San Francisco Neighborhoods: Fisherman’s Wharf
There is going to be some debate among people browsing through the San Fran Voice information about San Francisco neighborhoods as to whether or not Fisherman’s Wharf can really be called a “neighborhood”. It’s a place with geographic boundaries for sure, but it’s more of a tourist attraction than a neighborhood, right? In a sense, yes, but in terms of being a part of the city which is unique in and of itself to the area within which it is confined, I think that Fisherman’s Wharf is very much its own neighborhood.
Fisherman’s Wharf itself is the section of the city located at Pier 45. It’s impossible to miss because it has a big sign indicating that you’re there, and if you somehow don’t see that, you can look at the strip of tourist stores, the famous Wharf restaurants like Boudin’s, the clam-chowder-in-a-bread-bowl carts and the throngs of other travelers and know that you’re there. It offers a little bit of sensory overload and really lets you know that you’re traveling – it’s the kind of place that you think of when you think of tourist trap locations like Hollywood, Orlando, Atlantic City, the Vegas Strip and Virginia Beach. It’s the cheesy souvenirs and the over-priced chain restaurants that you won’t find anywhere else in the city. It’s a tourist spot.
But, I do have to say that, as a local who lives not all that far from the area, I make it down there more often than I might think that I would. That’s due in part to the fact that there’s a strange appeal to the tourist activities sometimes. That you can wander within your own city and see seals docked at the pier, buy fish ‘n’ chips from a street vendor and pick up ridiculous “city theme” gifts for Mom has its place. And when the right houseguests come to town and want to splurge on expensive restaurants, the first choice might be North Beach but some of the local restaurants on the water run a close second.
My favorite thing in this neighborhood is Musee Mechanique, also known as the “old arcade game place”. This free-to-enter, quarters-to-play museum of arcade games has a ridiculously odd selection of games which include old reenactments of foreign executions, electric ferris wheels made out of toothpicks by the former prisoners of San Quentin and eighties favorites like Ms. Pacman and Moon Patrol. This place is fun in a not-quite-touristy-but-sorta-kinda way.
Fisherman’s Wharf has nightlife, although it’s not the place that I think of when I’m headed out on the town. There’s a section to the west of the main intersection of the neighborhood which is home to a series of Irish bars where you can get Irish coffees and beer. Many of these have terrific happy hours and live music, so it’s worth wandering through the neighborhood to see what catches your fancy. However, it’s a tourist spot so you pay inflated tourist prices for most of the drinks and food in this neighborhood. Similarly, you could choose to live in one of the homes which make up the small residential portion of this neighborhood, but you’d be paying a lot of money to live in a spot where you’ll regularly be woken early by the sounds of the tour buses passing by. Instead, Fisherman’s Wharf is that neighborhood that you should be happy to visit and then pleased to leave.
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