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 176 reviews)); "The pay is good and there's a program that pays for 20% of your college tuition." ((in 96 reviews)); "great food and people to work with were awesome" ((in 66 reviews)); "I loved my coworkers and the hours are great!" ((in 62 reviews)); "Great product and a culture I can be proud to represent." ((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 144 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 73 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 30 reviews)); "Also lots of favoritism" ((in 26 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

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First Watch

First Watch reviews

3.7

63% would recommend to a friend

(1,898 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

First Watch has an employee rating of 3.7 out of 5 stars, based on 1,898 company reviews on Glassdoor which indicates that most employees have a good working experience there. The First Watch employee rating is in line with the average (within 1 standard deviation) for employers within the Restaurants & Food Service industry (3.4 stars).

Ratings by demographic groups

Race / Ethnicity

Gender

Sexual orientation

Disability

Parent or family caregiver

Veteran status

Reviews by job title

2K reviews

2.0

Jun 27, 2026

Good hours but too much extra work

Server/waitress

Recommend

CEO approval

Business Outlook

Pros

Early hours . You can get your money & still have time for other things in a day.

Cons

Alot of doing other's work & your assigned duties.

First Watch Response

Thank you for sharing your feedback. While we're happy you enjoyed the daytime-only hours and pay, If you’d like to provide further feedback pleaser call our anonymous employee hotline at 844-484-8963. Thanks again for sharing.

4.0

Jun 19, 2026

Good hours and work-life balance, but corporate culture prevails

Server/waiter

Recommend

CEO approval

Business Outlook

Pros

Hours Work life balance Paid daily as server

Cons

Pay card is temperamental on where you use it Very corporate

First Watch Response

Thank you for taking the time to leave this feedback! We agree that you just can’t go wrong with our daytime-only hours that allow you to have your nights free. We’d love for you to call our anonymous employee hotline at 844-484-8963 with additional feedback. This feedback will help the management team work to improve the experience of each employee. Thanks for taking the time to submit your review.

4.0

Jun 16, 2026

Supportive team with flexible hours, but unstable management

Black apron

Recommend

CEO approval

Business Outlook

Pros

Flexible scheduling & hours, supportive team, good training model.

Cons

Continuous flow of management, coming in and out of the restaurant

First Watch Response

Thanks for taking the time to share your positive experience! We love that you enjoy the flexible hours, training model and that you are surrounded by a supportive team. We take pride in setting our employees up for success. Thanks again for the glowing review - we’re thrilled to have you on our team!

Viewing 10 - 12 of 1,898 Reviews

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