Is First Watch a good company to work for?

First Watch has an overall rating of 3.7 out of 5, based on over 1,926 reviews left anonymously by employees. This rating has decreased by 3% over the last 12 months. 63% of employees would recommend working at First Watch to a friend and 61% have a positive outlook for the business. The best reviews about First Watch have been left by employees working as Director of Operations , Black Apron and Cafe Manager .

Does First Watch pay their employees well?

According to anonymously submitted Glassdoor reviews, First Watch employees rate their compensation and benefits as 3.2 out of 5. Find out more about salaries and benefits at First Watch. This rating has decreased by 6% over the last 12 months.

How satisfied are employees working at First Watch?

63% of First Watch employees would recommend working there to a friend based on Glassdoor reviews . Employees also rated First Watch 3.7 out of 5 for work life balance, 3.5 for culture and values and 3.4 for career opportunities.

What are the top reviewed jobs at First Watch?

Server (632) , Server/Waiter (294) , Operations Manager (124) , General Manager (70) , Line Cook (65) , Busser/Runner (46) , Server/Waitress (36) , Manager (34) , Director of Operations (30) , Dishwasher (27) , Cook (26) , Waitress (21) , Food Server (18) , Black Apron (16) , Busser (15)

What are the pros of working at First Watch according to real employee reviews?

"The pay structure/ tip out was typically solid making good money on most weekends." ((in 175 reviews)); "The pay is good and there's a program that pays for 20% of your college tuition." ((in 89 reviews)); "great food and people to work with were awesome" ((in 67 reviews)); "Great product and a culture I can be proud to represent." ((in 59 reviews)); "I loved my coworkers and the hours are great!" ((in 57 reviews))

What are the cons of working at First Watch according to real employee reviews?

"poor management and had managers try to make job difficult" ((in 139 reviews)); "Managers have a lot of responsibility and spend most of their time in the kitchen rather than being up front dealing with customers." ((in 71 reviews)); "long hours (serving shift is open to close because it is breakfast/lunch only)" ((in 38 reviews)); "Upper management is so completely out of touch it's almost as if they have never worked in a restaurant (spoiler: most of them haven't)" ((in 28 reviews)); "Also lots of favoritism" ((in 25 reviews))

What are the top reviewed First Watch locations?

Tampa , Orlando , Sarasota , Jacksonville , Raleigh , Louisville , Columbus , Houston , Cincinnati , Kansas City , Phoenix , Charlotte , Dallas , San Antonio , Atlanta , Saint Louis , Austin , Knoxville , Bradenton , Lexington-Fayette , Scottsdale , Naples , Tucson , College Station , Miami , Richmond , Fort Worth , Katy , Nashville , Overland Park

First Watch reviews

3.7

63% would recommend to a friend

(245 total reviews)

Chris Tomasso

69% approve of CEO

61% positive business outlook

Ratings by category

3.9

Diversity & inclusion

3.7

Work/Life balance

3.5

Culture & values

3.4

Career opportunities

3.2

Senior management

3.2

Compensation and benefits

Ratings by demographic groups

Race / Ethnicity

Gender

Sexual orientation

Disability

Parent or family caregiver

Veteran status

Reviews by job title

245 reviews

Reviews about "Culture"

Return to all reviews

1.0

Nov 8, 2025

Toxic Leadership

General manager

Recommend

CEO approval

Business Outlook

Pros

It used to be a great place to work. I felt cared for, valued & always worked hard. I woke up every morning happy to serve the community and build my team. Sadly, there are no more pros.

Cons

Upper management harasses you. When using chain of commands, they trick you into thinking you can go to RVPs with issues but some of them end up firing good workers to protect bad DOs. Everyone takes harassment courses every 6 months, i'm not sure how people past the restaurant level are able to treat management the way they do. Very disappointed in how the company ended up turning out. Salaries are also VERY low and quality of life is LOW when you're being harassed and asked to do WAY more than your job description. No coaching is ever given either, just negative feedback. For the culture that is talked so highly about, some leaders do NOT have compassion or empathy for anyone.

First Watch Response

8mo

Thank you for taking the time to share this review. We’re firm believers that when you know better, you do better…so we really appreciate your feedback. We're so disappointed to learn about your experience as we strive to be “You First” in all that we do. Quality of life is important to us, and you should always feel comfortable discussing your concerns with your leaders and with our team in HR. We'd love to better understand your concerns so that we can thoroughly and properly address them and encourage you to call our anonymous employee hotline at 844-484-8963. Thanks again for your insights, and we hope to hear from you soon.

4.0

Sep 18, 2025

Manager

Operational manager

Recommend

CEO approval

Business Outlook

Pros

Great Hours Good Pay Great people

Cons

Labor % is hard to reach High on Culture, Low on building upkeep

First Watch Response

10mo

Thank you for submitting this review. We love that you enjoy working daytime-only hours, and a “You First” culture. We make every effort to show appreciation for our teams and listen to their concerns. Your feedback will help us improve the experience of our employees. We appreciate you!

5.0

Aug 15, 2025

great experience

Hostesss

Recommend

CEO approval

Business Outlook

Pros

fun team and great culture

Cons

it was hectic and lots of turnover

First Watch Response

11mo

Thank you for submitting this review. We love that you enjoyed the friendly “You First” culture. We make every effort to show appreciation for our teams and listen to their concerns. Feel free to reach out to our anonymous employee hotline at 844-484-8963 your feedback will help us improve the experience of our employees. We appreciate you!

Viewing 16 - 18 of 245 Reviews

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First Watch reviews

Ratings by category

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Reviews about "Culture"

Toxic Leadership

Manager

great experience

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