Groundwork

Food and drink · County · Wisconsin

Sit-down restaurants in Door County, WI

The sit-down restaurants in Door County, WI, the household spending behind them and how the market ranks against other counties.

Groundwork market score · out of 100

Score 26 out of 100: Lower middle

Ranked #2,187 of 2,405 scored counties
#59 of 67 scored counties in Wisconsin

Listings
182
10 chain locations (5%)
Official establishments
85
−11.5% since 2019
Household spending a year
$58.5M
On food away from home · $3,904 a household
Spending per listing
$321K
52% below the U.S.
Listings per 10k households
121.4
98% above the U.S.
Population, 2025
30,616
+1.6% since 2020

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

Free10 actions over 3 days, no card

Survey estimates 2020–2024 · population estimates 2025 · official business counts 2023 · map listings September 2026 · Data credits · How we measure

What this means

The Groundwork market score for sit-down restaurants in Door County is 26 (lower middle), #2,187 of 2,405 scored counties and #59 of 67 scored counties in Wisconsin. That puts it in the bottom quarter of counties.

Map listings as of September 2026 show 182 sit-down restaurants in Door County. Of those, 10 are chain locations, or 5%, against 29% across the U.S. That is 121.4 per 10,000 households, 98% above the U.S. rate of 61.3.

Households in Door County spend about $58.5M a year on food away from home, or $3,904 per household, 4% below the U.S. average. Spread across 182 sit-down restaurants, that is $321K per restaurant, 52% 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 85 businesses with payroll classed as full-service restaurants in Door County in 2023, down 11.5% from 2019. That is one for every 176 households, against one for every 500 across the U.S. Since fiscal 2022, 3 SBA-backed loans worth $1.5M have gone to businesses classed as full-service restaurants in Door County. Population estimates put the population change in Door County from 2020 to 2025 at +1.6%, slower than the U.S. (+3.1%).

How Door County compares

The same measures for Wisconsin 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 Door County, WI compared with Wisconsin and the U.S.
MeasureDoor CountyWisconsinU.S.
Listings per 10k households121.452.361.3
Spending per listing$321K$757K$664K
Households per official establishment176497500
Official establishment growth, 2019–2023−11.5%−1.0%+1.5%
Population growth, 2020–2025+1.6%+1.3%+3.1%
Spending per household on food away from home$3,904$3,959$4,070
Median household income$74,795$77,485$80,734
Groundwork market score2654

Official counts and lending

Businesses

Official establishments, 2019 to 2023
96 → 85−11.5% over the period
Employees, 2023
829
Annual payroll, 2023
$40.8M
One-person businesses, 2023
10Businesses with no payroll
Map listings, September 2026
18210 chain locations
Listings at the U.S. rate for this spending
88The U.S. ratio of listings to household spending, applied here

SBA-backed loans since fiscal 2022

Loans
3
Amount
$1.5M

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

Population, 2025 estimate
30,616+1.6% since 2020
Households
14,986
Median age
53.6
Homes lived in by their owners
78%
Vehicles per household
2.0
Land area
482 sq. mi.
People per square mile
63
Median household income
$74,795+21.5% vs. 2015–2019, before inflation
Average household income
$105,001
Median home value
$342,600
Jobs located here
12,670
Daytime population
28,917Residents who don’t work, plus everyone whose job is here

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

Free10 actions over 3 days, no card

Sit-down restaurants across Wisconsin

Every Wisconsin market ranked →

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

Top counties in Wisconsin

Counties in Wisconsin ranked for sit-down restaurants by Groundwork market score
MarketScoreListingsPer 10k householdsSpending per listingPopulation growthU.S. rank
1Calumet County, WI797133.2$1.3M+2.9%#139 of 2,405
2Washington County, WI7422739.8$1.1M+1.8%#262 of 2,405
3Waukesha County, WI7277546.0$1M+2.4%#316 of 2,405
4St. Croix County, WI7116744.5$1M+4.7%#340 of 2,405
5Ozaukee County, WI6718147.2$980K+3.0%#454 of 2,405
6Dane County, WI671,29851.6$848K+4.9%#464 of 2,405
7Pierce County, WI657547.3$906K+3.1%#524 of 2,405
8Vernon County, WI644536.2$1M+2.4%#556 of 2,405
9Racine County, WI6335844.5$889K+0.4%#617 of 2,405
10Dodge County, WI6115041.8$906K−0.3%#699 of 2,405
59Door County, WI26182121.4$321K+1.6%#2,187 of 2,405

Other business types in Door County

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

Questions

How many sit-down restaurants are in Door County, WI?

There are 182 sit-down restaurants on map listings in Door County as of September 2026. 10 of them (5%) are chain locations. The listings count restaurants of every cuisine, pizza included. Official counts show 85 businesses with payroll classed as full-service restaurants in 2023, down 11.5% from 2019. Official counts list 10 one-person businesses without payroll.

How much do households in Door County, WI spend on food away from home?

About $58.5M a year, or $3,904 per household. That is 4% below the U.S. average (an index of 96, where 100 is the U.S. average). Spread across the 182 sit-down restaurants on map listings, it comes to $321K per restaurant. The spending figure covers all food away from home, not only sit-down restaurants. It is estimated from the incomes of the 14,986 households in Door County and national spending patterns by income.

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

Door County has 121.4 sit-down restaurants per 10,000 households, 98% above the U.S. rate of 61.3. Spending per restaurant is $321K, 52% below the U.S. figure of $664K. At the national ratio of sit-down restaurants to household spending, Door County would have about 88, against 182 on map listings. There is one business with payroll in the industry for every 176 households, against one for every 500 across the U.S. The official count fell 11.5% from 2019 to 2023, against +1.5% for the U.S.

How fast is Door County, WI growing?

Population estimates put Door County at 30,616 people in 2025, up 1.6% since 2020, slower than the U.S. (+3.1%). It has 14,986 households. The median household income in Door County is $74,795 a year, 7% below the U.S. median of $80,734. That rose 21.5% 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. Door County scores 26 for sit-down restaurants (lower middle), #2,187 of 2,405 scored counties.

How can I see the market around a specific site?

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

Screening a site or an acquisition in Door 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 Door 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.