Food and drink · Metro area · Indiana
Sit-down restaurants in the Michigan City-La Porte, IN metro area
How the Michigan City-La Porte, IN metro area compares with other metro areas and the U.S. for sit-down restaurants: competitors, household spending, official counts and growth.
Groundwork market score · out of 100
Score 29 out of 100: Lower middle
Ranked #349 of 387 scored metro areas
#12 of 12 scored metro areas based in Indiana
- Listings
- 246
- 78 chain locations (32%)
- Official establishments
- 90
- +8.4% since 2019
- Household spending a year
- $161.5M
- On food away from home · $3,702 a household
- Spending per listing
- $657K
- In line with the U.S.
- Listings per 10k households
- 56.4
- 8% below the U.S.
- Population, 2025
- 111,294
- −0.9% since 2020
See the sit-down restaurants around any address in the Michigan City-La Porte metro area
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 Michigan City-La Porte metro 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
For sit-down restaurants, the Michigan City-La Porte metro area has a Groundwork market score of 29 (lower middle): #349 of 387 scored metro areas and #12 of 12 scored metro areas based in Indiana. That puts it in the bottom quarter of metro areas.
Households in the Michigan City-La Porte metro area spend about $161.5M a year on food away from home, or $3,702 per household, 9% below the U.S. average. Spread across 246 sit-down restaurants, that is $657K per restaurant, in line with the U.S. figure of $664K. The spending figure covers all food away from home, not only sit-down restaurants.
There are 246 sit-down restaurants on map listings in the Michigan City-La Porte metro area as of September 2026. Of those, 78 are chain locations, or 32%, against 29% across the U.S. That is 56.4 per 10,000 households, 8% below the U.S. rate of 61.3.
In 2023, official counts showed 90 businesses with payroll in the Michigan City-La Porte metro area classed as full-service restaurants, up 8.4% from 2019. That is one for every 485 households, against one for every 500 across the U.S. Since fiscal 2022, 5 SBA-backed loans worth $1.4M have gone to businesses classed as full-service restaurants in the Michigan City-La Porte metro area. Between 2020 and 2025, the population of the Michigan City-La Porte metro area declined 0.9%, against +3.1% for the U.S.
How the Michigan City-La Porte metro area compares
The same measures for Indiana 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 | Michigan City-La Porte metro area | Indiana | U.S. |
|---|---|---|---|
| Listings per 10k households | 56.4 | 50.5 | 61.3 |
| Spending per listing | $657K | $753K | $664K |
| Households per official establishment | 485 | 566 | 500 |
| Official establishment growth, 2019–2023 | +8.4% | +0.1% | +1.5% |
| Population growth, 2020–2025 | −0.9% | +2.7% | +3.1% |
| Spending per household on food away from home | $3,702 | $3,802 | $4,070 |
| Median household income | $71,055 | $71,957 | $80,734 |
| Groundwork market score | 29 | 59 |
Official counts and lending
Businesses
- Official establishments, 2019 to 2023
- 90+8.4% over the period
- Employees, 2023
- 1,885
- Annual payroll, 2023
- $38.4M
- One-person businesses, 2023
- 9Businesses with no payroll
- Map listings, September 2026
- 24678 chain locations
- Listings at the U.S. rate for this spending
- 243The U.S. ratio of listings to household spending, applied here
SBA-backed loans since fiscal 2022
- Loans
- 5
- Amount
- $1.4M
SBA-backed loans to businesses classed as full-service restaurants in the Michigan City-La Porte metro 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 Michigan City-La Porte metro area
- Population, 2025 estimate
- 111,294−0.9% since 2020
- Households
- 43,633
- Median age
- 41.6
- Homes lived in by their owners
- 75%
- Vehicles per household
- 1.9
- Land area
- 598 sq. mi.
- People per square mile
- 187
- Median household income
- $71,055+32.4% vs. 2015–2019, before inflation
- Average household income
- $89,682
- Median home value
- $195,500
- Jobs located here
- 39,820
- Daytime population
- 107,276Residents who don’t work, plus everyone whose job is here
Looking at a specific site in the Michigan City-La Porte metro area?
