LAROSA’S FAMILY PIZZERIA DEBUTS, FIRST WATCH EXPANDS IN SUBURBAN LOUISVILLE

  Tradition of Real Italian Family Recipes & Fresh Daytime Cafe Will Create 100 Jobs 

Lexington, KY– November 23, 2021 – It’s official: Kentucky-based development company One Holland announced today it will introduce Louisville’s first LaRosa’s Family Pizzeria and open its 12th First Watch café in Springhurst, a premier suburb of Northeast Louisville, at 10641 Fischer Park Drive. The restaurants will be located at the site of the former O’Charley’s off Westport Road near the Gene Snyder Freeway. 

The total project development cost for both restaurants is nearly $ 3 million.  First Watch is anticipated to open late Summer 2022, followed by the opening of LaRosa’s in the Fall of 2022. “Central Kentucky has rallied around our LaRosa’s pizzerias and we’ve continued to hear from LaRosa’s fans in Louisville how much they wanted their own LaRosa’s.  And First Watch is a family-favorite wherever we go” said Gary Holland, CEO of One Holland. “We truly want to get to know our neighbors in Louisville and become a part of their traditions”, he continued. LaRosa’s and First Watch will announce plans to engage the people of Louisville in the coming months.

One Holland, which owns and operates 8 LaRosa’s pizzerias and 12 First Watch cafes serving primarily Lexington and Louisville, Kentucky, has plans for additional locations in the Louisville area over next several years.

“Gary and his team are incredibly passionate about LaRosa’s and about Kentucky; they share our focus on family and creating a true, neighborhood feel at each of our pizzerias”, said Michael LaRosa, CEO of LaRosa’s, Inc. and son of founder Buddy LaRosa. “We can’t wait to meet our neighbors and share LaRosa’s famous family recipes with Louisville”.

With its rich tradition of giving back to the community, LaRosa’s has formed a relationship with Kentucky Harvest Foundation to support the organization’s ongoing efforts of providing food to over 200,000 children and adults annually in Jefferson, Oldham, Shelby, Clark and Floyd counties.

The 3,773-square-foot LaRosa’s Springhurst pizzeria will include dine-in, pick-up and delivery of its family-recipe pizzas and other Italian favorites with a 96-person capacity dining room and a 44-person covered patio.  The pizzeria will feature a convenient drive-up pick-up window that makes mealtime easy. LaRosa’s will also serve a full menu of beer, wine and mixed drinks.  LaRosa’s is famous for its family recipe pizza. Founder Buddy LaRosa used his Aunt Dena’s pizza recipe when starting his first pizzeria in 1954. Nearly 70 years later, they still use the same recipe. LaRosa’s also offers a full menu of over 40 selections including appetizers, calzones, hoagys, salads and pastas for dine in, pick up or delivery in the neighborhood.

First Watch Springhurst will be 3,908 square feet with a dining room capacity of 124 and a patio capacity of 44. It will offer unique breakfast, brunch and lunch options featuring revolving seasonal menus that have included Braised Short Rib Benedict, Cornbread Carnitas Breakfast Bowl, Smoked Salmon Tzatziki Toast and Lemon Blueberry Quinoa Pancakes in addition to seasonal juices, pressed daily from the highest quality fruits and vegetables. First Watch also offers traditional breakfast, brunch and lunch items like omelets, pancakes, salads and sandwiches. The concept also serves its socially responsible and award-winning Project Sunrise coffee, which supports an independent group of female farmers in Huila, Colombia.

LaRosa’s & First Watch Seeking to Pre-Hire 100 People

            In anticipation of LaRosa’s and First Watch 2022 openings, they are eager to hire and train qualified individuals as far in advance as possible. First Watch will have roles for about 40 full and part-time people, including servers and managers, while LaRosa’s is seeking about 60 people for full and part-time roles such as line cooks, servers, assistant managers and delivery drivers.  Benefits for employment at both LaRosa’s and First Watch include free health, dental and vision benefits, a generous college tuition reimbursement, food discounts and a flexible schedule.  Anyone interested in applying for a role at LaRosa’s or First Watch should text the word HOLLAND to 65795.

About LaRosa’s

LaRosa’s was founded in 1954 on Cincinnati’s West Side by Buddy LaRosa. It is now a $167 million restaurant company with 66 pizzerias serving neighborhoods in Ohio, Kentucky, and Indiana.  To learn more about LaRosa’s, go to www.larosas.com.

About First Watch
First Watch is an award-winning Daytime Dining restaurant concept serving made-to-order breakfast, brunch and lunch using fresh ingredients. First Watch offers traditional favorites, such as pancakes, omelets, sandwiches and salads, alongside specialty items like the Quinoa Power Bowl®, Avocado Toast and the Chickichanga. There are more than 420 First Watch restaurants in 28 states, and the restaurant concept is majority owned by Advent International, one of the world's largest private-equity firms. To learn more about First Watch, visit www.firstwatch.com.

About One Holland

One Holland Corporation was founded by Gary Holland in 2000 and has grown from one restaurant to thirty-six with a primary focus on guest satisfaction through serving quality food, providing hospitable service and building first class facilities that are maintained according to Holland’s high standards. Holland formed Bluegrass FW, LLC in 2012 with operating partner Dillon Adams and has grown from one First Watch Daytime Café to eleven with the opening of the Georgetown, Kentucky restaurant in June. The First Watch commitment to operational excellence coupled with their “You First” mantra, that emphasizes taking care of our employees has driven the restaurant company to the top of the industry. To learn more about OneHolland, go to https://www.oneholland.com.

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