As setup begins for the first NBA All-Star game in the San Francisco Bay Area in 25 years, it’s all-hands on deck for businesses in Thrive City, the plaza adjacent to the Chase Center.
Eddie Gobbo, co-founder and brewmaster at Harmonic Brewing, told Gazetteer SF the brew pub is staffing up and stocking up ahead of next week’s festivities. Gobbo said he’s not exactly sure what to expect, but given its prime location in Thrive City, Gobbo bets there will be bigger crowds than what they’re used to.
“The way I’ve been describing it is we’re expecting it to be bonkers around here,” Gobbo said.
All-Star game festivities begin in earnest next Friday with the Chase Center playing host to the Rising Stars competition. That same night, and just a short walk away at Pier 48, musical artists Zedd and Flo Rida are kicking off the All-Star concert series. As Gazetteer previously reported, city officials see the All-Star game as an opportunity for San Francisco to ditch the “doom loop” narrative.
Gobbo agrees.
“It’s huge for us,” Gobbo said of All-Star weekend coming to San Francisco Feb. 14-16. “I think any bit helps. Being a small business, and having many friends who have small businesses, it’s been a really, really tough few years in the Bay Area. So these events really help us revenue wise, but they also help spark a kind of idea that the city is coming back, and having more events and doing more stuff.”
Harmonic Brewing has been in Thrive City since May 2021, and the plaza has changed a lot since then, Gobbo said. New businesses like Senor Sisig and Che Fico Pizzeria have moved in, and the Bayfront Park opened up across the street in October.
The brew pub’s business is still quite dependent on activity at the Chase Center, be that Warriors games, concerts or, soon, the NBA All-Star game, Gobbo said. But business on non-event days has been better in the past year.
“I think it’s really a tipping point where we have enough businesses here on the plaza to attract people to come in and do a number of things,” he said. “Now they can go to the park, come have a slice of pizza, have a beer, grab a cupcake, and make it a whole experience, versus just coming to an event here.”
When I visited Thrive City Thursday around noon to snap some pictures, it wasn’t popping like it can be before a Warriors game, but there were certainly customers sitting inside Gotts Roadside, Señor Sisig and Cupcakin’. And now that I think about it, I pretty much did what Gobbo said people do. I grabbed a burrito at Señor Sisig, covered my eyes as I walked past the Warriors Shop so as not to blow any more money on swag, and then picked up some cupcakes at Cupcakin.’ My next stop: Che Fico Pizzeria, though, just for the pic.
Given all the attention and focus on the Chase Center and Thrive City heading into the All-Star game festivities, Chase Center general manager Donna Daniels said in an email to Gazetteer that the organization has “thought a lot about how our retailers can be involved in different ways, and how we can amplify their initiatives and stories.”
Part of that meant helping ensure new retailers like Splash at Thrive City, Kayah by Burma Love, and Che Fico Pizzeria opened in time, she said. Splash officially opens on Friday, while the other two opened last fall.
Matt Brewer, co-owner of Che Fico Pizzeria, told Gazetteer he’s especially excited about next Thursday night’s All-Star weekend tip-off party and its city-sanctioned entertainment zone, where people can buy and drink booze outside. The event will feature the Warriors-Rockets game on the big screen outside the arena, a live performance from Bay Area rapper P-Lo, and an immersive light show.
“This is really the first time we’ve seen an entertainment zone connected with a game-type atmosphere,” Brewer said. “The first one was the tree lighting ceremony, which was a little tame.”
Since opening in October, the Che Fico Pizzeria team has gotten really good at making a lot of pizzas and quickly, especially during game time, Brewer said. But he sees the entertainment zone ahead of the All-Star game as an opportunity to showcase their cocktails and engage with the community.
“We’re expecting it to be similar to a very busy game day with a little bit longer service,” Brewer said. “But, you know, it is different than a normal Warriors game, so our goal is to be prepared for anything and everything.”
Part of being prepared means working with the Warriors to determine how to best fulfill delivery orders amid road closures. Brewer said the franchise has been good about keeping all the Thrive City businesses informed about what to expect.
“We’re just excited and I think that more people will see that Thrive City is really coming alive,” Brewer said.
He said he’s also looking forward to showing off what he feels like is a very San Francisco-style pizza with its naturally fermented, sourdough crust.
“We’re going to try to serve as much pizza as we possibly can, Brewer said. “That’s our goal. Sling as many pies as humanly possible.”
