BETHLEHEM TWP., Pa. \u2013 A national restaurant chain known for its made-to-order brunch specialties prepared with fresh, seasonal ingredients will soon have a presence in the Lehigh Valley.<\/p>\n
The first Lehigh Valley location of First Watch, a leading daytime dining concept with more than 620 restaurants in 32 states, is expected to open in the summer at 2102 Emerick Blvd. in Bethlehem Township, Northampton County, according to Mackenzie Garrett, First Watch\u2019s public relations manager.<\/p>\n
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The first Lehigh Valley location of First Watch, a leading daytime dining concept with more than 620 restaurants in 32 states, is coming soon to 2102 Emrick Blvd. in Bethlehem Township, Northampton County. The site was previously home to a Ruby Tuesday restaurant.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Ryan Kneller<\/p>\n
The property was previously home to the last Lehigh Valley location of Ruby Tuesday, a casual, full-service chain known for its “simple fresh American dining,” which closed in January 2025.<\/p>\n
The Bethlehem Township location will total approximately 4,300 square feet and will feature a new outdoor dining patio, Garrett said.<\/p>\n
The restaurant will offer seating for more than 170 guests across its indoor and outdoor dining areas, and there also will be a locally-inspired mural, Garrett said.<\/p>\n
Hours will be 7 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. daily.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe usually start hiring for a new restaurant approximately one month out from opening,\u201d Garrett said.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe Bethlehem [location’s] opening will create approximately 30 new jobs in the community and will operate on a one-shift a day, \u2018No Night Shifts Ever\u2019 approach that enables its teams to enjoy their evenings.\u201d<\/p>\n
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The first Lehigh Valley location of First Watch, a leading daytime dining concept with more than 620 restaurants in 32 states, is coming soon to 2102 Emrick Blvd. in Bethlehem Township, Northampton County. The site was previously home to a Ruby Tuesday restaurant.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Ryan Kneller<\/p>\n
According to Bethlehem Township manager Doug Bruce, First Watch has been issued a demolition permit for the Emrick Boulevard site, but no building permit has been issued yet.<\/p>\n
Interior demolition has been underway in recent weeks.<\/p>\n
First Watch serves made-to-order breakfast, brunch and lunch \u201cusing the freshest ingredients available,\u201d according to a company profile.<\/p>\n
The chain has a \u201cfollow the sun\u201d culinary philosophy, and its chef-driven menu rotates five times a year to feature high-quality flavors at their peak.<\/p>\n
\u201cJust as we greet each morning with the sunrise, we welcome each season into the First Watch menu with ingredients and flavors inspired by the position of the sun,\u201d reads a message on First Watch\u2019s website.<\/p>\n
\u201cThat\u2019s why on our menu you\u2019ll find vibrant, green California-grown asparagus in April, or the most refreshing Florida watermelon in July, or tender, sweet yellow corn from the midwest in August.\u201d<\/p>\n
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First Watch<\/p>\n
First Watch offers classic favorites such as \u201cthe traditional\u201d platter (two cage-free eggs any style with whole-grain artisan toast, seasoned potatoes and choice of bacon, smoked ham, chicken apple sausage patties, turkey or pork sausage links); omelets and frittatas such as a chile chorizo omelet and smoked salmon and roasted vegetable frittata; and \u201cfrom the griddle\u201d options such as Belgian waffles, lemon ricotta pancakes and Floridian French Toast (thick-cut baked challah bread with fresh banana, kiwi, seasonal berries and powdered cinnamon sugar).<\/p>\n
\u201cAll dishes are made to order using fresh ingredients in a kitchen without heat lamps, microwaves or deep fryers,\u201d Garrett said. \u201cFan favorites include avocado toast, lemon ricotta pancakes and million dollar bacon.\u201d<\/p>\n
Guests can also enjoy \u201cegg-sclusives\u201d such as farm stand breakfast tacos, biscuits and turkey sausage gravy with eggs and market hash (two cage-free eggs any style atop seasonal potatoes, house-roasted crimini mushrooms, zucchini, shallots, red peppers, baby spinach, melted mozzarella and herbed goat cheese, served with whole-grain artisan toast); and sandwiches such as roast beef and Havarti, ham and Gruyere melt and Monterrey club (turkey, bacon, avocado, organic mixed greens, tomato, Monterey jack and mayonnaise on sourdough).<\/p>\n
Other menu highlights include power bowls such as pesto chicken quinoa; salads such as chicken avocado chop and sweet honey pecan; and \u201chealthier side\u201d options such as avocado toast and steel-cut oatmeal.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt takes time to uncover the best ingredients, to build relationships with bakers, makers and growers, and to explore the most delicious way to feature these ingredients on our menu,\u201d reads a message on First Watch\u2019s website.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe believe that our attention to detail translates into your oozing egg yolk moment, brunch cheers and a million dollar morning.\u201d<\/p>\n
The restaurant\u2019s latest menu brings back fan-favorite seasonal hits, including blueberry lemon cornbread, chimichurri steak and eggs, strawberry leches French toast and million dollar bacon (four slices of signature hardwood-smoked bacon glazed with brown sugar, black pepper, cayenne and a drizzle of maple syrup).<\/p>\n
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First Watch<\/p>\n
The restaurant also offers fresh juices made with all-natural ingredients such as \u201cMorning Meditation\u201d (orange, lemon, turmeric, organic ginger, agave nectar and beet); and specialty iced coffee such as honey caramel crunch and mint mocha.<\/p>\n
The Bethlehem Township location of First Watch will be the chain\u2019s first Lehigh Valley restaurant.<\/p>\n
Nearby locations operate in Doylestown Township, Bucks County; Montgomery Township, Montgomery County; Lower Providence Township, Montgomery County; and Upper Merion Township, Montgomery County.<\/p>\n
First Watch prioritizes giving back to its local communities, and for every kid\u2019s meal served, First Watch donates a portion to organizations and causes making a positive impact in communities \u2013 raising more than $1.7 million to date.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"BETHLEHEM TWP., Pa. \u2013 A national restaurant chain known for its made-to-order brunch specialties prepared with fresh, seasonal…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":104866,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[10],"tags":[119,121,120,15630,1994,25518,25517,50522,50520,50525,50524,157,10485,13381,50521,434,50523,976,37333],"class_list":["post-104865","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-allentown","tag-allentown","tag-allentown-headlines","tag-allentown-news","tag-bacon","tag-bethlehem-township","tag-breakfast","tag-brunch","tag-doug-bruce","tag-first-watch","tag-french-toast","tag-frittata","tag-lehigh-valley","tag-lehigh-valley-restaurant","tag-lunch","tag-mackenzie-garrett","tag-northampton-county","tag-omelet","tag-restaurant","tag-ruby-tuesday"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/104865","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=104865"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/104865\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/104866"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=104865"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=104865"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=104865"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}