San Francisco businesses win big Saturday despite canceled Blue Angels air show

SAN FRANCISCO – The annual Fleet Week attracted tens of thousands of people to San Francisco to watch the free air show.

Much of the flight program went on as scheduled. But the last portion and the most popular part of the show was canceled due to weather conditions. The Blue Angels did a preliminary flight after 3 p.m. Saturday and determined they could not perform safely due to the cloud covers and fog.

Nonetheless, it was still a big win for many businesses near the waterfront.

“This is probably the busiest day of the year on Chestnut Street,” said Jeff Rankin, general manager of Cultivar in the Marina.  “We’re seeing an increase in reservations, increase in spending, and decrease in parking, without a doubt.”

Parking was tough and traffic was nuts. Cars moved slowly on streets in the Marina District, near Fisherman’s Wharf, Pier 39, and on The Embarcadero.

Rankin said they stocked up and staffed up for the influx of customers. He and his staff even created a special Fleet Week menu.

“We put an emphasis on quick and easy food out in this specific area. So we created what’s called the Flight Deck menu, obviously a play on words with Fleet Week, where we offer our most popular wines to go with the weather, which is going to be Sauvignon Blanc and Rosé today,” Rankin said.

“This one weekend alone can make our month easily depending on people coming in and how many people come to shop,” said Dennis Schnug, store manager at Roark clothing store on Chestnut Street. 

Many businesses said that’s two strong weeks in a row. The heat wave last week boosted their sales and now Fleet Week.

“It’s extra income for everybody, it’s extra sales for everybody. It’s American, it’s just fun. To have these jets rip over your head during the day is an incredible feeling,” Schnug said.

The general manager at Ghirardelli Square’s Palette Tea House said they served about 15 percent more customers than a typical week.

“The staff is excited because they know they’ll get more hours, [more] income, [and more] tips,” said Dennis Leung of Palette Tea House.

Many spectators said even without the Blue Angels on Saturday, the air show was worth the trip. One group of friends with Darryl de los Angeles came up from Southern California to celebrate his birthday.

“It’s just wow, just wow from me. And I want to thank the Navy and the Marine Corp for sponsoring my birthday. Thank you so much for giving me a show,” joked de los Angeles, who was celebrating his 38th birthday.

Rankin said this kind of event helps them emerge from the pandemic and hopefully helps businesses soar to new heights.

“It’s a business dream: increased foot traffic, increased spending, more exposure for restaurants and small stores,” Rankin said.

There’s one more day of the free air show on Sunday. The Blue Angels will perform if the weather cooperates. The best way to come out to watch it is ride-share or public transit.

Da Lin

Da Lin is an award-winning journalist at KPIX 5 News. He joined KPIX 5 in 2012, but has been reporting the news in the Bay Area since 2007. Da grew up in Oakland, and before his return to the Bay Area, he spent five years covering the news at three other television stations in Texas, Southern and Central California. He also spent five years reporting at KRON 4.