City Survivability Rankings for Italian Restaurant
StreetSpring's 2026 analysis ranks the top cities for Italian Restaurants across the US by Survivability Scores. See which cities offer the best chances for an Italian Restaurant to succeed.
Quick Summary
- The highest-survivability city for Italian Restaurant is San Antonio — 89% average survivability
- 24 of 24 analyzed US metros score above 70% for Italian Restaurant survivability
- The lowest-ranked city is New York City at 84%
- National average survivability score for Italian Restaurant: 86.5%
- Data reflects 2026 StreetSpring survivability analysis across 24 US metro areas · Full methodology →
Table of Contents
- Summary
- Top Cities for Italian Restaurants
- Key Insights
- What Makes These Cities Stand Out?
- Best Neighborhoods Across the Spectrum
- Related Resources
- How current is this ranking?
- Can an Italian Restaurant succeed in cities not ranked in the top 10?
- What tools can help me choose the right city for an Italian Restaurant?
- Which US city has the best survivability for Italian Restaurants?
Summary
According to StreetSpring's 2026 nationwide analysis, San Antonio ranks as the #1 city for opening an Italian Restaurant in the United States, with an average 89% chance of surviving more than 2 years. Following close behind are Portland with 89%, and St Louis with 88%. Across 24 metros, Italian Restaurants average 86.5% survivability — with 24 cities offering conditions conducive to long-term success in this category. Remember that a city's average score smooths over wide variation — your exact neighborhood could significantly outperform the city average. These rankings reflect data through early 2026 — check StreetSpring for the latest figures before any location decision.
Survivability ranges reflect best and worst storefront conditions within each city. See our full methodology →
Italian Restaurant city survivability rankings — San Antonio leads among 24 US metros at 89% in 2026
All 24 Cities Ranked for Italian Restaurants
Based on StreetSpring's analysis of 24 major metropolitan areas, these cities offer the strongest prospects for Italian Restaurants:
1. San Antonio Metro: San Antonio-New Braunfels, TX
- Best locations: 92.4% – 97.0%
- Average locations: 84.9% – 89.6%
- Challenging locations: 58.0% – 79.4%
- Explore Italian Restaurant neighborhoods in San Antonio →
Why the same business does so differently city to city
2. Portland Metro: Portland-Vancouver-Hillsboro, OR-WA
- Best locations: 92.4% – 97.0%
- Average locations: 85.1% – 89.6%
- Challenging locations: 60.0% – 80.0%
- Explore Italian Restaurant neighborhoods in Portland →
3. St Louis
- Best locations: 92.2% – 97.0%
- Average locations: 84.4% – 89.2%
- Challenging locations: 57.0% – 78.8%
- Explore Italian Restaurant neighborhoods in St Louis →
4. Charlotte Metro: Charlotte-Concord-Gastonia, NC-SC
- Best locations: 91.9% – 97.0%
- Average locations: 84.2% – 88.9%
- Challenging locations: 58.0% – 78.8%
- Explore Italian Restaurant neighborhoods in Charlotte →
5. Orlando Metro: Orlando-Kissimmee-Sanford, FL
- Best locations: 91.8% – 97.0%
- Average locations: 84.0% – 88.7%
- Challenging locations: 58.0% – 78.7%
- Explore Italian Restaurant neighborhoods in Orlando →
6. Phoenix Metro: Phoenix-Mesa-Chandler, AZ
- Best locations: 91.6% – 97.0%
- Average locations: 83.6% – 88.3%
- Challenging locations: 58.0% – 78.4%
- Explore Italian Restaurant neighborhoods in Phoenix →
7. Tampa Bay Metro: Tampa-St. Petersburg-Clearwater, FL
- Best locations: 91.5% – 97.0%
- Average locations: 83.5% – 88.3%
- Challenging locations: 57.0% – 78.0%
- Explore Italian Restaurant neighborhoods in Tampa Bay →
8. Detroit Metro: Detroit-Warren-Dearborn, MI
- Best locations: 91.5% – 97.0%
- Average locations: 83.5% – 88.2%
- Challenging locations: 58.0% – 78.3%
- Explore Italian Restaurant neighborhoods in Detroit →
9. Baltimore Metro: Baltimore-Columbia-Towson, MD
- Best locations: 91.4% – 97.0%
- Average locations: 83.8% – 88.1%
- Challenging locations: 61.0% – 79.1%
- Explore Italian Restaurant neighborhoods in Baltimore →
10. Atlanta Metro: Atlanta-Sandy Springs-Roswell, GA
- Best locations: 91.3% – 97.0%
- Average locations: 83.4% – 88.0%
- Challenging locations: 59.0% – 78.4%
- Explore Italian Restaurant neighborhoods in Atlanta →
11. San Diego Metro: San Diego-Chula Vista-Carlsbad, CA
- Best locations: 91.2% – 97.0%
- Average locations: 83.2% – 87.8%
- Challenging locations: 59.0% – 78.3%
- Explore Italian Restaurant neighborhoods in San Diego →
12. San Francisco Metro: San Francisco-Oakland-Fremont, CA
- Best locations: 91.2% – 97.0%
