Food and drink · County · Virginia
Sit-down restaurants in Clarke County, VA
How Clarke County, VA 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 79 out of 100: High
Ranked #144 of 2,405 scored counties
#22 of 115 scored counties in Virginia
- Listings
- 24
- 5 chain locations (21%)
- Official establishments
- 10
- Businesses with payroll, 2023
- Household spending a year
- $27.6M
- On food away from home · $4,687 a household
- Spending per listing
- $1.2M
- 73% above the U.S.
- Listings per 10k households
- 40.7
- 34% below the U.S.
- Population, 2025
- 15,609
- +5.4% since 2020
See the sit-down restaurants around any address in Clarke 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 Clarke 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
Clarke County scores 79 (high) on the Groundwork market score for sit-down restaurants, ranking #144 of 2,405 scored counties and #22 of 115 scored counties in Virginia. That puts it in the top 10% of counties for sit-down restaurants.
Map listings as of September 2026 show 24 sit-down restaurants in Clarke County. Chain locations make up 21% of them, against 29% across the U.S. That is 40.7 per 10,000 households, 34% below the U.S. rate of 61.3.
Household spending on food away from home in Clarke County comes to about $27.6M a year: $4,687 per household, 15% above the U.S. average. That works out to $1.2M per restaurant, 73% 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 10 businesses with payroll in Clarke County classed as full-service restaurants. That is one for every 589 households, against one for every 500 across the U.S. Since fiscal 2022, 1 SBA-backed loan worth $284K has gone to businesses classed as full-service restaurants in Clarke County. Population estimates put the population change in Clarke County from 2020 to 2025 at +5.4%, faster than the U.S. (+3.1%).
How Clarke County compares
The same measures for Virginia 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 | Clarke County | Virginia | U.S. |
|---|---|---|---|
| Listings per 10k households | 40.7 | 57.1 | 61.3 |
| Spending per listing | $1.2M | $765K | $664K |
| Households per official establishment | 589 | 470 | 500 |
| Official establishment growth, 2019–2023 | n/a | +2.1% | +1.5% |
| Population growth, 2020–2025 | +5.4% | +2.8% | +3.1% |
| Spending per household on food away from home | $4,687 | $4,372 | $4,070 |
| Median household income | $117,111 | $93,170 | $80,734 |
| Groundwork market score | 79 | 66 |
Official counts and lending
Businesses
- Official establishments, 2019 to 2023
- 9 → 10
- Employees, 2023
- 82
- Annual payroll, 2023
- $2M
- One-person businesses, 2023
- 5Businesses with no payroll
- Map listings, September 2026
- 245 chain locations
- Listings at the U.S. rate for this spending
- 42The U.S. ratio of listings to household spending, applied here
SBA-backed loans since fiscal 2022
- Loans
- 1
- Amount
- $284K
SBA-backed loans to businesses classed as full-service restaurants in Clarke 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 Clarke County
- Population, 2025 estimate
- 15,609+5.4% since 2020
- Households
- 5,890
- Median age
- 48.3
- Homes lived in by their owners
- 81%
- Vehicles per household
- 2.3
- Land area
- 176 sq. mi.
- People per square mile
- 86
- Median household income
- $117,111+46.3% vs. 2015–2019, before inflation
- Average household income
- $139,793
- Median home value
- $550,100
- Jobs located here
- 3,824
- Daytime population
- 10,938Residents who don’t work, plus everyone whose job is here
Looking at a specific site in Clarke 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 Clarke 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 Virginia
Every Virginia market ranked →The highest-scoring counties in Virginia for sit-down restaurants, numbered among those based in Virginia, with Clarke County marked.
Top counties in Virginia
| Market | Score | Listings | Per 10k households | Spending per listing | Population growth | U.S. rank |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1Fluvanna County, VA | 94 | 17 | 16.5 | $2.6M | +6.2% | #6 of 2,405 |
| 2King George County, VA | 94 | 33 | 32.6 | $1.5M | +10.5% | #7 of 2,405 |
| 3Caroline County, VA | 91 | 30 | 25.0 | $1.6M | +11.3% | #15 of 2,405 |
| 4Stafford County, VA | 91 | 212 | 40.5 | $1.3M | +8.3% | #16 of 2,405 |
| 5Louisa County, VA | 90 | 47 | 30.2 | $1.3M | +13.6% | #22 of 2,405 |
| 6Goochland County, VA | 89 | 28 | 27.1 | $1.9M | +17.4% | #25 of 2,405 |
| 7Frederick County, VA | 88 | 134 | 37.9 | $1.2M | +8.8% | #42 of 2,405 |
| 8Dinwiddie County, VA | 87 | 19 | 17.8 | $2.1M | +3.6% | #45 of 2,405 |
| 9Madison County, VA | 87 | 12 | 21.9 | $1.8M | +2.7% | #46 of 2,405 |
| 10Powhatan County, VA | 87 | 31 | 27.4 | $1.7M | +7.0% | #47 of 2,405 |
| 22Clarke County, VA | 79 | 24 | 40.7 | $1.2M | +5.4% | #144 of 2,405 |
Other business types in Clarke County
Each with its Groundwork market score here, out of 100, where it has one.
Food and drink
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 Clarke County, VA?
There are 24 sit-down restaurants on map listings in Clarke County as of September 2026. 5 of them (21%) are chain locations. The listings count restaurants of every cuisine, pizza included. Official counts show 10 businesses with payroll classed as full-service restaurants in 2023. Another 5 one-person businesses have no payroll, by official counts.
How much do households in Clarke County, VA spend on food away from home?
About $27.6M a year, or $4,687 per household. That is 15% above the U.S. average (an index of 115, where 100 is the U.S. average). Spread across the 24 sit-down restaurants on map listings, it comes to $1.2M per restaurant. The spending figure covers all food away from home, not only sit-down restaurants. It is estimated from the incomes of the 5,890 households in Clarke County and national spending patterns by income.
How does Clarke County, VA compare with the U.S. for sit-down restaurants?
Clarke County has 40.7 sit-down restaurants per 10,000 households, 34% below the U.S. rate of 61.3. Spending per restaurant is $1.2M, 73% above the U.S. figure of $664K. At the national ratio of sit-down restaurants to household spending, Clarke County would have about 42, against 24 on map listings. There is one business with payroll in the industry for every 589 households, against one for every 500 across the U.S.
How fast is Clarke County, VA growing?
Population estimates put Clarke County at 15,609 people in 2025, up 5.4% since 2020, faster than the U.S. (+3.1%). It has 5,890 households. The median household income in Clarke County is $117,111 a year, 45% above the U.S. median of $80,734. That rose 46.3% 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. Clarke County scores 79 for sit-down restaurants (high), #144 of 2,405 scored counties.
How can I see the market around a specific site?
Run a Groundwork site report on an address in Clarke 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 Clarke County
Screening a site or an acquisition in Clarke 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 Clarke 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.