First Watch — Restaurant in Matthews

Came here for breakfast at 9:30 to meet some friends. Upon pulling up to the restaurant, there was an animal charity table set up outside, in front. The absolute last thing I wanted, was to be bothered and pressured by someone who wants my money, IN FRONT of a restaurant!! And the guy DID bother me for not saying hello, because I said, no thank you, I'm not interested, and HE got mad at me!!! I'm not here for you, I'm here to eat!!! I do not appreciate being pressured first thing in the morning. Nothing screams tacky, like allowing other organizations to beg your patrons for money prior to having a meal. My water glass was filthy, but I got a clean one. Anyway, I ordered coffee and a waffle. That's it. The total was over $15. The coffee was almost $4, which was not that great, so, my waffle must've been between $9-$10. Just unbelievable. When I went to pay my bill, the girl ringing me up was not very friendly and rushing me, and our waitress awkwardly came to talk to the cashier, while we were all paying, almost to see how much of a tip she was getting. It was just an odd vibe. The lowest tip suggestion was, of course, 20%, which was laughable, because the waitress barely did anything. I gave her a custom tip of 15%. And whaddyaknow, when we left, there was the charity table again, with the annoying guy begging for money, being all salesman-y. I’ve said it before, and I’ll say it again-this place overrated and over priced for what it is.

A message to First Watch: PLEASE get rid of your charity salesmen. It's annoying and cheapens the look of your establishment. It's enough to...

I was incredibly surprised when I walked through the door. Going by the exterior, I did not expect an adorable rustic farmhouse design inside. Nor did I expect it to be as large as it is. Another bonus is an open kitchen and visibility to see how the food is being handled, which I always appreciate. And yet another bonus is the music is spot on! Someone here knows good tunes. And it's like a nightclub reliving your youth jamming out in the super clean bathrooms.. so if you have a shy bladder... no worries. I noticed all the little touches here. 1st... everything is very wheelchair and handicap accessible. Right down to the height of the baby changing table, sink, and even the angle mirror in the bathroom. I did not have a wait at all, even though the place was nearing lunchtime. My server was Emily, and she was spot on with suggestions and an adorable, fun, and pleasant personality. Now, onto the food.... think farm fresh elevated and casual meals. If that made any sense. French Toast included the little touches of warmed up syrup and preserves. Nice portion workout overdoing it. I had a Baja Turkey burger. It was tasty. Not overdone or dry. My only drawback is... my burger itself was a standard thin frozen processed patty I could buy at BJ's or Sam's Club for a backyard BBQ. I was expecting more of a thicker seasoned burger. And the greens for salad and toppings is Mesclun salad, which is not dietary friendly for many.. including myself. Unfortunately, there was not a plain Romaine lettuce or even an iceberg option to swap. Either way, I will...

This is the second poor experience with this particular location. the first I was going to let slide but now with a second incident I need to speak up. First event was for a birthday breakfast and we were served food that had hair in it. since we were seated in the restaurant they re-made the dishes and tried to "make it right" Event 2 - I ordered food to go. I ordered from the parking lot and stepped into the restaurant about 7 min before it was supposed to be ready - I was told the oder was being finished up and would be ready shortly. in 5 min the girl came out with a large bag and called my name. when I got home - about a 20 min drive - I discovered that there was an entire order missing. I immediately called, waited about 25 rings for teh phone to be picked up and mentioned my missing order.... " oh we have a problem with our waffle machine.... that is probably why you didn't get it" -- And no one thought to mention that small bit of information when I picked up??? REALLY? The manager then got on- clearly distracted and asked if I would come back to pick up the missing food: NO. I Told him I would accept a credit to my card. His reply was " sure" and he hung up. 24hr later.... no credit - so I filed a dispute with my credit card company; This is all the more annoying becasue they request a TIP BEFORE you can pay for the to go order!!! Last I checked a Tip or gratuity was to show appreciation for great service. EPIC FAILURE FIRST WATCH. I really love First Watch food but this location is forever...