Published: December, 2003
Now restored to its original grandeur, the beautiful arcade of San Francisco’s beloved Ferry Building now serves as a food lovers’ mecca. The building’s interior marketplace, which houses a rare collection of fine artisan food shops, attracts hungry hoards each day— financial district employees, tourists and buyers for fine San Francisco restaurants.
Extensive renovation was required, however, to reclaim the building’s 1890’s charm. And the efforts of Steve Carlin, Project Manager for developer Wilson Meany Sullivan, were needed to attract just the right mix of merchants to create a compelling marketplace reminiscent of Europe.
Looking Back
From the day the Ferry Building opened in 1898, it was a bustling transportation hub. It was the destination for anyone traveling by train from the East Coast, the East Bay or Marin County. And, as many as 50,000 ferry commuters streamed through the building daily. When the Golden Gate and Bay Bridges opened in the 30’s, however, car travel became the preferred way to commute into San Francisco. The drop in ferry travel left the building practically deserted. In 1955, after years of neglect, the building’s dramatic central nave was divided into offices. Two years later, the newly constructed Embarcadero Freeway dealt the final blow to the Ferry Building; it hid the beautiful façade and severed the former icon from Market Street.
When the 1989 Loma Prieta Earthquake destroyed the freeway and forced its teardown, the renaissance of San Francisco’s northeast waterfront began. The City decided that it was time to restore the aging landmark.
Renovation began in 2001 with the goal of melding the building’s vintage charm with the requirements of a marketplace. First, the offices were removed from the building’s central nave, the 660-foot long, 3-story high hallway that would house the vendors. Workers exposed and restored brick masonry arches, wrought iron trusses and the gabled skylight that stretches the length of the hall. Linoleum flooring was torn up to reveal mosaic tile. Nearly 140,000 tiles were replaced by five workers who devoted almost a year to the task.
The Marketplace
As the renovation work moved forward, Steve Carlin, the Marketplace Manager for developer Wilson Meany Sullivan, was busy recruiting vendors that could meet their strict criteria. "Many businesses were interested in coming in," says Carlin, "but, we went after the ones we wanted—small, family-owned companies that either create unique artisan goods, grow the highest quality organic produce, or operate some of the finest restaurants in the Bay Area."
And they wanted merchants who would offer more than a great place for financial district workers to stop for lunch. They visualized primarily a "working marketplace, where the best restaurants in San Francisco would drive their trucks every morning to stock up on high-quality ingredients, such as Acme’s freshly baked bread, Ciao Bella gelato, Frog Hollow organic pears, Golden Gate meats and Stonehouse olive oils." Eliminating the expense of the middleman and increased convenience for the restaurants would be the results.
Carlin is proud of the way the project has turned out. "It’s a lot of things coming together—the historic building, the bay front location and the extraordinary merchants."
With the Ferry Building Marketplace, Carlin maintains that the Bay Area has finally gotten what it has been hoping for. "The marketplace provides a different shopping experience than supermarkets or even high-end specialty food stores," says Carlin. "A collection of shops each specializing in a certain food is common in Europe, but not in this country."
"The marketplace is an expression of the artisan food community around us. There was a pent up need for that expression among the merchants themselves and on the part of the consumer. Our mantra," says Carlin "was to create a shopping experience so compelling that even if Whole Foods or Andronico’s moved in across the street, business at the marketplace would not be affected."
Expanding into an unproven retail center during a down economy was a risk for the merchants, but they have been doing well, says Carlin. "Everyone I’ve talked to says they’re exceeding their financial expectations."
A stroll through the marketplace, with the bounty of the merchants’ stalls spilling out into the central walkway, confirms that the project management team met its goals. The rows of shops with crates of colorful fruits and vegetables, the racks of fresh bread, the flower stalls and the cafes and delis delight the eye and the nose as well. But of course, to truly appreciate the marketplace you must stop to eat. Buy a sandwich at LuLu Petite or Mastrelli’s Deli or Mistral Rotisserie Provencal, then find yourself a spot with a sweeping view of the Bay.
