Those huge legacy restaurants like Alioto's are relics from a bygone era. And another crappy t-shirt shop?
By Carl Nolte, Columnist April 19, 2025 - San Francisco Columnist
San Francisco looked almost like its old self at the start of April: the Giants opened with a flurry of wins, the Warriors made the playoffs, the new Sunset Dunes park opened at Ocean Beach, and crowds shopped and strolled at Fisherman’s Wharf.
Crime is down and the streets are cleaner, or so they say. Things are looking up — until you take a closer look. There are still major problems at Fisherman’s Wharf, a key component in the tourism business, which is the city’s largest industry.
The wharf still looks intriguing on a casual Sunday stroll. Small, colorful fishing boats painted white with bright blue and green trim are tied up in the lagoon, seemingly ready to go to sea. There are party boats, fishing boats ready to take casual customers out beyond the Golden Gate. There are tour boats offering cruises on the bay, old-time streetcars, restaurants, snack bars, gift shops, a Ferris wheel and in the distance, Alcatraz and the Golden Gate Bridge.
“This is so great,” said Flicka McGurrin, who has run restaurants on the northern waterfront for over 40 years. “No wonder people come from all over the world to see this.” She took a deep breath. “It’s a shame we don’t take better care of it.”
McGurrin has been concerned about the decline of Fisherman’s Wharf for a long time. She thinks the city has poured its energy into Union Square, downtown and the area around Chase Center and neglected the wharf. “It’s time to do something around here,” she said.
She led a reporter on a walk through the best of the wharf and then away from the handsome little fishing boats to the back docks. The boats back here had clearly not sailed in years. There were rust streaks on the sides, the gear in disarray. One tired vessel flew a ragged and torn American flag, like the banner of a defeated army.
Even the wooden pilings that support the buildings look tired and a bit rotten.
The dock here faced a more discouraging sight — the back ends of several large restaurants, sitting empty on the edge of the lagoon like beached whales. These restaurants had old and famous names: Fishermen’s Grotto, which opened at space No. 9 in 1935. Alioto’s, which began as a fish stand a century ago. Castagnola’s, said to have been the oldest restaurant on the wharf.
There were fond memories: steaming crab pots on the sidewalk along Taylor Street. Real cooks, real crabs. None of that frozen stuff. It was a piece of true San Francisco.
Now those sidewalk corridors are empty and the biggest restaurants are closed. Two are involved in lawsuits with the Port of San Francisco, which owns the wharf. Castagnola’s shut down five years ago after a union dispute.
That strip was “the absolute heart and soul of Fisherman’s Wharf,’’ said Taryn Hoppe, a business executive who is president of the Fisherman’s Wharf Community Benefit District. But she feels that day is over; that part of the wharf needs a new look and new investment.
C’mon San Francisco, Fisherman’s Wharf is long overdue for a makeover
Greg