Crab boil, anyone?
After weeks of impatient waiting, San Franciscans will finally be able to get their hands on our preeminent local delicacy: fresh-off-the-boat Dungeness crab. Direct-to-the-public sales of crab will start Sunday at 6 a.m., the Port of San Francisco says.
This is the fourth year that crabbers are selling their catches directly to customers at Fisherman’s Wharf. San Francisco-based captain Shawn Chen Flading said three boats will be at the Pier 47 sales dock Sunday. Customers can expect to pay $11 per pound; Flading estimates that each crab will cost between $20 and $25.
The debut of off-the-boat sales — which last year drew hundreds of people who waited up to four hours — comes after several delays. Though the California Department of Fish and Wildlife initially announced that commercial season would begin Jan. 5, unsafe weather kept boats from heading out.
Even once the weather cleared Tuesday, captains, including Flading, went on strike while they negotiated prices with wholesale buyers. “We need a price before we go and set our gear and lose our leverage,” Flading said Tuesday. “We are going to hold firm until that is achieved.”
Amanda Bowman-Carr and husband Dan Carr wait to buy on opening day in 2025. | Source: Jennifer Wadsworth/The Standard
The Plumeria, a crabbing boat, docks at Fisherman’s Wharf. | Source: Jennifer Wadsworth/The Standard
The price customers pay when buying directly from fishers is dictated by the wholesale price, Flading said. Buyers at the pier will see slightly higher prices than at the supermarket — the trade-off for getting live crabs that were caught the day or night before. Some boats accept credit cards or Venmo, but cash is the safest bet.
In addition to crab sales, the Fisherman’s Wharf Community Benefit District and the port will launch a pop-up fish market Saturday. Open from 8 a.m. to 2 p.m. at 101 Al Scoma Way, the market will sell locally caught seafood, including precut and prepackaged black cod, rockfish, and halibut. It will be open every Saturday for three months, and offerings will change from week to week.
In the wake of last year’s turnout for the first day of off-the-boat sales, the local fishing community has made efforts to be more organized and cut down on wait times, Flading said. Still, anyone planning to buy live crabs should expect to wait and come prepared with a hard-sided container, such as a cooler or bucket. Though some boats provide plastic bags, they don’t always stand up to determined crabs’ claws.
Updates on when boats will be docked and selling at Fisherman’s Wharf can be found on Facebook (opens in new tab).