First Watch long-range goal: grow from 550 to 2,200 locations

The daytime dining company has opened 10 restaurants since October and plans 13 more before the end of December.

By Elizabeth King
| 5:41 p.m. November 8, 2024
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First Watch had nearly $900 million in revenue in 2023.

Manatee-Sarasota

First Watch is opening nearly two dozen restaurants in the fourth quarter, according to CEO and President Chris Tomasso. It would have opened five more, but he cites Hurricane Milton as the reason those locations will open for business instead in 2025.

The east Manatee County-based breakfast-lunch-brunch company shared these details and more about its growth strategy on a Nov. 7 third-quarter earnings call.

In the third quarter, First Watch opened nine restaurants, including seven that are company-owned and two that are franchise-owned. It now operates 547 restaurants across 29 states, including 466 company-owned and 81 franchise-owned eateries.