These figures cover the whole metro area. 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 Michigan City-La Porte metro area. 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 Indiana
Every Indiana market ranked →The highest-scoring metro areas in Indiana for sit-down restaurants, numbered among those based in Indiana (a market based in another state is listed without a number), with the Michigan City-La Porte metro area marked.
Top metro areas in Indiana
| Market | Score | Listings | Per 10k households | Spending per listing | Population growth | U.S. rank |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1Fort Wayne, IN | 71 | 830 | 45.6 | $822K | +3.9% | #43 of 387 |
| Cincinnati, OH-KY-IN | 67 | 4,626 | 51.0 | $803K | +2.7% | #66 of 387 |
| 2Columbus, IN | 67 | 178 | 53.4 | $752K | +4.3% | #70 of 387 |
| 3Indianapolis-Carmel-Greenwood, IN | 62 | 4,643 | 55.1 | $746K | +5.4% | #103 of 387 |
| Louisville/Jefferson County, KY-IN | 55 | 2,979 | 53.4 | $711K | +2.9% | #145 of 387 |
| 4Lafayette-West Lafayette, IN | 52 | 434 | 47.8 | $742K | +2.1% | #168 of 387 |
| 5Muncie, IN | 50 | 205 | 44.3 | $738K | +1.2% | #187 of 387 |
| 6Evansville, IN | 50 | 592 | 51.9 | $716K | +1.6% | #190 of 387 |
| 7South Bend-Mishawaka, IN-MI | 49 | 632 | 49.2 | $752K | +0.1% | #192 of 387 |
| 8Elkhart-Goshen, IN | 48 | 353 | 48.8 | $753K | +0.9% | #205 of 387 |
| 12Michigan City-La Porte, IN | 29 | 246 | 56.4 | $657K | −0.9% | #349 of 387 |
Other business types in the Michigan City-La Porte metro area
Each with its Groundwork market score here, out of 100, where it has one.
Food and drink
- Restaurants and cafes39
- Sit-down restaurants29
- Fast food and sandwich shops48
- Pizza37
- Coffee shops and cafes54
- Bakeries and dessert shops55
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 Michigan City-La Porte, IN metro area?
As of September 2026, map listings count 246 sit-down restaurants in the Michigan City-La Porte metro area. 78 of them (32%) are chain locations. The listings count restaurants of every cuisine, pizza included. Official counts show 90 businesses with payroll classed as full-service restaurants in 2023, up 8.4% from 2019. Another 9 one-person businesses have no payroll, by official counts.
How much do households in the Michigan City-La Porte, IN metro area spend on food away from home?
About $161.5M a year, or $3,702 per household. That is 9% below the U.S. average (an index of 91, where 100 is the U.S. average). Spread across the 246 sit-down restaurants on map listings, it comes to $657K per restaurant. That spending covers all food away from home, which sit-down restaurants share with other businesses in the trade. It is estimated from the incomes of the 43,633 households in the Michigan City-La Porte metro area and national spending patterns by income.
How does the Michigan City-La Porte, IN metro area compare with the U.S. for sit-down restaurants?
The Michigan City-La Porte metro area has 56.4 sit-down restaurants per 10,000 households, 8% below the U.S. rate of 61.3. Spending per restaurant is $657K, in line with the U.S. figure of $664K. At the U.S. ratio of sit-down restaurants to household spending, the Michigan City-La Porte metro area would have about 243, against 246 on map listings. There is one business with payroll in the industry for every 485 households, against one for every 500 across the U.S. The official count rose 8.4% from 2019 to 2023, against +1.5% for the U.S.
How fast is the Michigan City-La Porte, IN metro area growing?
Population estimates put the Michigan City-La Porte metro area at 111,294 people in 2025, down 0.9% since 2020, against +3.1% for the U.S. It has 43,633 households. Median household income in the Michigan City-La Porte metro area is $71,055, 12% below the U.S. median of $80,734. Against the 2015–2019 survey, the median rose 32.4%, 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. The Michigan City-La Porte metro area scores 29 for sit-down restaurants (lower middle), #349 of 387 scored metro areas.
How can I see the market around a specific site?
Run a Groundwork site report on an address in the Michigan City-La Porte metro area. 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 Michigan City-La Porte metro area
Screening a site or an acquisition in the Michigan City-La Porte metro 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 Michigan City-La Porte metro 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.