More Info
A fundraiser for the Children’s Hospital at Erlanger will be held from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. on Thursday, Aug. 25 at First Watch at 1825 Gunbarrel Road and is open to the public. A $10 contribution is suggested.
Customers will be offered an entire pot of coffee - not just a cup- when they sit down for breakfast, brunch or lunch at First Watch, a "daytime cafe" due to open Friday at 1825 Gunbarrel Road.
"You get a whole pot. That's the first step of our service, is bringing you a pot of coffee," said Nadim Jubran, one of the partners in the Knoxville, Tenn.-based franchise group, Capstone Concepts LLC, that will open First Watch here in a space that now houses the Egg & I, which closes Sunday.
The conversion is part of a national trend, because in May 2015 the then 153-unit First Watch Restaurants Inc., bought the 114-unit The Egg & I chain to create a combined company with 267 restaurants in 26 states.
Meanwhile, Capstone Concepts is buying the Gunbarrel Road Egg & I from the First Watch corporation, Jubran said.
"I don't want people to think we're taking their beloved breakfast spot away, because we're putting in something that I think people will respond well to," he said. "We actually think that there are options at Egg & I that people like - that you can find at First Watch that are even better."
Current employees at Chattanooga's Egg & I will stay on to work at First Watch.
"All of the staff is staying," said Egg & I Assistant Manager Laney McClaney. "We have slowly made some of our menu items change toward First Watch, so when they come in, it won't be such a crazy change. First Watch's menu is very similar to ours."
The transition has been going on for about three weeks now, Jubran said. When Egg & I closes at 2 p.m., a construction crew comes in and makes changes - such as painting walls, laying down new flooring and hanging art.
"It's what we call 'urban farm,'" Jubran said of First Watch's look. "Rustic woods, reused hardwoods."
Lemon ricotta pancakes, quinoa bowls and fresh-squeezed juices will be some of the other offerings at Chattanooga's First Watch. The chain got its start in 1982 in Pacific Grove, Calif. It has the slogan, "Yeah, it's fresh," and it promises that everything is made to order.
Capstone Concepts already operates two First Watch restaurants in Knoxville, and Jubran reeled off some of the well-liked menu items there.
"The avocado toast is very popular, the chickichanga is very popular, and from an indulgent perspective, the Floridian French toast and the lemon ricotta pancakes are certainly up there. They're delicious," Jubran said.
Along with training employees during the upcoming week, First Watch will have a pre-opening event on Thursday from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. and will donate all the proceeds to the building fund for Children's Hospital at Erlanger. A $10 donation is suggested.
"It gives us a chance to practice on real people," Jubran said.
Capstone Concepts owns two Mr. Gatti's Pizza restaurants and another The Egg & I along with its three First Watch restaurants. It plans to open more First Watch restaurants here, Jubran said.
"We're looking to put two or three more in the Chattanooga area," he said.
Contact staff writer Tim Omarzu at tomarzu@timesfreepress.com or www.facebook.com/MeetsForBusiness or twitter.com/meetforbusiness or 423-757-6651.