[1] Cioppino is traditionally made from the catch of the day, which in San Francisco is typically a combination of dungeness crab, clams, shrimp, scallops, squid, mussels and fish, all sourced from the Pacific.

Cioppino was developed in the late 1800s by Italian immigrants and Spaniards and some Portuguese who fished off Meiggs Wharf and lived in the North Beach neighborhood of San Francisco, many from the port city of Genoa.

The name is also said to derive from ciuppin (also spelled ciupin) which is the name of a classic soup from the Italian region Liguria, similar in flavor to cioppino but with less tomato and using Mediterranean seafood cooked to the point that it falls apart.

[4] The dish also shares its origin with other regional Italian variations of seafood stew similar to cioppin, including cacciucco from Tuscany, brodetto di pesce from Abruzzo and others.

Depending on the restaurant, it may be accompanied by a bib to prevent food stains on clothing, a damp napkin and a second bowl for the shells.