First Watch reaches 600-restaurant milestone

Leaders of the daytime dining concept First Watch have said their goal is to aim for 2,200 restaurants. During its Aug. 5 earnings call, the company reported it had reached the 600-restaurant milestone.

First Watch, headquartered in east Manatee County, has 531 company-owned and 69 franchise-owned restaurants across 31 states, as of the end of the second quarter.

It had 584 restaurants as of the end of the first quarter. From April through June, the company opened 17 restaurants systemwide in eight states and closed one location, totaling 600 restaurants in the network. On average, it is opening more than one restaurant a week.

First Watch also entered its 31st state in May with the opening of an eatery in Idaho. The company plans to open a restaurant in Nevada later this summer, marking its 32nd state.

“As we grow, it’s a privilege to represent our home state of Florida, and specifically the Bradenton/Sarasota area,” First Watch CEO and President Chris Tomasso says in a statement emailed to the Business Observer. “We’re proud of our local roots and status as a major employer in the market. We employ more than 4,000 across Florida, and nearly 500 across Manatee and Sarasota County, between our nine locations and home office. The success we reported today is made possible by our friends, family and neighbors in the Bradenton area.”

Other highlights from the Aug. 5 second-quarter earnings call:

• Mother’s Day was the busiest day in the 42-year history of First Watch. The restaurant hit record same restaurant traffic and sales.
• Total revenues for the quarter were $307.9 million, a 19% increase over the same period in 2024.
• Both same restaurant traffic growth and same restaurant sales growth were up in the second quarter, by 2% and 3.5%, respectively. This represents three consecutive quarters of sequential improvement, according to Tomasso. 
• "Looking ahead, we anticipate stronger profitability in the second half of the year and have raised our annual outlook for adjusted EBITDA accordingly,” Tomasso says in a statement. “With continued outperformance of our newest restaurant classes and a robust development pipeline, we remain confident in our momentum through the balance of 2025 and beyond."
• The pipeline for new restaurant openings includes more than 130 new sites approved and in various states of development.
• First Watch, which posted nearly $1.02 billion in revenue in 2024, projects about 20% total revenue growth for 2025.