Crabonanza!

There are few things that make me happier than fresh shellfish. Oysters, lobster, mussels...and crab. It was Fall 2007 when I first learned of "Crabonanza:" a hungry group of San Franciscans braving the normally pooh-poohed tourist trap of Fisherman's Wharf to enjoy the launch of Dungeness crab season. The Sunday after Thanksgiving is the annual date, and we get an early start of 9 or 10am. I was first shocked at the idea of waking up at 830am on a Sunday to go eat crab and drink beer in the cold (Sierra Nevada is the official drink of Crabonanza). But once you get there and enjoy the morning serenity, the shivering friends bouncing around in anticipation of the first crab, and the prospect of spending the rest of your day in a fuzzy crabby sated haze, it all kind of makes sense.

The action takes place at No. 9 Fisherman's Grotto.  It was a stunning morning - clearly God loves Crabonanza too.

Then we stand around on the sidewalk waiting for our crab to be freshly cooked and cracked.  Watching those guys crack the crab is pretty exciting too, sorry I don't have pics of that.

We came prepared - white napkins which served as a table cloth for the trash can, butter, and sourdough bread!

So crab and beer at 9am does kind of make you feel like this...

Actually we went to Musee Mechanique afterward, as it is right next to No. 9 Fishermen's Grotto.  I probably spent about 10 bucks on getting my fortune read and looking at all the creepy old precursors to video games.  The other post-crab tradition is going to Buena Vista for Irish Coffees.  I learned the hard way though that Irish Coffee just makes me feel weird, so I didn't indulge this year.  Since I also had an audition that afternoon, I felt that 2 beers for breakfast was enough booze for that day.  Note to self: don't schedule auditions after Crabonanza...