Visitors came to Chicago in 2025
Choose Chicago reported 56.8 million visitors, nearly 1.5 million more than in 2024.
Source: Choose Chicago, 2025 tourism report, released June 25, 2026 ↗
Chicago dining reference
Chicago Restaurant & Dining Statistics
Current numbers on the city’s restaurant landscape, food inspections, visitor economy, and Restaurant Week. Updated October 26, 2026.
A city built for a good table.
Chicago’s dining scene is shaped by a large base of food businesses, a steady flow of visitors, and citywide dining programs. These figures bring together public records and reported results, with a direct source beside every statistic.
Visitor spending in Chicago in 2025
Chicago visitors generated a record $21.5 billion in spending across the region.
Source: Choose Chicago, 2025 tourism report, released June 25, 2026 ↗Local jobs supported by visitors
The 2025 tourism report said visitor activity supported 135,360 local jobs across the region.
Source: Choose Chicago, 2025 tourism report, released June 25, 2026 ↗Active Chicago retail food licenses
Chicago’s public retail food establishment records showed 11,195 active license numbers with an expiration date on or after October 26, 2026.
Source: City of Chicago, Retail Food Establishments dataset, queried October 26, 2026 ↗Businesses behind those active licenses
Those active license records represented 8,991 unique business accounts, a reminder that one operator may hold more than one license.
Source: City of Chicago, Retail Food Establishments dataset, queried October 26, 2026 ↗Food inspection records in 2025
The City of Chicago recorded 19,205 food inspection entries during calendar year 2025.
Source: City of Chicago, Food Inspections dataset, queried August 26, 2026 ↗2025 inspection entries marked Pass
Of the 2025 inspection entries, 10,388 were marked Pass. The city also recorded 2,281 Pass w/ Conditions entries and 3,391 Fail entries.
Source: City of Chicago, Food Inspections dataset, queried August 26, 2026 ↗Food inspection entries recorded in 2026 through October 25
The City of Chicago recorded 13,307 food inspection entries from January 1 through October 25, 2026. This is a year-to-date count, not a full-year total.
Source: City of Chicago, Food Inspections dataset, queried October 26, 2026 ↗2026 inspection entries marked Pass through October 25
Of the 2026 year-to-date inspection entries, 7,264 were marked Pass. The city also recorded 1,635 Pass w/ Conditions entries and 2,407 Fail entries.
Source: City of Chicago, Food Inspections dataset, queried October 26, 2026 ↗2026 inspection entries marked Pass w/ Conditions through October 25
The City of Chicago marked 1,635 inspection entries Pass w/ Conditions from January 1 through October 25, 2026. Inspection outcomes are individual entries, not ratings for a restaurant.
Source: City of Chicago, Food Inspections dataset, queried October 26, 2026 ↗2026 inspection entries marked Fail through October 25
The City of Chicago marked 2,407 inspection entries Fail from January 1 through October 25, 2026. This count is year to date and does not assess any individual business.
Source: City of Chicago, Food Inspections dataset, queried October 26, 2026 ↗Leisure travelers planning to return
Choose Chicago reported that 92% of leisure travelers said they planned to return within three years.
Source: Choose Chicago, 2025 tourism report, released June 25, 2026 ↗Restaurants joined Chicago Restaurant Week in 2025
Choose Chicago reported a record 502 participating restaurants in the 2025 program.
Source: Choose Chicago, 2025 Annual Report, published February 2026 ↗Diners served during Chicago Restaurant Week 2025
The 2025 Restaurant Week program served 527,000 diners across participating restaurants.
Source: Choose Chicago, 2025 Annual Report, published February 2026 ↗Restaurant Week economic impact in 2025
Choose Chicago reported $20.4 million in economic impact from the 2025 Restaurant Week program.
Source: Choose Chicago, 2025 Annual Report, published February 2026 ↗Diverse-owned restaurants in Restaurant Week 2025
The 2025 program included 157 diverse-owned participating restaurants, according to Choose Chicago.
Source: Choose Chicago, 2025 Annual Report, published February 2026 ↗How to read these numbers
City license totals are a point-in-time count of records marked active with an expiration date on or after October 26, 2026. Inspection results are individual inspection entries, not a scorecard for any one restaurant. The 2026 inspection figures are year-to-date through October 25. Visitor and Restaurant Week figures describe reported 2025 results.
Built for accurate citation.
This page uses primary public records and the city’s official destination marketing organization. Numbers are dated to their underlying report or the date the public record was queried, so readers can use the right context when quoting them.
- Choose Chicago2025 tourism report, released June 25, 2026 ↗
- Choose Chicago2025 Annual Report, published February 2026 ↗
- City of ChicagoRetail Food Establishments dataset, queried October 26, 2026 ↗
- City of ChicagoFood Inspections dataset, queried October 26, 2026 ↗
Cite this page
Port & Park Bistro | Bar. “Chicago Restaurant & Dining Statistics.” Updated October 26, 2026.
https://portandparkchicago.com/chicago-restaurant-statistics