Austin Among Nation's Best Cities To Launch Restaurants: Report

AUSTIN, TEXAS — Austin is one of the 12 best cities in the country to launch a restaurant, according to a newly released study.

According to DigitalThirdCoast findings, Austin is the 12th-best city in which to open a restaurant. As part of their reckoning, researchers took several factors into account, including annual restaurant sales per capita; competition and market saturation (restaurants per capita; workforce (the number of restaurant industry workers per capita); and medium income in each city.

In achieving its top 20 showing, Austin ranked highly on the various metrics analyzed:

• Restaurant sales per capita: $2,824.
• Restaurants per capita: 240.
• Industry workers per capita: 5,381.
• Median income: $55,216.

"Opening a restaurant is a risky endeavor that includes many factors that play into the success of a restaurant," researchers wrote. "None more important than location. Overall, when it comes to finding an ideal location to start a restaurant, it’s not all about sales. Factors like over-saturation, competition and disposable income are all metrics to keep in mind when researching a market."

Speaking of location, other Texas cities fared well in the study. The Dallas suburb, Plano, bested Austin in the 8th slot. While Austin had stronger per capita characteristics, the North Texas city has a significantly higher median income than that in Austin, at $79,234.

McAllen also fared well, landing in the 20th slot. Houston was the fourth-highest ranking Texas city and the 26th overall nationally.

Elsewhere, the Washington D.C. area dominates the top of the list with both D.C. and Arlington ranking No. 3 and No. 1, respectively. San Francisco, which is home to the most restaurants per capita, also falls within the top 5. Elsewhere on our list, cities with growing restaurant scenes like Austin, Nashville, and Denver show why aspiring restaurant owners might not want to rule out second- and third-tier cities.

Data for restaurant sales, restaurants per capita and workforce was collected from the U.S. Census Bureau, researchers noted. Median income data was collected from the American Community survey, according to the report, analysts added.

To see the full report, click here.

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