This week we hit up First Watch in Naperville - Rte 59 location. Remember that each week, the person selecting the restaurant prepares a conversation-starter question. This week's question was to name something you do that makes you truly happy. How interesting that we often need a minute to think about it - yet we can rattle off our pet peeves in a microsecond. I wonder how we could flip that around? 🤔 

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QUICK STATS

Overall Rating:  ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ [5/5]

Price Range: $$

Best For: folks seeking a consistent, high-end experience; bacon enthusiasts 

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BEHIND OUR RATINGS

Food Quality: ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ [5/5]  

New SSBC rule: if a restaurant makes a dish so stellar that we are literally counting the days til we return, it’s got to be an automatic 5/5 for food. I’m referring to the million dollar bacon. Talk about things that make us truly happy: all your troubles will melt away when you taste this chewy, peppery, sweet delight of a dish. Sorry I didn’t get a pic. We inhaled it too fast.

And while the bacon carried the day, the entire menu was strong. The fresh kale tonic is worth an honorable mention if juice is your jam. Plus the blueberry jam, if jam’s your jam.

Coffee was breakfasty and smooth. Mixed reviews on how strong it was (Court thought it was stronger than Kay did).

Service: ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ [5/5]

Three cheers for Shelley!  We were debating what to order for a bit, and she was the perfect degree of available without hovering. They leave the coffee pot here (which we like) but it isn’t that large and you can’t see when it runs out. D’oh! Regardless, no complaints.

Atmosphere: ⭐⭐⭐⭐ [4/5]

Typical First Watch vibe: clean, bright, modern farmhouse decor.

Noise Level: ⭐⭐⭐ [3/5]

Definitely gets loud given it’s all open and there’s really nothing to absorb sound. Fortunately we were safe in our booth. Peak times are almost certainly loud tho.

Value for Money: ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ [5/5]

Portions weren’t outlandish; it’s the quality that differentiates them and they’re worth every penny.

Wait Time: ⭐⭐⭐ [3/5]

We came early because we knew there would be a crowd at the typical Sunday AM slot (there was). They gently check in, offer to-go cups to keep things moving when things get hopping so they know how to keep things moving.

Kid-Friendly: ⭐⭐⭐⭐ [4/5]

Sorry, we’ve gotta detract a star for no chicken fingers and fries. I know they have a “food ethos” and that’s great and all but we have an ethos too which is we want fries.

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WHAT WE ORDERED

Court went with the cinnamon chip pancakes. Have you ever had a cinnamon chip before? We hadn’t either. You know how they have chocolate chips, butterscotch chips, etc? Well apparently chips now come in cinnamon and here at the SSBC we couldn’t be more pleased. Definitely something to put on (and check off) your breakfast bucket list. They came with eggs and bacon - regular bacon mind you, not million dollar bacon, those are two different things but we found the working class bacon pretty good in its own right. 

Kay ordered the steel cut oatmeal with fruit and she had zero regrets. It came with strawberries, bananas and pecans and she swapped the accompanying muffin for a side of fruit. As steel cut oats go (her favorite), these were among the tastiest she’s had in some time. She also ordered million dollar bacon for the table. We simply cannot say enough about the million dollar bacon. I can’t stop thinking about it, and I’m only half-kidding about that. 

As for me (Bridget), I went with the Tri Fecta (over medium eggs, blueberry pancake, fruit). Eggs were just right and btw I love when they garnish eggs. I ate them with my pinky up cause I felt so fancy. Fruit was real, fresh, and ripe - y’all know I despise afterthought fruit. The multigrain blueberry pancake was a little on the heavier side, with those big beautiful blueberries baked into the batter. I know First Watch is big on their juice drinks so I enjoyed the kale tonic (kale, apple, cucumber, lemon) with the immunity shot. It was crisp, refreshing, and absolutely delightful. 

Sunny was disappointed they didn’t have chicken fingers and fries on the kids menu. That said, he did enjoy his bacon and eggs, the latter being prepared to his specification (scrambled dry).

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THE BOTTOM LINE

Our Overall Rating: ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ [5/5]

What Made Us Smile: A fleet of delicious dishes, led by the million dollar bacon!

What Could Be Better: See my above chicken fingers and fries soapbox speech.

Will the SSBC Be Back? It is decidedly so. 

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Well, that's a wrap from your SSBC! Thanks for reading and please endeavor to be as gracious a guest as you expect of your establishment. Mind your manners, tip well, and if you linger during peak times (as we sometimes do), order lots and tip even better.

If you'd like to recommend a place for us to visit, drop us a line on our contact page.

Happy breakfasting!