Tony Bennett, 90, waves while standing with his wife, Susan Crow, after he was presented with a heart-shaped birthday cake outside the Fairmont Hotel on Friday.

SAN FRANCISCO — If ever there was a man to throw a grand birthday bash in San Francisco, it had to be Tony Bennett.

And that is exactly what happened Friday.

After the speeches, the music, and the heaping amount of praise for the legendary crooner were over, hundreds of people watched as the white smoke cleared and an 8-foot tall bronze statue of the singer was unveiled outside the Fairmont Hotel.

“I can’t get over what just happened,” said Bennett, who turned 90 earlier this month. “That’s the most beautiful statue I have ever seen. It will live in my heart forever. Thank you for being so wonderful to me. I’ll never forget this day.”

Bennett looked sharp in a blue suit but said only a few words and didn’t sing, but that was OK with the crowd. They were just happy to see him.

“He’s San Francisco,” said Marty Jewett, standing in the front row with her friend, also a huge Bennett fan. “I think he keeps all the generations within his repertoire. I love his voice and his longevity.”

For as long as anyone can remember, the New Yorker has been giving to the city where he first sang “I Left My Heart in San Francisco” at the Fairmont Hotel in 1961.

And now, the city has paid him back.

San Francisco Mayor Ed Lee declared Aug. 19 Tony Bennett Day.

In addition to the fanfare Friday and a gala dinner on Saturday night, Bennett is getting his own ice cream flavor. Created by the city’s Humphry Slocombe ice cream shop, the flavor “Duet” will feature vanilla ice cream swirled with limoncello sorbet and fennel biscotti to honor Bennett’s Italian heritage.