Pent-up demand after a two-month delay brought hundreds of people to queue up for the first day of San Francisco’s commercial crab season.
So, Melo Tabuldo figured, what’s waiting a few hours more for a chance to buy Dungeness caught right off the city’s coast?
Sunday marked the San Francisco resident’s third year buying a fresh haul right off the boat — but his first time showing up around 9 a.m. to endure an around-the-block line on opening day.
“It was a longer wait than expected, but totally worth it,” he said after finally making his way to a crabbing boat with his dog, a pit bull mix named Ocean, just after 11 a.m.
Like many customers who trekked down to Fisherman’s Wharf for the much-anticipated kickoff, he knew the crabbers by name.
He called Matt Juanes — who was slinging crabs from his boat Plumeria docked at a brand-new ramp-accessible float off Al Scoma Way — “a really great captain.”
“It feels like a joy to be able to support the industry,” Tabuldo said.
He bought a crab for each person in his family of three, and said he planned to steam or boil it when he got home.
“I’m going to throw a beer in there, and maybe have enough for crab cakes the next day,” Tabuldo said. “But we’ll see.”
Migrating whales pushed the season to a late start, depriving people of a chance to feast on local Dungeness for the holidays. But on the bright side, Amanda Bowman-Carr noted, it couldn’t have been a more beautiful morning to stand in line.
The clear-blue skies, upbeat vibe, and plethora of adorable children and dogs made the protracted wait feel like less of a slog.
“Being here on the opening day is fun,” Bowman-Carr said. “There’s good energy.”
“It’s like your version version of baseball opening day,” her husband, Dan, told her with a laugh.
An East Coaster by birth, Bowman-Carr said she grew up eating blue crab. But years in San Francisco have long since made her “a Dungeness convert.” She even has the tattoo to prove it: a likeness of the red crustacean against a wave-patterned blue circle on her left forearm.
Peter and Conrad Dang-Gabriel were all smiles after bagging up their haul — their first-ever straight from the source.
“We’ve been in the Bay Area for quite some time now, and we do love crab,” Conrad said, “but we’ve never had a chance to have it this fresh before.”
The couple bought two hefty crabs, which they want to prepare in “an Asian style, Vietnamese style.”
San Francisco has permitted crabbers since 2021 to sell their catch directly from their vessels in the inner and outer lagoons of Fisherman’s Wharf. Participating fishers promote their wares on social media and a mobile app called FishLine — which has boosted their name recognition.
“It’s not unlike people finding a restaurant they really like, or a vendor at a farmers market they really like,” Port of San Francisco spokesperson Eric Young told The Standard. “People find that they like the quality of the crab that these crabbers are bring in, so they get to know who’s who.”
Traditionally, commercial fishers used stern-tie berths with ladders to sell, which made it harder for customers to access. The new ramp-accessible dock, and growing publicity from the city’s promotion, has been a boon for fishers who lost months of wages from the season’s late start.
“This season is more important to fishermen and their families than people realize, especially after the delays,” Juanes, Plumeria’s owner and a member of the Local Crab Boat Owners Association, said in a news release leading up to opening day. “Selling directly to the public has been a game-changer. It helps us make a living and connect with our community.”
