Tourists Replace Fish At Fisherman’s Wharf

Originally called Meigg’s Wharf, the now bustling strip of waterfront got its current name from the generations of Chinese fisherman who, beginning during the Gold Rush, trolled the waters just off shore for shrimp, oysters, and salmon. Italian fishermen followed, bringing in crab and other Pacific Ocean delicacies.

Just to the west of the wharf is Hyde Street Pier, home of historic ships such as the Alama, Balcutha, C.A. Thayer, and the Eppleton Hall, all maintained by the National Park Service. Hyde Street Pier, along with the Municipal Pier, encloses Aquatic Park, which includes the National Maritime Museum. Aquatic Park is next to Victorian Park, which includes a beach area popular with picknickers.

Just to the east of the wharf is Pier 45, home of the U.S.S. Pampanito, a battle-scarred World War II fleet submarine that has proved popular with tourists. For a relatively low admission charge ($7 adults, $4 children, $5 for those over 62), you are welcome to crawl around the completely restored vessel while listening to an audio tour.

For more than 30 years, the wharf has been home to Ripley’s Believe It or Not! Museum, attracting curious visitors looking for the “extraordinary world of improbabilities.” Admission is $9.95 for adults, $6.95 for children, and $7.50 for those over 60.

Next door to Ripley’s is the Wax Museum, modeled in the fine tradition of London’s Madame Tussaud’s. Completely remolded in 1999, the complex now includes a Rainforest Café—complete with walk-through aquariums. There are nearly 300 figures, including the likenesses of Michael Jackson, Marilyn Monroe, John Wayne, the senior President Bush, and Fidel Castro. The museum also includes a “Chamber of Horrors.” Admission is $12.95 for adults, $6.95 for children, and $10.55 for those 62 and older.

While the streets around Fisherman’s Wharf are home to numerous restaurants—some inexpensive, some deliciously over-priced—the wharf is the home of two San Francisco originals: Ghirardelli chocolate and Boudin sourdough French bread.

Domingo Ghirardelli arrived in San Francisco from Italy in 1849, in the midst of the Gold Rush. His first endeavor—the Europa Hotel—was lost in the great fire of 1851. Soon after the fire, Domingo’s wife joined him in San Francisco and “Mrs. Ghirardelli & Company” was soon born as Domingo returned to the confection trade he had learned as a youth in Italy. Although Domingo had opened up several stores in the years that followed, the one that cemented his fame in the chocolate business was opened on Jackson Street in 1856. The large, old factory is still there, today used as an antique shop.

The Jackson Square store soon became too small for Domingo’s growing business, so he and his sons purchased an entire block at the end of North Point Street, across the street from what would become Victorian Park. Over the next 11 years, Ghirardelli Square took shape and provided the factory, warehouse, and storefront space to serve a chocolate empire.

Today, the space has been converted into a 10-level mall with some 50-plus stores and 11 restaurants. While Ghirardelli maintains a store in the square to this day, its factory moved to much lower rent quarters in the East Bay many years ago.

The same year that Domingo arrived in San Francisco, another immigrant began a tradition that would forever be associated with Fisherman’s Wharf and the City by the Bay: sourdough bread. Isidore Boudin first began baking his Original San Francisco French Bread in 1849, and the company claims to be the oldest continuously operating business in the city.

The secret to the bread? A literal “mother dough”—a batch of sourdough starter that has supplied the beginning of every loaf of Boudin bread baked for over 150 years. Every loaf contains only unbleached flour, purified water, salt, and a small amount of the “mother dough.” No other sourdough tastes the same!

Now operating 34 bakeries and cafés in California, and recently having expanded to the Chicago area, Boudin sells more than just bread. The cafés are renowned for their sandwiches and an absolute San Francisco classic—a Boudin Sourdough bread bowl, filled with Boudin’s own special-recipe clam chowder.

While the Boudins followed the Ghirardelli’s lead in moving their bakery to less-expensive real estate, a Boudin Café remains on Beach Street in the first floor corner of Ghirardelli Square.