Restaurant Statistics in 2026: Australia's Favourite Bites
We take a close look at how the Australian restaurant sector is performing in 2026, exploring the top likes and dislikes of Aussie diners.
A quick overview of Australia's restaurant sector:
- The total turnover of Australia's cafes, restaurants and takeaway food services reached $65.5 billion for the year to April 2025, up 1.9% on the previous year.
- Takeaway food services were the strongest performing segment, growing 2.3%, ahead of cafes, restaurants and catering at 1.7%.
- Cafes and coffee shops are thriving, with the market reaching $15.7 billion in 2025. Small wonder: 75% of Australians drink at least one cup of coffee every day.
- The quick service restaurant sector added 250 net new stores in 2025, its strongest growth in a decade, led by Zambrero (+31), KFC (+29) and Guzman y Gomez (+27).
- Melbourne overtook Sydney in QSR store numbers for the first time in 2025, with 1,522 stores to Sydney's 1,507.
- Red Rooster topped Canstar Blue's 2026 customer satisfaction ratings for quick service restaurants, ahead of Taco Bell and Grill'd.
- Australia's food delivery market was reshaped in late 2025 when Menulog closed its doors after 19 years, leaving Uber Eats (around 54% market share) and DoorDash as the two major players.
- Online food ordering and delivery platforms generated $1.8 billion in revenue in 2025, up 7.4% for the year.
- Australians still love a meat pie, eating around 270 million of them a year, an average of 12 per person.
How many restaurants are there in Australia?
According to IBISWorld, there are 29,372 restaurant businesses in Australia in 2025, up 1.9% on the year before. Add 27,623 cafes and coffee shops and 28,219 fast food and takeaway businesses, and the country has around 85,200 food outlets in total. Based on ABS population figures, that's approximately 1 food outlet for every 260 Australian adults.
The sector is also a huge employer. Cafes, restaurants and takeaway food services employ 688,400 people, making it the largest subsector within accommodation and food services.
What are Australia's favourite and biggest restaurant chains?
Red Rooster, Taco Bell and Grill'd top Canstar Blue's 2026 customer satisfaction ratings, with previous years' winners including Zambrero (2025) and Subway (2024).
As for the largest food chains, Subway is the biggest by number of Australian locations, followed by McDonald's and KFC.
| Name | Number of Australian locations 2026 |
|---|---|
| Subway | 1,255 |
| McDonald's | 1,076 |
| KFC | 812 |
| Domino's | 721 |
| Bakers Delight | 519 |
| Hungry Jack's | 484 |
| Red Rooster | 325 |
| Boost Juice | 319 |
| Zambrero | 299 |
| Pie Face | 299 |
| Grill'd | 176 |
What are the most popular cuisines in Australia?
When YouGov surveyed Australians on their favourite cuisines, home-grown Australian food came out on top, followed by Italian, Thai, Chinese and Indian.
Preferences shift with diet, though: Chinese ranks first among meat eaters, while Indian is the top pick for vegetarians and vegans.
Australia's top 10 cuisines by search
When looking at online search figures, Italian food takes the top spot, with Japanese close behind.
Chinese, Indian and Thai restaurants share third place, each attracting around 8,100 searches a month.
| Type of restaurant | AU Average Monthly searches (Data from July 2026) |
|---|---|
| Italian | 18,100 |
| Japanese | 14,800 |
| Chinese | 8,100 |
| Indian | 8,100 |
| Thai | 8,100 |
| Korean | 6,600 |
| Greek | 5,400 |
| Mexican | 3,600 |
| Vietnamese | 3,600 |
| Lebanese | 2,400 |
The most searched-for cuisines in Australia, based on average monthly search volumes for "[cuisine] restaurant" from Semrush, July 2026.
Hungry for more? Find out your city's favourite cuisine
If we look at the top 10 most populous cities around Australia, Italian restaurants come out on top in almost every case, with two exceptions: Brisbane, where Japanese food takes the top spot, and Darwin, where Indian food leads the way.
Japanese food is the clear second favourite nationally, finishing runner-up in seven of the ten cities.
| City | 1st most popular | 2nd most popular | 3rd most popular |
|---|---|---|---|
| Sydney | Italian 9,900 | Japanese 8,100 | Chinese 4,400 |
| Melbourne | Italian 5,400 | Japanese 4,400 | Thai 2,900 |
| Brisbane | Japanese 5,400 | Italian 2,900 | Chinese 1,900 |
| Perth | Italian 5,400 | Japanese 3,600 | Chinese 2,900 |
| Adelaide | Italian 5,400 | Chinese 1,900 | Japanese 1,900 |
| Gold Coast | Italian 2,400 | Japanese 1,900 | Chinese 1,300 |
| Canberra | Italian 1,900 | Indian 1,900 | Japanese 1,900 |
| Newcastle | Italian 1,900 | Japanese 1,300 | Thai 880 |
| Hobart | Italian 1,900 | Japanese 1,300 | Chinese 1,000 |
| Darwin | Indian 880 | Chinese 480 | Korean 390 |
The most searched-for cuisines in major Australian cities, based on average monthly search volumes for "[cuisine] restaurant [city]" from Semrush, July 2026.
Asian fusion and vegan dining gaining popularity
Asian cuisines now hold around 40% market share in Sydney and Melbourne's urban food hubs, according to Pureprofile research published in 2026. The quirkier corners of the trend are booming too: TikTok views of Japanese-Italian fusion dish "carbonara udon" almost doubled in 12 months, and Southeast Asian desserts jumped from 28 million to 37 million views over the same period.
Vegan dining has strong roots here as well. Research ranks the Sunshine Coast as Australia's most vegan-friendly city, with 305 vegan-friendly restaurants and 128 cafes for a population of around 350,000, ahead of the Gold Coast and Sydney.
What about the good old meat pie?
According to Food Standards Australia New Zealand, Australians eat around 270 million meat pies every year. That's an average of 12 pies for every person in the country, whether grabbed at the footy, the servo or the local bakery.
The pie has plenty of competition for the takeaway dollar these days. DoorDash's data on the most ordered items in Australia puts hot chips at number one, followed by garlic naan, butter chicken and potato cakes.
Takeaway and food delivery trends
Australia's food delivery market changed dramatically in November 2025, when Menulog shut down after 19 years of operation. The latest search data shows the following ranking (based on average monthly search volumes from Semrush, July 2026):
- Uber Eats receives approximately 368,000 average online searches every month.
- DoorDash also gets a significant search volume, with approximately 246,000 searches.
- Menulog still attracts around 135,000 searches every month, even after its closure.
Apps are now firmly the default way to order. DoorDash's 2025 Delivery Trends Report found 48% of Australians prefer ordering through third-party apps, placing an average of 4.2 delivery orders a month. Gen Z leads the pack at 5.7 orders a month, and 48% of Australians place a repeat order at least weekly.
If you own a restaurant, cafe, pub, food truck or street food stall, now is the perfect time to update your indoor and outdoor signage and make sure your business gets all the attention with a Custom Neon® sign.
Take a moment to see the customised LED signage and wall art we made for restaurants, gastro pubs, and fast food chains throughout Australia.
More research commissioned or undertaken by Custom Neon® can be found by clicking the following links:
