First Watch Restaurant Group, Inc

Our ‘You First’ vision is to create amazing opportunities for our people. Anyone can serve bacon and eggs; First Watch exists to Make Days Brighter. We bring that purpose to life in ways big and small, starting with our “You First” culture and vision to create amazing opportunities for our 17,000+ employees – from dishwashers and servers to field leaders and our Home Office team. As a breakfast, brunch and lunch concept, we operate a single 7 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. shift, attracting natural “morning people” who start each day with energy, optimism and a genuine smile – an attitude that is contagious and fuels our culture.

We are also an aggressive growth company, opening on average more than one restaurant per week. Each new restaurant is more than a place to serve great food – it’s a chance to join a new community, create meaningful connections and generate new jobs and leadership opportunities. This growth means continuous development opportunities for our people as we work towards our total addressable market of 2,200 restaurants.

We know strong growth depends on a strong talent pipeline, which is why we target a goal of 60% of leadership roles filled through internal promotions and host regular “Come Grow With Us” events for hourly employees to learn about leadership opportunities and help us achieve that goal. From our Black Hat and Black Apron hourly recognition programs, to our C.A.F.E. management training and Certified General Manager programs, we provide incentives for employees to master their roles and a clear path to advance their careers with First Watch. Through our F.A.R.M. (First Watch Academy of Restaurant Management) we immerse new and high potential leaders in First Watch’s culture and ensure our managers gain the tools and confidence needed to lead strong teams to support our continued growth. In 2025 we conducted 10 sessions, impacting 250 managers. As we grow, so do the opportunities for our people—creating real, visible pathways from hourly roles to leadership careers.

After reviewing key insights over the past year – derived from feedback from the Most Loved Workplace Index and directly from our front-line team members through our employee listening tours – we saw clear opportunities to strengthen competence, contribution and accountability, which led to the launch of Y.O.L.K. TV (Your Online Library of Knowledge). This centralized hub houses First Watch policies, SOPs and features employee-led, YouTube-style micro videos, making it faster and easier for teams to find answers, improve consistency and learn from one another.

This year, we also expanded leadership development through our Regional Vice President and Director of Operations Summits, bringing all multi-unit leaders to our Home Office in Bradenton, FL for an immersive experience focused on building respectful, high-performing teams, while reinforcing the purpose behind key company initiatives. We provided our leaders with focused training on operations excellence, people development, strengthening talent pipelines, performance management, understanding individual leadership and communication styles, and effectively leading change. Through hands-on training, restaurant visits, team workshops and case studies, our leaders learned practical ways to build accountability in real time and support their employees while better understanding their own strengths and motivations. The Summits also created valuable opportunities for leaders across the country to build stronger relationships, share best practices, and strengthen collaboration long after the sessions conclude.

Kindness drives our culture. First Watch was co-founded by Ken Pendery on a few simple principles: put others first, go the extra mile for customers and teammates, and above all else, just be kind. Those principles later became the foundation for our vision to “create amazing opportunities for our people”, our mission to “make days brighter at every opportunity,” and our core values: Be Kind, Roll Up Our Sleeves, and Stand Shoulder to Shoulder.

For more than 40 years, our “You First” philosophy has shaped how we treat one another and how we live our mission to make days brighter. We often say, “Come for the hours, stay for the people.” Our one-shift, “No Nights Ever” model enables team members to work shoulder to shoulder with the same people every day, helping build stronger relationships, consistency and connection across teams. It also supports work-life balance by allowing our employees to spend evenings with the people in their lives who matter most. Kindness is reflected in our “You First” mindset and our service model, which trains our teams to serve with care, attentiveness, openness, and purpose in every interaction. We roll up our sleeves, push ourselves to improve, and meet each day with positivity, resilience, and grit and we stand shoulder-to-shoulder, supporting one another through challenges and celebrating success together as one team.

Our ‘You First’ culture is modeled at the top. CEO and President Chris Tomasso brings First Watch’s culture to life through meaningful, personal touches – from handwritten service anniversary notes to recognizing standout teammates with the President’s Pin to a weekly “Five-Star Friday” restaurant recognition for operational excellence. Known for his good-natured humor, he connects directly with managers through F.A.R.M. fireside chats and market visits, and with employees nationwide as part of our annual W.H.Y. Tour and Town Halls. Nearly every Friday in the Home Office, he can be found pulling up a chair in the café to join employees for a company-provided catered lunch and good conversation. Each summer, he kicks off the season with “Summer Short Fridays,” a tradition that gives Home Office employees additional flexibility, the opportunity to enjoy more casual summer attire, and extra time to spend with family and friends. In the field, he often ends market visits by taking restaurant leaders to dinner for an opportunity to connect, listen and personally thank them for their leadership and contributions. Chris has been featured on Nation's Restaurant News' Power List and recognized as one of the most admired C-Suite executives by FSR Magazine. He’s also a recipient of the prestigious International Foodservice Manufacturers Association (IFMA) Gold Plate Award and for the last four years in a row, has outpaced the Love of Workplace Index best in class benchmark for CEOs. By consistently modeling our core values, Chris has fostered a culture rooted in kindness, humility, inclusion and continuous improvement.

