away from home?
About $63M a year, or $3,856 per household. That is 5% below the U.S. average (an index of 95, where 100 is the U.S. average). Spread across the 177 restaurants and cafes on map listings, it comes to $356K per restaurant. It is estimated from the incomes of the 16,340 households in the Port Townsend area and national spending patterns by income.
How does the Port Townsend, WA area compare with the U.S. for restaurants and cafes?
The Port Townsend area has 108.3 restaurants and cafes per 10,000 households, in line with the U.S. rate of 109.8. Spending per restaurant is $356K, 4% below the U.S. figure of $371K. At the national ratio of restaurants and cafes to household spending, the Port Townsend area would have about 170, against 177 on map listings. There is one business with payroll in the industry for every 233 households, against one for every 209 across the U.S. The official count fell 4.1% from 2019 to 2023, against +6.0% for the U.S.
How fast is the Port Townsend, WA area growing?
Population estimates put the Port Townsend area at 33,970 people in 2025, up 2.7% since 2020, in step with the U.S. (+3.1%). It has 16,340 households. The median household income in the Port Townsend area is $74,048 a year, 8% 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. 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 Port Townsend area scores 61 for restaurants and cafes (upper middle), #162 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 Port Townsend 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 Port Townsend area
Screening a site or an acquisition in the Port Townsend 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 Port Townsend 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.