The Barstool Fund - Sardine Can
Up next: Sardine Can (Vallejo, CA)
Every city has that one can’t-miss restaurant — and for over three decades the Sardine Can has made dining at the historic Vallejo Waterfront a tradition for locals, out-of-towners, regulars and first-timers.
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First off I am a huge fan of everything you guys do. Keep it up!
I am reaching out in hopes you would consider my parents restaurant in the Barstools sports fund for small business. Like most businesses they have been hit hard with Covid and are barely staying afloat with all the rules/regulations California is making us follow. Below is their story and we hope you consider us for the fund.
My parents were born and raised in Vallejo. They had kids at the very young age of 16 and started life with everything against them. My grandparents hated each other because of the circumstance, forbidding them to be together. Somehow they pulled through their teenage years and continued to have two more kids. My dad worked as a carpenter and my mom worked as a waitress. Growing up I never saw my parents, they worked 6-7 days a week consistently. If you know anything about Vallejo, you know it's a poor town with a high crime rate. There were many opportunities for their paths to stray the wrong way. However, with a determination to give their kids a better life, again they pulled through the struggle and made it through.
About 15 years ago my mom made local headlines by saving every dollar she made in tips and purchasing the restaurant she worked at. The restaurant is a local favorite located in Vallejo California, called The Sardine Can. It's a small seafood restaurant overlooking the Mare Island bay onto San Francisco. They've received shout outs from hometown celebrities such as E-40 and CC Sabathia for their clam chowder and Fish N' Chips.
My parents are deserving of a grant, not because of their past, but because of what they did after acquiring the business. They were dirt poor and came from nothing. One hundred feet to the left of the Sardine Can you can catch a ferry to one of the wealthiest cities in America, one hundred feet to the right and you can find yourself in one of the most dangerous neighborhoods in America, the Crest. My parents always said their employees are what makes the restaurant shine. When the restaurant was flourishing, my parents were know for taking the entire staff on a week long vacation every year. Most of the staff didn't have much and did not get a chance to see the world. My parents wanted to share their success and allow the people that helped them succeed enjoy life. They have done their best the past year to stay open and keep the paychecks flowing, but time is running out. At the moment we aren't allowed indoor dining and the bay area is too cold/raining these months to eat outside.
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About a year and a half ago my dad had a brain aneurism in the middle of the night. He spent about a month in the hospital, and was forced to retire early from being a carpenter due to lost eyesight from the incident. At first it seemed like the world was ending because of the uncertainty surrounding my dads health. Until a random weekday I was able to stop by for lunch. I walked up the ramp to the restaurant and could hear my dad in the back. He had music going and he and my mom were cutting shrimp for the incoming lunch rush. I left in tears because of how happy I saw they were.
I'm sure you guys probably get hundreds if not thousands of these a day, and I know if we don't receive the grant it will go to another deserving small business. But if you do decide to choose us, just know it will be helping out an entire community and a very grateful family.
Thanks,
Tony Baxley