SAN FRANCISCO (KGO) — For nearly two decades, Waterbar has been a steady presence on San Francisco’s waterfront, offering diners a front-row seat to the Bay Bridge, the tides of the Embarcadero, and a dining experience rooted in the city it calls home.
The restaurant’s longevity is no accident. It’s the result of a deliberate commitment to San Francisco, its people, and its ecosystem.
“We’ve been here now coming up on 18 years, Water Bar and Epic Steak. It’s a commitment to San Francisco,” says managing partner Pete Sittnick. That commitment is felt not just in the dining room, but behind the scenes as well. “We employ about 250 people, so that is a commitment, to being able to live and survive and thrive in the city.”
For Sittnick, success ultimately comes down to the guest experience. “Probably for us, the most satisfaction we get is when people have a big smile on their face, whether it’s because they’re enjoying an oyster or enjoying a whole Dorade that comes off the grill or looking at the Bay Bridge and the water outside.”
Seafood and oysters in particular are central to Waterbar’s identity. Director of purchasing Eric Hyman notes the sheer scale of what flows through the kitchen. “Over the course of the past 17 years, we’ve served somewhere in a neighborhood of nine million oysters.”
Beyond the plate, oysters represent something bigger. “Oysters are a wonderful little animal because they actually they clean the water and they make all other creatures in a given body of water thrive,” Hyman says.
Waterbar’s relationship with the environment extends into philanthropy. “We give a nickel from every oyster that we sell at Waterbar back to a cause that our chefs and managers as a group feel very passionate about,” Sittnick explains.
Those efforts have supported a range of organizations, from the Watershed Project to the Marine Mammal Center, Make-A-Wish, and Edible Schoolyard.
According to the restaurant, Waterbar has raised almost half a million dollars and counting for several causes, continuing to find new ways to give back to San Francisco.
Inside the restaurant, the experience is intentionally flexible. “It’s a seafood bistro, so you can kind of do whatever you like,” says general manager Rich Troiani. “(Have) happy hour oysters each day of the week, or you can come in and have a five-course meal and live it up.” However guests choose to enjoy it, the goal remains the same.
As Sittnick puts it, “We want to do more than just serve great food. We want feel like we’re a part of San Francisco and that we’re helping others to be able to enjoy the city.”
Learn more about Waterbar here.
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