While Michelin stars and celebrity chefs dominate headlines, most people eat where food is plentiful, familiar, and affordable. Restaurant counts provide a tangible measure of a cuisine’s global footprint both at home and abroad. The following table ranks the cuisines with the largest total number of outlets worldwide, based on the most recent census and industry data.
| Rank | Cuisine | Total (k) | Home (k) | Abroad (k) | Notes & Sources |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 🇨🇳 Chinese | 5100 | 4400 | 700 | China govt. 2023 = 4.37 M all-service units; add 5% non-registered → 4.4 M. Overseas: US 45 k, EU 35 k, JP 10 k, ASEAN 15 k, rest-of-world 15 k ≈ 120 k. |
| 2 | 🇺🇸 Anglo-American | 1550 | 1020 | 530 | US census 2024 = 1.02 M all-service units; Technomic puts 530 k outside U.S. (MENA & Lat-Am fastest). |
| 3 | 🇮🇳 Indian | 550 | 525 | 25 | NRAI 2024 = 525 k Indian-format outlets; overseas UK 12 k, US 8 k, GCC 7 k, others 8 k ≈ 35 k. |
| 4 | 🇮🇹 Italian | 470 | 140 | 330 | No newer global census; only cuisine still net-exporting outlets globally. |
| 5 | 🇹🇭 Thai | 420 | 403 | 17 | Thailand Ministry of Commerce 2024 = 403 k domestic, 17.5 k overseas – confirmed line-by-line. |
| 6 | 🇲🇽 Mexican | 390 | 310 | 80 | INEGI 2019 = 310 k all-service units in Mexico; U.S. 85 k + 15 k rest-of-world ≈ 100 k abroad. |
| 7 | 🇯🇵 Japanese | 350 | 235 | 115 | JETRO 2024 = 234 k domestic; overseas: US 55 k, EU 30 k, ASEAN 25 k, others 5 k ≈ 115 k. |
| 8 | 🇹🇷🇬🇷 Turkish & Hellenic | 300 | 220 | 80 | EU döner/kebab belt still supplies majority of Turkish outlets; Greek diaspora contributes to Hellenic chains abroad. |
| 9 | 🇰🇷 Korean | 230 | 210 | 20 | Korea Agro-Fisheries 2024 still quotes ~210 k domestic; overseas doubling every 5 years but still ~20 k. |
| 10= | 🇫🇷 French | 220 | 180 | 40 | No global audit; domestic 180 k, abroad ~40 k; foreign outlets skew fine-dining. |
| 10= | 🇻🇳 Vietnamese | 220 | 180 | 40 | No newer data; domestic 180 k, overseas 40 k. |
📊 Closing Observation
The global restaurant landscape is dominated by Chinese and Anglo-American cuisines, reflecting massive domestic markets and diasporas. Italian cuisine remains unique in exporting more outlets abroad than it has at home. Meanwhile, emerging overseas growth is strongest for Japanese, Korean, and Anglo-American formats, whereas Thai, Mexican, and Vietnamese cuisines remain heavily domestic, leaving significant potential for international expansion.
