First Watch Restaurant Group, Inc

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.