Food and drink · County · Minnesota
Sit-down restaurants in Steele County, MN
How Steele County, MN 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 63 out of 100: Upper middle
Ranked #612 of 2,405 scored counties
#30 of 66 scored counties in Minnesota
- Listings
- 65
- 26 chain locations (40%)
- Official establishments
- 26
- 0.0% since 2019
- Household spending a year
- $61M
- On food away from home · $4,033 a household
- Spending per listing
- $939K
- 42% above the U.S.
- Listings per 10k households
- 42.9
- 30% below the U.S.
- Population, 2025
- 37,464
- +0.2% since 2020
See the sit-down restaurants around any address in Steele County
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 Steele 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 65 sit-down restaurants in Steele County. Chain locations make up 40% of them, against 29% across the U.S. That is 42.9 per 10,000 households, 30% below the U.S. rate of 61.3.
At $4,033 per household (in line with the U.S. average), households in Steele County spend about $61M a year on food away from home. That works out to $939K per restaurant, 42% above 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.
Official counts show 26 businesses with payroll classed as full-service restaurants in Steele County in 2023, unchanged from 2019. That is one for every 582 households, against one for every 500 across the U.S. Official counts also show 3 one-person businesses without payroll.
Between 2020 and 2025, the population of Steele County grew 0.2%, slower than the U.S. (+3.1%). Steele County scores 63 (upper middle) on the Groundwork market score for sit-down restaurants, ranking #612 of 2,405 scored counties and #30 of 66 scored counties in Minnesota.
How Steele County compares
The same measures for Minnesota 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 | Steele County | Minnesota | U.S. |
|---|---|---|---|
| Listings per 10k households | 42.9 | 45.0 | 61.3 |
| Spending per listing | $939K | $962K | $664K |
| Households per official establishment | 582 | 595 | 500 |
| Official establishment growth, 2019–2023 | 0.0% | −0.5% | +1.5% |
| Population growth, 2020–2025 | +0.2% | +2.1% | +3.1% |
| Spending per household on food away from home | $4,033 | $4,330 | $4,070 |
| Median household income | $84,196 | $89,062 | $80,734 |
| Groundwork market score | 63 | 79 |
Official counts and lending
Businesses
- Official establishments, 2019 to 2023
- 26 → 260.0% over the period
- Employees, 2023
- 449
- Annual payroll, 2023
- $9.1M
- One-person businesses, 2023
- 3Businesses with no payroll
- Map listings, September 2026
- 6526 chain locations
- Listings at the U.S. rate for this spending
- 92The U.S. ratio of listings to household spending, applied here
SBA-backed loans since fiscal 2022
- Loans
- 0
- Amount
- $0
SBA-backed loans to businesses classed as full-service restaurants in Steele 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 Steele County
- Population, 2025 estimate
- 37,464+0.2% since 2020
- Households
- 15,138
- Median age
- 40.6
- Homes lived in by their owners
- 79%
- Vehicles per household
- 2.0
- Land area
- 430 sq. mi.
- People per square mile
- 87
- Median household income
- $84,196+29.7% vs. 2015–2019, before inflation
- Average household income
- $101,587
- Median home value
- $245,400
- Jobs located here
- 18,785
- Daytime population
- 38,229Residents who don’t work, plus everyone whose job is here
Looking at a specific site in Steele 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 sit-down restaurants on map listings by name and distance.
Or open the report at the center of Steele County. 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 Minnesota
Every Minnesota market ranked →The highest-scoring counties in Minnesota for sit-down restaurants, numbered among those based in Minnesota, with Steele County marked.
Top counties in Minnesota
| Market | Score | Listings | Per 10k households | Spending per listing | Population growth | U.S. rank |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1Sherburne County, MN | 92 | 98 | 27.6 | $1.7M | +6.8% | #10 of 2,405 |
| 2Carver County, MN | 90 | 145 | 35.2 | $1.5M | +6.6% | #20 of 2,405 |
| 3Isanti County, MN | 89 | 44 | 27.0 | $1.5M | +7.3% | #26 of 2,405 |
| 4Wright County, MN | 89 | 196 | 36.3 | $1.3M | +11.1% | #29 of 2,405 |
| 5Clay County, MN | 88 | 80 | 30.3 | $1.3M | +3.6% | #37 of 2,405 |
| 6Anoka County, MN | 88 | 505 | 36.7 | $1.2M | +4.7% | #41 of 2,405 |
| 7Scott County, MN | 86 | 211 | 38.4 | $1.3M | +5.1% | #52 of 2,405 |
| 8Washington County, MN | 84 | 415 | 39.3 | $1.3M | +6.9% | #69 of 2,405 |
| 9Dakota County, MN | 82 | 689 | 39.5 | $1.2M | +3.9% | #92 of 2,405 |
| 10Chisago County, MN | 81 | 91 | 42.6 | $1.1M | +4.3% | #115 of 2,405 |
| 30Steele County, MN | 63 | 65 | 42.9 | $939K | +0.2% | #612 of 2,405 |
Other business types in Steele County
Each with its Groundwork market score here, out of 100, where it has one.
Food and drink
- Restaurants and cafes64
- Sit-down restaurants63
- Fast food and sandwich shops53
- Pizza53
- Coffee shops and cafes62
- Bakeries and dessert shops62
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 Steele County, MN?
There are 65 sit-down restaurants on map listings in Steele County as of September 2026. 26 of them (40%) are chain locations. The listings count restaurants of every cuisine, pizza included. Official counts show 26 businesses with payroll classed as full-service restaurants in 2023, unchanged from 2019. Another 3 one-person businesses have no payroll, by official counts.
How much do households in Steele County, MN spend on food away from home?
About $61M a year, or $4,033 per household. That is in line with the U.S. average (an index of 99, where 100 is the U.S. average). Spread across the 65 sit-down restaurants on map listings, it comes to $939K per restaurant. The spending figure covers all food away from home, not only sit-down restaurants. It is estimated from the incomes of the 15,138 households in Steele County and national spending patterns by income.
How does Steele County, MN compare with the U.S. for sit-down restaurants?
Steele County has 42.9 sit-down restaurants per 10,000 households, 30% below the U.S. rate of 61.3. Spending per restaurant is $939K, 42% above the U.S. figure of $664K. At the national ratio of sit-down restaurants to household spending, Steele County would have about 92, against 65 on map listings. There is one business with payroll in the industry for every 582 households, against one for every 500 across the U.S. The official count held level from 2019 to 2023, against +1.5% for the U.S.
How fast is Steele County, MN growing?
Population estimates put Steele County at 37,464 people in 2025, up 0.2% since 2020, slower than the U.S. (+3.1%). It has 15,138 households. The median household income in Steele County is $84,196 a year, 4% above the U.S. median of $80,734. That rose 29.7% 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. Steele County scores 63 for sit-down restaurants (upper middle), #612 of 2,405 scored counties.
How can I see the market around a specific site?
Run a Groundwork site report on an address in Steele County. 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 Steele County
Screening a site or an acquisition in Steele 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 Steele 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.