Groundwork

Food and drink · County · Texas

Sit-down restaurants in Bell County, TX

Competitor counts, household spending and official business counts for sit-down restaurants in Bell County, TX, set against other counties and the U.S.

Groundwork market score · out of 100

Score 52 out of 100: Upper middle

Ranked #1,109 of 2,405 scored counties
#65 of 162 scored counties in Texas

Listings
822
276 chain locations (34%)
Official establishments
212
+18.4% since 2019
Household spending a year
$500.7M
On food away from home · $3,519 a household
Spending per listing
$609K
8% below the U.S.
Listings per 10k households
57.8
6% below the U.S.
Population, 2025
402,248
+8.0% since 2020

See the sit-down restaurants around any address in Bell 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 Bell County. Signed out, you see a blurred preview; on an account, each report is one action.

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Survey 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 822 sit-down restaurants in Bell County. 276 of them (34%) are chain locations, against 29% across the U.S. Per 10,000 households, that is 57.8, 6% below the U.S. rate of 61.3.

At $3,519 per household (14% below the U.S. average), households in Bell County spend about $500.7M a year on food away from home. That works out to $609K per restaurant, 8% 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.

In 2023, official counts showed 212 businesses with payroll in Bell County classed as full-service restaurants, up 18.4% from 2019. That is one for every 671 households, against one for every 500 across the U.S. Official counts also show 80 one-person businesses without payroll. Since fiscal 2022, 9 SBA-backed loans worth $5.8M have gone to businesses classed as full-service restaurants in Bell County.

Between 2020 and 2025, the population of Bell County grew 8.0%, faster than the U.S. (+3.1%). Bell County scores 52 (upper middle) on the Groundwork market score for sit-down restaurants, ranking #1,109 of 2,405 scored counties and #65 of 162 scored counties in Texas.

How Bell County compares

The same measures for Texas 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.

Sit-down restaurants in Bell County, TX compared with Texas and the U.S.
MeasureBell CountyTexasU.S.
Listings per 10k households57.869.061.3
Spending per listing$609K$575K$664K
Households per official establishment671528500
Official establishment growth, 2019–2023+18.4%+9.9%+1.5%
Population growth, 2020–2025+8.0%+8.5%+3.1%
Spending per household on food away from home$3,519$3,970$4,070
Median household income$68,865$78,476$80,734
Groundwork market score5246

Official counts and lending

Businesses

Official establishments, 2019 to 2023
179 → 212+18.4% over the period
Employees, 2023
4,549
Annual payroll, 2023
$99M
One-person businesses, 2023
80Businesses with no payroll
Map listings, September 2026
822276 chain locations
Listings at the U.S. rate for this spending
755The U.S. ratio of listings to household spending, applied here

SBA-backed loans since fiscal 2022

Loans
9
Amount
$5.8M

SBA-backed loans to businesses classed as full-service restaurants in Bell 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 Bell County

Population, 2025 estimate
402,248+8.0% since 2020
Households
142,305
Median age
34.0
Homes lived in by their owners
57%
Vehicles per household
1.9
Land area
1,054 sq. mi.
People per square mile
367
Median household income
$68,865+25.5% vs. 2015–2019, before inflation
Average household income
$89,513
Median home value
$241,000
Jobs located here
118,827
Daytime population
363,152Residents who don’t work, plus everyone whose job is here

Looking at a specific site in Bell 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 Bell County. Signed out, you see a blurred preview; on an account, each report is one action.

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Sit-down restaurants across Texas

Every Texas market ranked →

The highest-scoring counties in Texas for sit-down restaurants, numbered among those based in Texas, with Bell County marked.

Top counties in Texas

Counties in Texas ranked for sit-down restaurants by Groundwork market score
MarketScoreListingsPer 10k householdsSpending per listingPopulation growthU.S. rank
1Guadalupe County, TX8826340.2$1M+15.8%#44 of 2,405
2Wilson County, TX867943.4$975K+12.2%#58 of 2,405
3San Jacinto County, TX832623.9$1.4M+7.1%#82 of 2,405
4Johnson County, TX8330045.8$878K+20.5%#89 of 2,405
5Parker County, TX8227448.5$938K+23.5%#98 of 2,405
6Clay County, TX811637.3$1M+5.0%#116 of 2,405
7Randall County, TX8122740.0$993K+7.9%#118 of 2,405
8Wise County, TX8012850.9$828K+21.5%#132 of 2,405
9Kaufman County, TX7926652.2$788K+42.2%#154 of 2,405
10Hardin County, TX789241.4$926K+4.2%#175 of 2,405
65Bell County, TX5282257.8$609K+8.0%#1,109 of 2,405

Other business types in Bell County

Each with its Groundwork market score here, out of 100, where it has one.

Questions

How many sit-down restaurants are in Bell County, TX?

There are 822 sit-down restaurants on map listings in Bell County as of September 2026. 276 of them (34%) are chain locations. The listings count restaurants of every cuisine, pizza included. Official counts show 212 businesses with payroll classed as full-service restaurants in 2023, up 18.4% from 2019. Another 80 one-person businesses have no payroll, by official counts.

How much do households in Bell County, TX spend on food away from home?

About $500.7M a year, or $3,519 per household. That is 14% below the U.S. average (an index of 86, where 100 is the U.S. average). Spread across the 822 sit-down restaurants on map listings, it comes to $609K per restaurant. The spending figure covers all food away from home, not only sit-down restaurants. It is estimated from the incomes of the 142,305 households in Bell County and national spending patterns by income.

How does Bell County, TX compare with the U.S. for sit-down restaurants?

Bell County has 57.8 sit-down restaurants per 10,000 households, 6% below the U.S. rate of 61.3. Spending per restaurant is $609K, 8% below the U.S. figure of $664K. At the national ratio of sit-down restaurants to household spending, Bell County would have about 755, against 822 on map listings. There is one business with payroll in the industry for every 671 households, against one for every 500 across the U.S. The official count rose 18.4% from 2019 to 2023, against +1.5% for the U.S.

How fast is Bell County, TX growing?

Population estimates put Bell County at 402,248 people in 2025, up 8.0% since 2020, faster than the U.S. (+3.1%). It has 142,305 households. The median household income in Bell County is $68,865 a year, 15% below the U.S. median of $80,734. That rose 25.5% 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. Bell County scores 52 for sit-down restaurants (upper middle), #1,109 of 2,405 scored counties.

How can I see the market around a specific site?

Run a Groundwork site report on an address in Bell 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 Bell County

Screening a site or an acquisition in Bell 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 Bell 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.