July 19, 2010

Ill admit it, I was a little worried about the deal I got at Hotel Serrano for the week, it just seemed to good to be true. I was a little more worried when I called the Kimpton reservation line to see if they would price match the Priceline rate so I could book directly through the hotel. They informed me they couldn't because the hotel was sold out and only Priceline appeared to have rooms left.

Anyway, worst case scenario, I figured I could also find a place last minute if they "lost" my reservation or said it "was not valid." I walked in the lobby to check in. The desk staff looks up my reservation and makes a face, confirms my name and makes another face. Mentally I am already prepared for them telling me bad news. Instead she asks me if it would be "OK" to have them put me up in a different hotel for the evening on Union Square. She says the hotel will pay for transportation and for the inconvenience. I could really care less, since I am by myself, so I agree. She then fills out some paperwork and lets me know that once the cab drops me off at the hotel just provide them with the letter and my room for the night will be taken care of. I am a little confused, but it turns out, the hotel paid for my cab plus tip, and paid for the room for the night, plus they put me in the Sir Francis Drake on Union Square (Another Kimpton Property).

 

The Sir Francis is definitely "Historic" in terms of the lobby and building in general. Everything is a little old, but really grand. I was given a smaller room on the 17th Floor right next to the elevator. Although I usually don't like those rooms because of the noise, once the door was shut, I couldn't hear a thing. The room has two large windows with a view of Union Square. It isn't the best view, but not bad in the least. The room is definitely small, I would say it is equivalent to a standard room in Europe, although San Francisco isn't really know for large accommodations either. I would say it is sufficient for a couple, although they would ave to enjoy sleeping in a queen size bed.

For dinner I decided to try a place called the Urban Tavern. I think it is attached to the Hilton, but I came through the front door. It looked like there was another door near the back and I saw people entering from that area as well. The place seemed trendy overall and had an interesting looking bar. I ordered off the Prixe Fixe menu ($34.95)which consisted of the daily soup or salad, fish of the day or entree of the day and a strawberry shortcake desert. I chose the salad and the entree of the day (Berkshire Pork Chop). To start off I had a pint of the Anderson Valley 'Barney Flats' Oatmeal Stout ($6) which was one of the better beers I have had in a while. It was dark, but not heavy and lacked that chocolate/coffee taste of a standard dark beer. The salad was average, but tasty. I ordered the pork chop medium well and it was definitely the highlight. It had a nice sugary glaze and was finished with rock salt. It came with peas (so-so) and cheddar grits (very good). The strawberry shortcake came in a mason jar, I would also call it average, although it had shaved peppermint white chocolate on top which mixed it up a bit. Downside was they gave out some type of mini spoon to eat the desert which barely made it half way down the jar. Overall the bill came to $51, including tip. For a single person, a little pricey, although I did get three courses. If you went in for just an entree or an appetizer I would say the bill would be between $20-$30 without tip.

Side Note: If you are interested in bringing your own wine or drinking cheap. There is no corkage fee on Monday and bottles of wine are half price on Tuesday. This also seemed to bring in the short skirt/extremely high heel girl crowd along with their boyfriends in patterned shirts with weird stitching. I would say it was pretty equal between that crowd and older businessmen eating by themselves. So, it appeared to appeal to all types and ages.

The rest of the week awaits...