Ahoy! Rise & Shine!

The Dish: Avocado Toast, Million Dollar Bacon

The Place: First Watch, 12 Phoenix area locations 

Website: www.firstwatch.com

By: Susan L Pricco

“First Watch”, a nautical term referring to the first watch of the day, is a fitting moniker for a breakfast/brunch/lunch place open from 7 a.m. to 2:30 p.m.   It’s not your usual coffee shop diner but a rustic, colorful, casual, comfortable eatery to spend some time with friends over truly good food. There’s something for everyone served by  cheerful, excellent, prompt servers.  Wake up with their comforting Project Sunrise coffee, responsibly sourced from Huila, Colombia, delivered in the pot at your table (or for self-serve when there is a wait for a table).

The menu is hearty from classic to creative, but my pick is the Avocado Toast.  Perfectly seasoned, tangy smashed avocado crowns toasted whole grain bread from crust-to-crust (a must!). It’s served with two cage free eggs cooked to order so that you can top your toast with a sexy, runny yolk if you choose. 

You can get piggy with a side of the thick-sliced hardwood smoked bacon or the signature Million Dollar Bacon, sticky with brown sugar, maple syrup and a serious hit of cayenne and fresh cracked black pepper. Some offerings sound simple, but the freshness, quality and thoughtfulness of ingredients turn simple into sublime. A toasted ham and cheese sandwich made with smoked ham and gruyere is a crave-able staple.  The inspired Elevated Egg Sandwich on a brioche bun, bears little resemblance to its humble fast-food predecessors.  Choose healthy, hearty or indulgent from apple-kale tonic juice to quinoa power bowl, to seasonal specials like truffled mushroom frittata or braised short rib benedict – all will portend the First Watch of a great day.