First Watch Q1 Revenue Rises 17% to $331M, Opens 16 New Restaurants
First Watch reported Q1 2026 revenue of $331 million, up 17.3% year-on-year, with adjusted EBITDA rising to $27.8 million from $22.8 million, while net loss widened to $2.7 million. The chain added 16 restaurants for a total of 648 units and set full-year revenue growth guidance at 12–14%.
1. Q1 Revenue and Same-Store Metrics
First Watch posted Q1 2026 revenue of $331 million, up 17.3% from $282.2 million. Same-restaurant sales rose 2.8% despite a 2% traffic decline, contributing to a 13.8% increase in system-wide sales to $367.6 million.
2. Profitability Trends
Adjusted EBITDA increased to $27.8 million from $22.8 million in Q1 2025, and restaurant-level operating margin improved to 18.5% from 16.5%. However, the net loss widened to $2.7 million compared with $0.8 million, and income from operations margin slipped to 0.3% from 0.4%.
3. Expansion and Guidance
The chain added 16 restaurants in Q1, bringing total locations to 648 across 32 states (572 company-owned, 76 franchised). It now forecasts full-year 2026 revenue growth of 12–14%, same-restaurant sales up 1–3%, 59–63 net new units and $150–160 million in capital spending.