Food and drink · County · New York
Sit-down restaurants in Essex County, NY
How Essex County, NY 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 20 out of 100: Low
Ranked #2,304 of 2,405 scored counties
#60 of 61 scored counties in New York
- Listings
- 117
- 9 chain locations (8%)
- Official establishments
- 62
- −17.3% since 2019
- Household spending a year
- $60.9M
- On food away from home · $3,727 a household
- Spending per listing
- $521K
- 22% below the U.S.
- Listings per 10k households
- 71.6
- 17% above the U.S.
- Population, 2025
- 36,438
- −2.2% since 2020
See the sit-down restaurants around any address in Essex 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 Essex 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
For sit-down restaurants, Essex County has a Groundwork market score of 20 (low): #2,304 of 2,405 scored counties and #60 of 61 scored counties in New York. That puts it in the bottom quarter of counties.
Map listings as of September 2026 show 117 sit-down restaurants in Essex County. Chain locations make up 8% of them, against 29% across the U.S. That comes to 71.6 for every 10,000 households, 17% above the U.S. rate of 61.3.
Households in Essex County spend about $60.9M a year on food away from home, or $3,727 per household, 8% below the U.S. average. That is about $521K of household spending for each restaurant on map listings, 22% 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.
Official counts show 62 businesses with payroll classed as full-service restaurants in Essex County in 2023, down 17.3% from 2019. That is one for every 264 households, against one for every 500 across the U.S. Since fiscal 2022, 1 SBA-backed loan worth $150K has gone to businesses classed as full-service restaurants in Essex County. Population estimates put the population change in Essex County from 2020 to 2025 at −2.2%, against +3.1% for the U.S.
How Essex County compares
The same measures for New York 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 | Essex County | New York | U.S. |
|---|---|---|---|
| Listings per 10k households | 71.6 | 72.5 | 61.3 |
| Spending per listing | $521K | $589K | $664K |
| Households per official establishment | 264 | 392 | 500 |
| Official establishment growth, 2019–2023 | −17.3% | −3.4% | +1.5% |
| Population growth, 2020–2025 | −2.2% | −0.6% | +3.1% |
| Spending per household on food away from home | $3,727 | $4,270 | $4,070 |
| Median household income | $71,661 | $85,974 | $80,734 |
| Groundwork market score | 20 | 21 |
Official counts and lending
Businesses
- Official establishments, 2019 to 2023
- 75 → 62−17.3% over the period
- Employees, 2023
- 643
- Annual payroll, 2023
- $23.4M
- One-person businesses, 2023
- 4Businesses with no payroll
- Map listings, September 2026
- 1179 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
- 1
- Amount
- $150K
SBA-backed loans to businesses classed as full-service restaurants in Essex 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 Essex County
- Population, 2025 estimate
- 36,438−2.2% since 2020
- Households
- 16,342
- Median age
- 49.6
- Homes lived in by their owners
- 77%
- Vehicles per household
- 1.7
- Land area
- 1,794 sq. mi.
- People per square mile
- 21
- Median household income
- $71,661+26.3% vs. 2015–2019, before inflation
- Average household income
- $95,488
- Median home value
- $211,900
- Jobs located here
- 14,557
- Daytime population
- 35,396Residents who don’t work, plus everyone whose job is here
Looking at a specific site in Essex 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 Essex 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 New York
Every New York market ranked →The highest-scoring counties in New York for sit-down restaurants, numbered among those based in New York, with Essex County marked.
Top counties in New York
| Market | Score | Listings | Per 10k households | Spending per listing | Population growth | U.S. rank |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1Orleans County, NY | 69 | 35 | 21.6 | $1.6M | −0.5% | #390 of 2,405 |
| 2Wayne County, NY | 67 | 145 | 37.8 | $980K | +0.1% | #453 of 2,405 |
| 3Schoharie County, NY | 65 | 43 | 33.4 | $1.1M | +1.4% | #514 of 2,405 |
| 4Schenectady County, NY | 65 | 328 | 49.0 | $811K | +3.0% | #536 of 2,405 |
| 5Tioga County, NY | 64 | 56 | 27.5 | $1.4M | −1.9% | #547 of 2,405 |
| 6Wyoming County, NY | 64 | 52 | 31.6 | $1.1M | −1.3% | #553 of 2,405 |
| 7Oswego County, NY | 62 | 182 | 38.5 | $940K | +1.0% | #648 of 2,405 |
| 8Saratoga County, NY | 61 | 522 | 51.2 | $889K | +2.3% | #702 of 2,405 |
| 9Putnam County, NY | 59 | 196 | 55.1 | $924K | +1.4% | #771 of 2,405 |
| 10Livingston County, NY | 57 | 103 | 42.1 | $891K | −0.2% | #849 of 2,405 |
| 60Essex County, NY | 20 | 117 | 71.6 | $521K | −2.2% | #2,304 of 2,405 |
Other business types in Essex County
Each with its Groundwork market score here, out of 100, where it has one.
Food and drink
- Restaurants and cafes19
- Sit-down restaurants20
- Fast food and sandwich shops44
- Pizza43
- Coffee shops and cafes26
- Bakeries and dessert shops18
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 Essex County, NY?
There are 117 sit-down restaurants on map listings in Essex County as of September 2026. 9 of them (8%) are chain locations. The listings count restaurants of every cuisine, pizza included. Official counts show 62 businesses with payroll classed as full-service restaurants in 2023, down 17.3% from 2019. Official counts also show 4 one-person businesses without payroll.
How much do households in Essex County, NY spend on food away from home?
About $60.9M a year, or $3,727 per household. That is 8% below the U.S. average (an index of 92, where 100 is the U.S. average). Spread across the 117 sit-down restaurants on map listings, it comes to $521K per restaurant. The spending figure covers all food away from home, not only sit-down restaurants. It is estimated from the incomes of the 16,342 households in Essex County and national spending patterns by income.
How does Essex County, NY compare with the U.S. for sit-down restaurants?
Essex County has 71.6 sit-down restaurants per 10,000 households, 17% above the U.S. rate of 61.3. Spending per restaurant is $521K, 22% below the U.S. figure of $664K. At the national ratio of sit-down restaurants to household spending, Essex County would have about 92, against 117 on map listings. There is one business with payroll in the industry for every 264 households, against one for every 500 across the U.S. The official count fell 17.3% from 2019 to 2023, against +1.5% for the U.S.
How fast is Essex County, NY growing?
Population estimates put Essex County at 36,438 people in 2025, down 2.2% since 2020, against +3.1% for the U.S. It has 16,342 households. The median household income in Essex County is $71,661 a year, 11% below the U.S. median of $80,734. That rose 26.3% 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. Essex County scores 20 for sit-down restaurants (low), #2,304 of 2,405 scored counties.
How can I see the market around a specific site?
Run a Groundwork site report on an address in Essex 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 Essex County
Screening a site or an acquisition in Essex 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 Essex 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.