First Watch — Restaurant in Mequon

We walked in with a party of 10 (3 kids under 5!) at approximately 1:30 pm (closes at 230pm) on a Sunday. I have worked in the industry for 20 years, near half of which were spent in a breakfast atmosphere, so I was fighting back my guilt for even considering asking if they were able to accommodate our group. Out of necessity, I approached the hostess stand and I asked. The super smiley girl at the stand politely said that they would put together a table for us, not ever make me feel as though it was a burden or annoyance. I tried to assure her that we were in a bit of a hurry and would NOT keep them late. There was a young man who set up our table with the appropriate amount of silverware and got us started with waters, never missing a beat. 2 servers came to take care of our orders, it seemed like their procedure was that after one server took "x" amount of our orders, there other server ran it back to the kitchen, so as to get get the order started. It felt like within minutes of telling the servers our orders, the food began to be delivered to the table. Every one of us "grown ups" acknowledged how quickly it was. The 3 and 5 years olds never even had a chance to get restless. It was FABULOUS! Our food was hot and yummy! My 15 year old loved the Tomato Basil soup. I had a roast beef and havarti sandwich with lots of horseradish which definitely hit the spot! My husband would recommend the BLTE and grandma loved her lemon ricotta pancakes topped with fresh strawberries. The chocolate covering the kids' faces were a tell tale sign of their opinions of the food! :) Did not have the chance to try it but the French Toast looked amazing, with BIG ole THICK slices of bread and served with whipped butter!!! And pancakes as big as the plate they are served on!! Our server/s continued to be attentive and on top of it, but NOT pushy! My sister and brother in law ended up picking up the bill, so I insisted on leaving a tip. Unfortunately, I had no cash, so the gentleman up front was able to charge me for 1 cent, making it possible for me to leave a tip. For which I was grateful! 10 of us walked out of the door, bellies full, by 2:30 pm! I cannot tell you when, or IF i ever, i have witnessed such a "well oiled" system! Efficient and friendly. The best qualities (along with a smile), to find in good restaurants, servers, and employees overall. Kudos to you all!

The ONLY suggestion I would make, is simply that appearance is important and the floors were very unkempt throughout the entire restaurant/restroom. A quick spot sweep makes ALL the difference. ( I KNOW it was SUN, which is usually the busiest day of the week and you all had likely just had your butts handed to you, BUT an important and simple suggestion to make your location and/or section OVER the TOP the BEST!!!!) Date of visit:...

I have been a fan of First Watch for a long time, but today's experience made me wonder if something had changed (for the worse). The restaurant was busy, but we were seated quickly. That was good. The server was very nice, but seemed to be overwhelmed. She took our order and then we proceeded to wait...and wait....and wait. We ordered two breakfast entrees and a pre-brunch order of churros (a treat we had ordered several times before and loved). When the churros finally showed up they were cold and rubbery instead of warm and crisp as they should be. I took one bite and that was all I needed to know that they had been sitting for a long time. We didn't eat them. When our breakfasts finally arrived, more than 15 - 20 minutes after the churros, we told the server that we were dissatisfied. She told us that we were not the first to complain about the churros that day and she apologized telling us that the kitchen was backed up. Fine....but I should either be offered fresh churros or have it taken off the check. The breakfasts were okay...pretty much as expected. When the check came, the churros were still there. Since it seemed useless to talk with the server, I brought it up with the hostess. She honestly looked like she had no idea how to handle a complaint. I asked to speak to the manager and she said that he was in the kitchen and couldn't be disturbed. She too said the kitchen was backed up. After indicating that I was not going to pay for the churros, she finally went to get the manager. He seemed incredibly overwhelmed, but he did reprint the check to remove the uneaten food. Every restaurant makes errors...but the disorganization and lack of responsibility on the part of the staff....was concerning. This is not the same restaurant it was several months ago. I will definitely give them another chance, but if this is how First Watch is going to be run moving forward, I'll find somewhere...

The ambience was very welcoming and I was informed by my breakfast guests that it had recently been renovated. Evidently, it used to look more like a typical diner. If so, whomever designed the makeover did an outstanding job. From the spacious seating to the flow of the place, it was very inviting and comfortable with decore just as inviting and comfortable. I ordered the Chorizo Omelet, and while it was tasty, there's no way it contained chorizo. It was definitely just sausage. That was a little disappointing, to say the least. Also, it is almost as if the cook had never made an omlete before, as the inside was a little runny and undercooked. Not sure what happened to the cheese promised in the description of the omlete. I did not complain as originally, my meal arrived first and I had specified no sour creme (No true Tex-Mex, ever puts sour cream on anything....that's just nasty), but it arrived with a monstrous dollop of sour cream on it....and thst I did send back. So by the time it was remade, my guests were well on their way into eating theirs, unfortunately. Plus, I was hungry and the ambience was that comfortable that I just thought, "oh, that's ok. I'll let it go this time." Next time, I'm definitely going to mention or inquire about what the heck they call Chorizo, if it again comes with just sausage.😁.

Despite, the mix up on my order, I would still give this place an A-. The service was very attentive, we never once asked for more coffee or water....our waitress just showed up with fresh pots/water as we ran out. That alone impressed me a great deal.

Finally, although it was a little busy, I didn't once feel rushed to free up the table.

Again, the ambience was just mot expected in this pandemic era and observing the thoroughness of cleaning and sanitizing by staff was impressive.

Definitely...