When was First Watch founded?

First Watch was founded in 1983 and raised its 1st funding round 21 years after it was founded.

Where is First Watch located?

First Watch is headquartered in Bradenton, United States.

How many employees does First Watch have?

As of Aug 31, 2026, the latest employee count at First Watch is 5509.

Is First Watch a funded company?

First Watch is a funded company, having raised an undisclosed amount across 2 funding rounds to date. The company's 1st funding round was a $***** PE round, raised on 2004.

When was the latest funding round of First Watch?

First Watch's latest funding was a $***** Conventional Debt round on Aug 24, 2017, with participation from 0 investor.

What is the annual revenue of First Watch?

Annual revenue of First Watch is more than $1B as on Dec 31, 2025

Where does First Watch rank among its competitors?

First Watch ranks 1st amongst 1209 active competitors, of which 59 are funded. It stands 3rd in terms of total funding among its competitors. The most recent competitor to raise funding was Clover Food Lab, which secured $2.5M in May, 2026.

Who are the top competitors of First Watch?

First Watch's top competitors include YUM! Brands, Chipotle and Dennys. Among them, Clover Food Lab secured the most recent funding round in May, 2026.

First Watch - 2026 Company Profile, Team, Funding, Competitors & Financials

First Watch is a public company based in Bradenton (United States), founded in 1983 by Ken Pendery. It operates as a Chain of limited service restaurant. First Watch has raised an undisclosed amount in funding from L Catterton. The company has 1209 active competitors, including 59 funded and 115 that have exited. Its top competitors include companies like YUM! Brands, Chipotle and Dennys.

Company Details

Website: firstwatch.com
Social

Key Metrics

Founded Year

1983

Location

Bradenton, United States

Stage

Public

Latest Funding Round

Conventional Debt, Aug 24, 2017, $*****

Investors

L Catterton & 1 more

Ranked

1^st among 1209 active competitors

Annual Revenue

$1B+ as on Dec 31, 2025

Employee Count

5,509 as on Aug 31, 2026

Investment & Acquisitions

The Egg & I & 2 more

Similar Companies

YUM! Brands & 1941 more

Exit Details

Public

View First Watch's full profile

First Watch is associated with 1 legal entity given below:

Legal Entity Name	Date of Incorporation	Revenue	Latest Employee Count	Documents
FIRST WATCH RESTAURANT GROUP, INC. CIN: 1789940 , United States, Active	Jan 07, 2020	$1B+ (As on Dec 31, 2025)	12000 (As on Dec 31, 2022)	-

First Watch got listed on Oct 01, 2021.

Click here to take a look at First Watch's IPO in detail

First Watch has raised funding over 2 rounds. Its first funding round was on 2004. First Watch has 2 institutional investors.

Here is the list of recent funding rounds of First Watch:

Date of Funding	Funding Amount	Round Name	Post-Money Valuation	Revenue Multiple	Lead Investors	Other Investors
Aug 24, 2017	7290483	Conventional Debt	2504721	3113428	1722890	8495080
2004	5640	PE	6644	7064	L Catterton	1775

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View details of First Watch's funding rounds and investors

The founders of First Watch is Ken Pendery.

Here are the details of First Watch's key team members:

Ken Pendery: Founder & CEO of First Watch.

View details of First Watch's Founder profiles and Board Members

First Watch's employee count trend

First Watch has 5,509 employees as of Aug 26. Here is First Watch's employee count trend over the years:

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Top competitors of First Watch include YUM! Brands, Chipotle and Dennys. Here is the list of Top 10 competitors of First Watch, ranked by Tracxn score:

Rank	Company Details	Short Description	Total Funding	Investors	Tracxn Score
1st	First Watch 1983, Bradenton (United States), Public	Chain of limited service restaurant	-	L Catterton, Advent International	72/100
2nd	YUM! Brands 1997, Louisville (United States), Acquired	Restaurants chains	-	-	69/100
3rd	Chipotle 1993, Newport Beach (United States), Public	Chains providing prepared meals and catering services	$1.5M	Boston York Restaurant Group, Pershing Square Holdings ... & 2 others	67/100
4th	Dennys 1953, Spartanburg (United States), Acquired	Owns and operates a chain of cafes	-	Cave Creek Capital, LNK Partners & 2 others	66/100
5th	Cracker Barrel 1969, Lebanon (United States), Public	Chain of limited service restaurants	-	-	65/100
6th	Tropical Smoothie Cafe 1997, Atlanta (United States), Acquired	Fast-casual restaurant inspiring better with smoothies, food, and community	-	BIP Capital, FOD Capital & 4 others	65/100
7th	Bob Evans Farms 1946, Rio Grande City (United States), Acquired	Restaurant chain and processed pork products manufacturer & supplier based in USA	-	-	65/100
8th	BJ's Restaurants 1978, Huntington Beach (United States), Public	Limited service restaurant chain	-	Lowell Capital Management, Act 3 Holdings ... & 1 others	64/100
9th	Clover Food Lab 2008, Cambridge (United States), Series B	Chain of restaurants serving American style food in Boston, USA.	$17.7M	Beta Angels, Act 3 Holdings & 6 others	63/100
10th	Bojangles 1977, Charlotte (United States), Acquired	Southern-inspired fast food restaurant specializing in fried chicken and biscuits	-	CFT Capital Partners, Industrial Investors Group ... & 4 others	63/100

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First Watch has acquired 3 companies including The Egg & I, Bread & Company and The Good Egg. First Watch has not made any investments as of now.

Here is the list of its acquisitions:

Date of Investment/Acquisition	Type	Company Name	Founded Year	Location
May 28, 2015	Acquisition	The Egg & I	1987	Hamilton (Canada)
Dec 04, 2014	Acquisition	Bread & Company	2000	Nashville (United States)
Feb 03, 2014	Acquisition	The Good Egg	2013	London (United Kingdom)