Food and drink · County · Connecticut
Sit-down restaurants in the South Central Connecticut Planning Region, CT
How the South Central Connecticut Planning Region, CT compares with other counties and the U.S. for sit-down restaurants: competitors, household spending, official counts and growth.
Groundwork market score · out of 100
Score 42 out of 100: Lower middle
Ranked #1,555 of 2,405 scored counties
#9 of 9 scored counties in Connecticut
- Listings
- 1,644
- 319 chain locations (19%)
- Official establishments
- 566
- Businesses with payroll, 2023
- Household spending a year
- $991.4M
- On food away from home · $4,298 a household
- Spending per listing
- $603K
- 9% below the U.S.
- Listings per 10k households
- 71.3
- 16% above the U.S.
- Population, 2025
- 578,741
- +2.5% since 2020
See the sit-down restaurants around any address in the South Central Connecticut Planning Region
The site report maps the sit-down restaurants 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 South Central Connecticut Planning Region. 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 1,644 sit-down restaurants in the South Central Connecticut Planning Region. Chain locations make up 19% of them, against 29% across the U.S. That comes to 71.3 for every 10,000 households, 16% above the U.S. rate of 61.3.
Households in the South Central Connecticut Planning Region spend about $991.4M a year on food away from home, or $4,298 per household, 6% above the U.S. average. That works out to $603K per restaurant, 9% below the U.S. figure of $664K. That spending covers all food away from home, which sit-down restaurants share with other businesses in the trade.
The official count of businesses with payroll classed as full-service restaurants in the South Central Connecticut Planning Region was 566 in 2023. That is one for every 408 households, against one for every 500 across the U.S. Another 95 one-person businesses have no payroll, by official counts. Since fiscal 2022, 38 SBA-backed loans worth $12.7M have gone to businesses classed as full-service restaurants in the South Central Connecticut Planning Region.
Population estimates put the population change in the South Central Connecticut Planning Region from 2020 to 2025 at +2.5%, slower than the U.S. (+3.1%). The Groundwork market score for sit-down restaurants in the South Central Connecticut Planning Region is 42 (lower middle), #1,555 of 2,405 scored counties and #9 of 9 scored counties in Connecticut.
How the South Central Connecticut Planning Region compares
The same measures for Connecticut and the whole U.S. Spending per listing divides a year of household spending on all food away from home by the sit-down restaurants 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 | South Central Connecticut Planning Region | Connecticut | U.S. |
|---|---|---|---|
| Listings per 10k households | 71.3 | 63.4 | 61.3 |
| Spending per listing | $603K | $709K | $664K |
| Households per official establishment | 408 | 412 | 500 |
| Official establishment growth, 2019–2023 | n/a | −0.7% | +1.5% |
| Population growth, 2020–2025 | +2.5% | +3.0% | +3.1% |
| Spending per household on food away from home | $4,298 | $4,498 | $4,070 |
| Median household income | $88,197 | $95,781 | $80,734 |
| Groundwork market score | 42 | 50 |
Official counts and lending
Businesses
- Official establishments, 2019 to 2023
- 566
- Employees, 2023
- 9,297
- Annual payroll, 2023
- $260.4M
- One-person businesses, 2023
- 95Businesses with no payroll
- Map listings, September 2026
- 1,644319 chain locations
- Listings at the U.S. rate for this spending
- 1,494The U.S. ratio of listings to household spending, applied here
SBA-backed loans since fiscal 2022
- Loans
- 38
- Amount
- $12.7M
SBA-backed loans to businesses classed as full-service restaurants in the South Central Connecticut Planning Region, 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 South Central Connecticut Planning Region
- Population, 2025 estimate
- 578,741+2.5% since 2020
- Households
- 230,673
- Median age
- 41.7
- Homes lived in by their owners
- 61%
- Vehicles per household
- 1.6
- Land area
- 367 sq. mi.
- People per square mile
- 1,554
- Median household income
- $88,197
- Average household income
- $121,518
- Median home value
- $353,100
- Jobs located here
- 298,580
- Daytime population
- 597,614Residents who don’t work, plus everyone whose job is here
Looking at a specific site in the South Central Connecticut Planning Region?
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 sit-down restaurants on map listings by name and distance.