- Average locations: 83.1% – 87.7%
- Challenging locations: 58.0% – 77.9%
- Explore Italian Restaurant neighborhoods in San Francisco →
Why coastal vs. inland matters less than you'd think
13. Minneapolis Metro: Minneapolis-St. Paul-Bloomington, MN-WI
- Best locations: 91.1% – 97.0%
- Average locations: 82.9% – 87.5%
- Challenging locations: 59.0% – 78.0%
- Explore Italian Restaurant neighborhoods in Minneapolis →
14. Los Angeles Metro: Los Angeles-Long Beach-Anaheim, CA
- Best locations: 91.0% – 97.0%
- Average locations: 82.5% – 87.5%
- Challenging locations: 56.0% – 77.1%
- Explore Italian Restaurant neighborhoods in Los Angeles →
15. Houston Metro: Houston-Pasadena-The Woodlands, TX
- Best locations: 91.0% – 97.0%
- Average locations: 82.6% – 87.4%
- Challenging locations: 57.0% – 77.4%
- Explore Italian Restaurant neighborhoods in Houston →
16. Miami Metro: Miami-Fort Lauderdale-West Palm Beach, FL
- Best locations: 90.9% – 97.0%
- Average locations: 83.3% – 87.2%
- Challenging locations: 64.0% – 79.3%
- Explore Italian Restaurant neighborhoods in Miami →
17. Seattle Metro: Seattle-Tacoma-Bellevue, WA
- Best locations: 90.8% – 97.0%
- Average locations: 82.3% – 87.1%
- Challenging locations: 57.0% – 77.1%
- Explore Italian Restaurant neighborhoods in Seattle →
18. Chicago Metro: Chicago-Naperville-Elgin, IL-IN
- Best locations: 90.8% – 97.0%
- Average locations: 82.3% – 87.1%
- Challenging locations: 57.0% – 77.1%
- Explore Italian Restaurant neighborhoods in Chicago →
19. Dallas Metro: Dallas-Fort Worth-Arlington, TX
- Best locations: 90.8% – 97.0%
- Average locations: 83.1% – 87.1%
- Challenging locations: 64.0% – 79.2%
- Explore Italian Restaurant neighborhoods in Dallas →
20. Denver Metro: Denver-Aurora-Centennial, CO
- Best locations: 90.8% – 97.0%
- Average locations: 82.3% – 87.1%
- Challenging locations: 57.0% – 77.1%
- Explore Italian Restaurant neighborhoods in Denver →
21. Washington DC Metro: Washington-Arlington-Alexandria, DC-VA-MD-WV
- Best locations: 90.6% – 97.0%
- Average locations: 82.1% – 86.8%
- Challenging locations: 58.0% – 77.2%
- Explore Italian Restaurant neighborhoods in Washington DC →
22. Boston Metro: Boston-Cambridge-Newton, MA-NH
- Best locations: 90.6% – 97.0%
- Average locations: 82.4% – 86.8%
- Challenging locations: 60.0% – 77.8%
- Explore Italian Restaurant neighborhoods in Boston →
23. Philadelphia Metro: Philadelphia-Camden-Wilmington, PA-NJ-DE-MD
- Best locations: 90.4% – 97.0%
- Average locations: 81.6% – 86.5%
- Challenging locations: 56.0% – 76.4%
- Explore Italian Restaurant neighborhoods in Philadelphia →
24. New York City Metro: New York-Newark-Jersey City, NY-NJ
- Best locations: 90.0% – 97.0%
- Average locations: 81.0% – 85.8%
- Challenging locations: 57.0% – 76.1%
- Explore Italian Restaurant neighborhoods in New York City →
Patterns Across the National Picture
| Signal | Where strong-survivability cities outperform | What drags weaker cities down |
|---|---|---|
| Climate-driven seasonality | Cities where the subtype's peak season aligns with the local climate calendar (e.g., year-round outdoor dining in mild markets). | Cities with extreme seasonality that compresses revenue into 4–6 month windows. |
| Income distribution shape | Cities with a broad middle-class income band that supports the subtype's price tier. | Cities with bifurcated income distributions where the subtype's price point falls into the middle gap. |
| Anchor-tenant density | Cities with high concentration of universities, hospitals, transit hubs within a 1-mile radius of typical storefronts. | Cities where anchor institutions are isolated in suburbs or single-purpose campuses with no street-level spillover. |
Wide variation between cities: The difference between the #1 city (San Antonio at 88.6%) and the #24 city (New York City at 84.3%) is 4.3 percentage points. This 0.0-point variation between the #1 and #2 cities is below average for the category, suggesting that Italian Restaurants are particularly responsive to local market conditions.
The most actionable signal in this dataset
Strong performers: 24 cities show Survivability Scores above 80%, indicating highly favorable conditions for Italian Restaurants.
National average: Across all 24 analyzed cities, the average survivability for an Italian Restaurant is 86.5%.
What the Leaders Share
The top-ranked cities share several characteristics that favor Italian Restaurants:
- Strong survivability signals: San Antonio leads with a 89% average survivability score for Italian Restaurants — significantly above the national average for this business category.