Employees’ voices truly matter. One of the ways we foster a culture that thrives on honesty and trust is by hosting our annual We Hear You (W.H.Y.) engagement Tour with hourly employees representing every region across the country. The W.H.Y. Tour connects our CEO, CPO, and other members of senior leadership directly with our front-line employees for candid conversations about what’s working well, where we can improve, and how we can create an even better experience for our teams. These listening sessions give employees a direct voice in shaping workplace improvements and strengthening our culture. Since its inception, we have talked to 1,576 attendees for 9,450 listening minutes, and in turn have made meaningful (oftentimes immediate) improvements to operations, technology, training, benefits, compensation and employee communication. Additionally, the leaders who comprise our GM Council – 20 managers from across the country who are nominated annually – provide us feedback to continuously improve our operational standards and overall experience for both customers and employees. In early 2026, we created a new Employee Experience function at the Home Office to develop strategic programs that shape the hearts and minds of our team members, activate our values and drive desired behaviors. By leveraging third-party data and insights, like the Most Loved Workplace Index, we ensure that we can continue to foster a culture of trust, collaboration and genuine care.

Beloved culture through personal, authentic connection and inclusion. We bring our “You First” culture to life by celebrating our people in meaningful, personal ways year-round. On World Kindness Day, we go above and beyond to create acts of kindness in our restaurants and office. We send personalized texts for birthdays and work anniversaries and in times of crisis, personally check on the safety and wellbeing of our team members. In a year of market and economic uncertainty, we doubled down on our mission to Make Days Brighter through external programs, such as our Feel Good Hotline. The Feel Good Hotline blends nostalgia with modern hospitality, as callers can dial 1-844-KIND020 to access a menu of cheerful messages, including jokes, pep talks, microdoses of joy, affirmations and even culinary tips. Each message is voiced by First Watch’s own team members across the country, everywhere from Kansas City to Dallas to Orlando and beyond, so anyone who gives it a ring can hear the real voices of the team members who serve them.

We strengthen connection and community through initiatives that bring our purpose to life … From internal service groups like our Culture Club – who in 2025 volunteered over 650 hours and raised over $3,000 plus in-kind donations for pet/food drives with organizations like Meals on Wheels, Boys & Girls Club and the National MS Society – to hyper-local partnerships with hundreds of organizations focused on extending and improving the lives of children and families, including The V Foundation, Dallas CASA and Pelotonia Kids, who receive 25 cents from each Kids Meal purchased in select markets.

Chief People Officer Laura Sorensen reinforced the impact that our leaders have on our culture during a recent 2026 keynote presentation to all General Managers and Multi-Unit Leaders centered on the idea that “leaders bring the weather.” Managers received a symbolic front-door pin that opens to a sun – serving as a reminder that every day, leaders help set the tone, shape the environment, and influence what it feels like when team members walk through the restaurant doors.  We often say, “Culture is everyone’s responsibility” and our Senior Leadership Team brought that to life at our 2026 Leadership Conference in Las Vegas – our first outside of Florida. To make it memorable, we swapped our traditional Awards Ceremony for a surprise trip to the world-famous Sphere to see The Wizard of Oz. The highlight? Five senior leaders showed up in full costume, including CEO and President Chris Tomasso as Oz and Chief People Officer Laura Sorensen as Dorothy – posing for photos and staying in character all night. Even with so many other fun activities on the agenda, many GMs/leaders shared this was their favorite memory from the trip. 

Industry-leading benefits ensure employees feel cared for. Our benefits are designed to support the whole person - at work and in life. Key offerings include backup childcare and eldercare for all employees, daycare center discounts, health and dependent care flexible spending accounts (FSAs) and no cost telehealth for all employees at all levels, regardless of insurance plan.

All employees have 24/7 access to personal and professional coaching, career guidance and even therapy or resources for personal hardships through our complimentary Employee Assistance Program. Team members have access to the You First Emergency Assistance Fund which offers tax-deductible grants of $500 to our employees experiencing extraordinary hardship. To date, we have provided over $1M in grants to take care of each other when we need it most.

To support mental well-being, we provide free Calm app subscriptions (the #1 app for meditation, relaxation, and sleep) to all employees, with 5 complimentary gift subscriptions for their loved ones. Our home office is also dog-friendly, creating a warm and welcoming environment where employees – and even many non-dog owners – enjoy the energy and connection that pets bring to the workplace. In fact, we even created a “Pups at Work” calendar featuring our employees, along with their best furry friends, which raised over $1,300 for the You First Fund.

We have added Virtual Physical Therapy for those in need as well as Women’s Health benefits from pre-pregnancy to post menopause, inclusive of virtual pelvic-floor PT and birth-recovery pay.

Personal and professional development is offered through a fully funded high school diploma program, tuition reimbursement, discounts on college degrees and certifications, our “Be a Better Human” monthly learning series and LinkedIn Learning and Women’s Foodservice Forum annual subscriptions offering customized professional development. 

Additionally, we offer comprehensive health coverage along with healthcare coordination to support employees with everything from understanding test results and diagnosis to billing concerns to resourcing doctors or any broader wellness needs. We provide life and disability insurance, pet care insurance and discounts, retirement savings with a 50% 401(k) match on the first 6% of deferred savings, and parental leave for managers and above. We offer unlimited PTO for Directors and above and accrued PTO for all qualifying employees.

We continue to evolve our offerings based on employee feedback. After reviewing insights from our W.H.Y. Tour and Most Loved Workplace Index comments, we expanded our bonus program to include restaurant Operations Managers and salaried Home Office employees, enhanced our equity program, and introduced a deferred compensation plan to support meaningful retirement contributions for qualifying employees.

We also give each restaurant a monthly recognition budget to support creative, personalized ways to celebrate employees and special moments. From Certified General Manager Kish’s custom “Kish Dollar Bills” to “Lutz Loot” and “Brentwood Bucks” our teams find fun, meaningful ways to recognize one another every day.