Described below are just a few favorites:
Recchiuti Confections
Monday through Friday:
11am – 7 pm
Saturday: 8 am – 6 pm
Sunday 11 am – 5 pm
Founded by Michael and Jacky Recchiuti, a husband and wife team, Recchiuti Confections displays their artisan chocolates with the understated elegance of a fine jeweler. In a dull green case with a glass top, small clusters of chocolates sit on creamy-white saucers, which rest on a bed of crushed cocoa beans. Some chocolates are actually carved with facets like gemstones. Using the best beans from around the globe, Michael makes the confections by hand following the traditions of Belgium and France. With flavors ranging from the classic chocolate-caramel to the exotic tarragon-grapefruit, pink peppercorn and rose petal, a single piece can satisfy a true chocolate lover for a day or two.
"Michael is a master of unique flavor combinations," says Dede who works at the shop. "You can’t find chocolates like these anywhere else."
Cowgirl Creamery’s Artisan Cheese Shop
Monday through Friday: 9 am – 6 pm
Saturday: 8 am – 5 pm
Sunday: 10 am – 4 pm
Cheese wheels stacked high on crates and a fresh-creamy-pungent aroma greet visitors to the Cowgirl Creamery. Founded in 1997 by Peggy Smith and Sue Conley, two Bay Area chefs, the creamery features their own cheeses made from organic milk at their Point Reyes facility. Their St Pat cheeses are small rounds wrapped in hand-picked nettles, bathed in white wine and left to age for two-weeks. Red Hawk, a triple cream washed-rind variety, won Best of Show at this year’s American Cheese Society competition. Soft-ripened cheeses, fromage blanc and crème fraiche are all made fresh daily and sold at the shop. Also offered are selections from the best farmstead and artisan cheese makers around the world, such as Jean d’Alos in France and Neals Yards English Farmhouse Cheese.
One customer told us,"A houseguest entertained me for two weeks by bringing me a different cheese from Cowgirl everyday—always a kind he’d never even heard of. It was glorious."
McEvoy Ranch Saturday: 8 am – 6 pm
Tuesday – Wednesday: 10 am – 6 pm Sunday: 10 am – 5 pm
Thursday – Friday: 10 am – 7 pm Closed Mondays
With the finest varieties of Tuscan olives and milling equipment imported straight from Italy, Nan McEvoy began to make olive oil in 1991. More than a decade later, her 550-acre ranch in the Marin County hills boasts 18,000 organically grown olive trees. Under the direction of Italian olive oil guru Maurizio Castelli, it now produces award-winning olive oil. A favorite is the 2001 extra virgin olive oil, a green-gold oil with the aroma of fresh cut grass and a slight peppery note.
Early each fall at McEvoy Ranch, olives are harvested by hand and milled the Italian way. Thick granite wheels crush the olives. Then a Rapanelli mill, the only one of its kind in the US, extracts the olive oil gently with no heat or pressure—so as not to disturb the subtle flavors. The result is an extremely pure grade olive oil perfect for cooking or dipping.
Capay Organic Fruits and Vegetables Sunday – Friday: 10 am – 6 pm
Saturday: 8 am – 6 pm
Capay’s sells the best of Northern California’s organic produce. This fall the shop offers Satsumi Mandarins sliced open for tasting, succulent Heirloom Tomatoes, dark green Swiss Chard with orange-pink stems, and gourds.of every shape and size.
Capay’s 240-acre family farm, is nestled in the Coastal Range almost 100 miles northeast of San Francisco. Founded by Kathleen Barsotti in 1976, it was one of the first organic farms in the region. Kathleen’s four sons now own the farm and operate it using the same safe and sustainable methods.
Hog Island Oyster Company Monday – Saturday
11 am – 7:30 pm
Closed Sunday
Located on Tomales Bay, a National Marine Estuary, Hog Island Oyster Company began harvesting oysters in 1982. Today it grows and sells over 3 million oysters a year. Hog Island received "The Best American Oyster" award from the San Francisco Chronicle and the "Award of Excellence for Animal Husbandry" from the American Institute of Food & Wine.
The single seed method, an expensive and labor-intensive way to grow oysters, is one of the secrets to Hog Island’s exceptional quality. Another is the Tomales Bay location with its shallow water and abundance of plankton. Delicious oyster meat and long-shelf life are the results.