- Competition density: The top cities show favorable competitor-to-opportunity ratios for Italian Restaurants, meaning lower saturation and higher odds of capturing an underserved customer base.
- Neighborhood diversity: Within each top city, high-survivability zones appear across multiple neighborhood types — from dense urban cores to established suburban strips.
- Geographic distribution: The top cities span multiple U.S. regions, giving franchise operators or multi-location owners diverse market options without concentrating risk.
Our analysis draws on millions of commercial real estate data points to deliver survivability predictions trusted by professionals nationwide. We apply advanced machine learning to massive commercial real estate datasets to build accurate models. These insights come from StreetSpring's exclusive, in-house forecasting models.
Where Italian Restaurants Thrive Within Each City
Where you open matters more than which city ranks highest. The strongest neighborhoods for Italian Restaurants can be found across the entire national distribution:
Minneapolis — ranked #13 of 24 — a middle-of-the-pack national market
- Morris-Park (88% survivability)
- Summit-Hill (84% survivability)
- Como (84% survivability)
- Lyndale (84% survivability)
- Calhoun (84% survivability)
See full neighborhood rankings for Minneapolis →
New York City — ranked #24 of 24 — among the lower-ranked national markets
- Rockaway-Park (90% survivability)
- Coney-Island (87% survivability)
- Newark (86% survivability)
- Brighton-Beach (86% survivability)
- Far-Rockaway (86% survivability)
See full neighborhood rankings for New York City →
City-level scores aggregate hundreds of neighborhoods. The right neighborhood matters more than the city's headline rank.
Visual Data
Related Resources
City-specific guides: For detailed neighborhood-level analysis, explore our city guides:
- Survivability Rankings for Italian Restaurant in San Antonio
- Business Survivability Rankings: San Antonio
- Survivability Rankings for Italian Restaurant in Portland
- Business Survivability Rankings: Portland
- Survivability Rankings for Italian Restaurant in St Louis
- Business Survivability Rankings: St Louis
- Survivability Rankings for Italian Restaurant in Charlotte
- Business Survivability Rankings: Charlotte
- Survivability Rankings for Italian Restaurant in Orlando
- Business Survivability Rankings: Orlando
National guides:
- National Neighborhood Survivability Rankings for Italian Restaurants
- Neighborhood Survivability Rankings: San Antonio
When was this ranking last refreshed?
Rankings are updated quarterly. The current data reflects StreetSpring's 2026 analysis, with the next full dataset refresh scheduled for Q3 2026. As market conditions shift across major metros, individual city scores can move meaningfully between updates — particularly for Italian Restaurants, where local competition density and consumer spending patterns respond quickly to new entrants and neighborhood change. For the most current score at any specific address, use StreetSpring's live survivability tool rather than the static ranking above.
Can an Italian Restaurant succeed in cities not ranked in the top 10?
Yes — our top 10 ranking reflects cities with the strongest average conditions, but lower-ranked metros can still contain exceptional individual neighborhoods. Many operators successfully open Italian Restaurants in cities that don't appear in our top 10. Italian Restaurants in particular can find strong performance in secondary markets where the right demographic concentration, household income, and limited direct competition within walking distance align — even outside our highest-ranked cities. StreetSpring's neighborhood-level data surfaces these pockets of opportunity in every city we analyze, regardless of where the city as a whole ranks nationally.
What tools can help me choose the right city for an Italian Restaurant?
StreetSpring's Survivability Score tool provides address-level predictions for Italian Restaurants across all 24 metros we track. For this category specifically, the tool surfaces competition density, consumer spending index for Italian Restaurants, and commercial vacancy rates — the factors that most consistently predict whether an Italian Restaurant will still be operating after two years. You can check any specific address before signing a lease and compare multiple neighborhoods side by side to identify the highest-survivability site within your target city.
Try the Survivability Score tool →
Which US city has the best survivability for Italian Restaurants?
San Antonio ranks as the #1 city in the US for Italian Restaurants survivability in StreetSpring's 2026 analysis, with an average score of 89%. This means that across well-selected neighborhoods in San Antonio, an Italian Restaurant has approximately a 89% chance of still operating after two years — above the national average for this category. Portland ranks second, followed by St Louis. The full ranking reflects data across 24 major US metro areas — see the complete list above for all scores and neighborhood-level links.
Reviewed: May 12, 2026 by Bobby Koons, StreetSpring founder
Technical note: Aggregated national survivability rankings across all 24 metros are available in machine-readable format for research and integration purposes.
StreetSpring recalculates survivability using the latest competitive, demographic, and foot traffic data, so the live score may differ from the static ranges shown here.
Methodology: City rankings aggregate neighborhood-level Survivability Scores (max, average, and min) across all analyzed neighborhoods in each metro area. Rankings reflect average conditions but do not account for variation within cities. Coverage includes 24 major US metropolitan areas: San Antonio, Portland, St Louis, Charlotte, Orlando, Phoenix, Tampa Bay, Detroit, Baltimore, Atlanta, San Diego, San Francisco, Minneapolis, Los Angeles, Houston, Miami, Seattle, Chicago, Dallas, Denver, Washington DC, Boston, Philadelphia, New York City.