Food and drink · County · Texas
Sit-down restaurants in Rusk County, TX
How Rusk County, TX 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 64 out of 100: Upper middle
Ranked #577 of 2,405 scored counties
#25 of 162 scored counties in Texas
- Listings
- 82
- 28 chain locations (34%)
- Official establishments
- 25
- 0.0% since 2019
- Household spending a year
- $64.3M
- On food away from home · $3,565 a household
- Spending per listing
- $784K
- 18% above the U.S.
- Listings per 10k households
- 45.5
- 26% below the U.S.
- Population, 2025
- 54,854
- +5.0% since 2020
See the sit-down restaurants around any address in Rusk 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 Rusk 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 82 sit-down restaurants in Rusk County. 28 of them (34%) are chain locations, against 29% across the U.S. Per 10,000 households, that is 45.5, 26% below the U.S. rate of 61.3.
At $3,565 per household (12% below the U.S. average), households in Rusk County spend about $64.3M a year on food away from home. That works out to $784K per restaurant, 18% 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.
In 2023, official counts showed 25 businesses with payroll in Rusk County classed as full-service restaurants, unchanged from 2019. That is one for every 721 households, against one for every 500 across the U.S. Official counts list 13 one-person businesses without payroll.
Population estimates put the population change in Rusk County from 2020 to 2025 at +5.0%, faster than the U.S. (+3.1%). The Groundwork market score for sit-down restaurants in Rusk County is 64 (upper middle), #577 of 2,405 scored counties and #25 of 162 scored counties in Texas. That puts it in the top quarter of counties.
How Rusk 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.
| Measure | Rusk County | Texas | U.S. |
|---|---|---|---|
| Listings per 10k households | 45.5 | 69.0 | 61.3 |
| Spending per listing | $784K | $575K | $664K |
| Households per official establishment | 721 | 528 | 500 |
| Official establishment growth, 2019–2023 | 0.0% | +9.9% | +1.5% |
| Population growth, 2020–2025 | +5.0% | +8.5% | +3.1% |
| Spending per household on food away from home | $3,565 | $3,970 | $4,070 |
| Median household income | $68,658 | $78,476 | $80,734 |
| Groundwork market score | 64 | 46 |
Official counts and lending
Businesses
- Official establishments, 2019 to 2023
- 25 → 250.0% over the period
- Employees, 2023
- 379
- Annual payroll, 2023
- $7.3M
- One-person businesses, 2023
- 13Businesses with no payroll
- Map listings, September 2026
- 8228 chain locations
- Listings at the U.S. rate for this spending
- 97The 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 Rusk 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 Rusk County
- Population, 2025 estimate
- 54,854+5.0% since 2020
- Households
- 18,027
- Median age
- 39.7
- Homes lived in by their owners
- 79%
- Vehicles per household
- 2.0
- Land area
- 924 sq. mi.
- People per square mile
- 57
- Median household income
- $68,658+24.3% vs. 2015–2019, before inflation
- Average household income
- $94,041
- Median home value
- $171,300
- Jobs located here
- 12,491
- Daytime population
- 43,759Residents who don’t work, plus everyone whose job is here
Looking at a specific site in Rusk 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 Rusk 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 Texas
Every Texas market ranked →The highest-scoring counties in Texas for sit-down restaurants, numbered among those based in Texas, with Rusk County marked.
Top counties in Texas
| Market | Score | Listings | Per 10k households | Spending per listing | Population growth | U.S. rank |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1Guadalupe County, TX | 88 | 263 | 40.2 | $1M | +15.8% | #44 of 2,405 |
| 2Wilson County, TX | 86 | 79 | 43.4 | $975K | +12.2% | #58 of 2,405 |
| 3San Jacinto County, TX | 83 | 26 | 23.9 | $1.4M | +7.1% | #82 of 2,405 |
| 4Johnson County, TX | 83 | 300 | 45.8 | $878K | +20.5% | #89 of 2,405 |
| 5Parker County, TX | 82 | 274 | 48.5 | $938K | +23.5% | #98 of 2,405 |
| 6Clay County, TX | 81 | 16 | 37.3 | $1M | +5.0% | #116 of 2,405 |
| 7Randall County, TX | 81 | 227 | 40.0 | $993K | +7.9% | #118 of 2,405 |
| 8Wise County, TX | 80 | 128 | 50.9 | $828K | +21.5% | #132 of 2,405 |
| 9Kaufman County, TX | 79 | 266 | 52.2 | $788K | +42.2% | #154 of 2,405 |
| 10Hardin County, TX | 78 | 92 | 41.4 | $926K | +4.2% | #175 of 2,405 |
| 25Rusk County, TX | 64 | 82 | 45.5 | $784K | +5.0% | #577 of 2,405 |
Other business types in Rusk County
Each with its Groundwork market score here, out of 100, where it has one.
Food and drink
- Restaurants and cafes69
- Sit-down restaurants64
- Fast food and sandwich shops60
- Pizza78
- Coffee shops and cafes74
- 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 Rusk County, TX?
There are 82 sit-down restaurants on map listings in Rusk County as of September 2026. 28 of them (34%) are chain locations. The listings count restaurants of every cuisine, pizza included. Official counts show 25 businesses with payroll classed as full-service restaurants in 2023, unchanged from 2019. Official counts also show 13 one-person businesses without payroll.
How much do households in Rusk County, TX spend on food away from home?
About $64.3M a year, or $3,565 per household. That is 12% below the U.S. average (an index of 88, where 100 is the U.S. average). Spread across the 82 sit-down restaurants on map listings, it comes to $784K per restaurant. The spending figure covers all food away from home, not only sit-down restaurants. It is estimated from the incomes of the 18,027 households in Rusk County and national spending patterns by income.
How does Rusk County, TX compare with the U.S. for sit-down restaurants?
Rusk County has 45.5 sit-down restaurants per 10,000 households, 26% below the U.S. rate of 61.3. Spending per restaurant is $784K, 18% above the U.S. figure of $664K. At the national ratio of sit-down restaurants to household spending, Rusk County would have about 97, against 82 on map listings. There is one business with payroll in the industry for every 721 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 Rusk County, TX growing?
Population estimates put Rusk County at 54,854 people in 2025, up 5.0% since 2020, faster than the U.S. (+3.1%). It has 18,027 households. The median household income in Rusk County is $68,658 a year, 15% below the U.S. median of $80,734. That rose 24.3% 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. Rusk County scores 64 for sit-down restaurants (upper middle), #577 of 2,405 scored counties.
How can I see the market around a specific site?
Run a Groundwork site report on an address in Rusk 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 Rusk County
Screening a site or an acquisition in Rusk 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 Rusk 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.