Or open the report at the center of the South Central Connecticut Planning Region. Signed out, you see a blurred preview; on an account, each report is one action.
Free10 actions over 3 days, no cardSit-down restaurants across Connecticut
Every Connecticut market ranked →The highest-scoring counties in Connecticut for sit-down restaurants, numbered among those based in Connecticut, with the South Central Connecticut Planning Region marked.
Top counties in Connecticut
| Market | Score | Listings | Per 10k households | Spending per listing | Population growth | U.S. rank |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1Northeastern Connecticut Planning Region, CT | 76 | 132 | 33.5 | $1.3M | +3.0% | #214 of 2,405 |
| 2Naugatuck Valley Planning Region, CT | 62 | 935 | 51.9 | $810K | +3.2% | #673 of 2,405 |
| 3Northwest Hills Planning Region, CT | 56 | 253 | 52.9 | $834K | +2.2% | #896 of 2,405 |
| 4Capitol Planning Region, CT | 55 | 2,334 | 59.7 | $739K | +3.1% | #958 of 2,405 |
| 5Greater Bridgeport Planning Region, CT | 53 | 785 | 65.6 | $678K | +4.1% | #1,052 of 2,405 |
| 6Western Connecticut Planning Region, CT | 50 | 1,787 | 75.9 | $694K | +3.5% | #1,176 of 2,405 |
| 7Lower Connecticut River Valley Planning Region, CT | 48 | 499 | 67.4 | $693K | +2.3% | #1,275 of 2,405 |
| 8Southeastern Connecticut Planning Region, CT | 44 | 724 | 62.5 | $665K | +2.0% | #1,462 of 2,405 |
| 9South Central Connecticut Planning Region, CT | 42 | 1,644 | 71.3 | $603K | +2.5% | #1,555 of 2,405 |
Other business types in the South Central Connecticut Planning Region
Each with its Groundwork market score here, out of 100, where it has one.
Food and drink
- Restaurants and cafes44
- Sit-down restaurants42
- Fast food and sandwich shops52
- Pizza49
- Coffee shops and cafes48
- Bakeries and dessert shops46
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 sit-down restaurants are in the South Central Connecticut Planning Region, CT?
The South Central Connecticut Planning Region has 1,644 sit-down restaurants on map listings as of September 2026. 319 of them (19%) are chain locations. The listings count restaurants of every cuisine, pizza included. Official counts show 566 businesses with payroll classed as full-service restaurants in 2023. Official counts list 95 one-person businesses without payroll.
How much do households in the South Central Connecticut Planning Region, CT spend on food away from home?
About $991.4M a year, or $4,298 per household. That is 6% above the U.S. average (an index of 106, where 100 is the U.S. average). Spread across the 1,644 sit-down restaurants on map listings, it comes to $603K per restaurant. The spending figure covers all food away from home, not only sit-down restaurants. It is estimated from the incomes of the 230,673 households in the South Central Connecticut Planning Region and national spending patterns by income.
How does the South Central Connecticut Planning Region, CT compare with the U.S. for sit-down restaurants?
The South Central Connecticut Planning Region has 71.3 sit-down restaurants per 10,000 households, 16% above the U.S. rate of 61.3. Spending per restaurant is $603K, 9% below the U.S. figure of $664K. At the national ratio of sit-down restaurants to household spending, the South Central Connecticut Planning Region would have about 1,494, against 1,644 on map listings. There is one business with payroll in the industry for every 408 households, against one for every 500 across the U.S.
How fast is the South Central Connecticut Planning Region, CT growing?
Population estimates put the South Central Connecticut Planning Region at 578,741 people in 2025, up 2.5% since 2020, slower than the U.S. (+3.1%). It has 230,673 households. The median household income in the South Central Connecticut Planning Region is $88,197 a year, 9% above 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 South Central Connecticut Planning Region scores 42 for sit-down restaurants (lower middle), #1,555 of 2,405 scored counties.
How can I see the market around a specific site?
Run a Groundwork site report on an address in the South Central Connecticut Planning Region. It maps the sit-down restaurants 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 sit-down restaurants · All 56 business types in the South Central Connecticut Planning Region
Screening a site or an acquisition in the South Central Connecticut Planning Region?
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 South Central Connecticut Planning Region. 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.