The Grotto and Tarantino’s, both located at Fisherman’s Wharf, are being evicted.
May A. via Yelp
The Port of San Francisco is evicting two longtime Fisherman’s Wharf restaurants: the Grotto and Tarantino’s, as first reported by the San Francisco Business Times. The two restaurants, which are both owned by Chris Henry, owe a combined total of $1.4 million in back rent, a Port of San Francisco representative told SFGATE.
“The Port is laser focused on economic recovery and creating a vibrant waterfront,” read a statement from Port of San Francisco representative Boris Delepine. “We’ve engaged and worked hard to develop a reopening plan with Mr. Henry. Unfortunately, those plans were unachievable given the $1.4 million in back rent owed, however, we remain open and willing to explore short and long term strategies to keep both restaurants open and active.”
The Grotto, located at 2847 Taylor St., first opened in 1935. Tarantino’s, located at 206 Jefferson St, first opened in 1946. Henry also owns San Francisco’s Tommy’s Joynt and Sausalito’s Barrel House Tavern. Henry did not respond to SFGATE’s request for comment in time for publication.
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On Sept. 13, both the Grotto and Tarantino’s were served three-day notices to pay rent or vacate the premises, according to court documents. On Sept. 26, the Port of San Francisco filed unlawful detainer notices to the San Francisco Superior Court. According to the lawsuits, the Grotto owes about $332,642 in rent and Tarantino’s owes about $147,436 in rent dating back to October 2022.
The higher number of $1.4 million in unpaid rent shared by the Port includes previous months of unpaid rent as well, according to the San Francisco Chronicle (the Chronicle and SFGATE are both owned by Hearst but have separate newsrooms).
