Axiom Home Page Forums General Discussion The Water Cooler OT - Union Square hotels

So as I mentioned in another thread I will be at JavaOne at the end of June, and I need to book a hotel by the Moscone Center. (So I don't need to be *right* on Union sq...)My top 5 (not in preferential order) after a little research are:

Argent Hotel
Grand Hyatt San Francisco
Hotel Milano
San Francisco Marriott
W San Francisco

I am currently leaning towards the W, it's across the street from the Moscone Center where the conference will be. Anyone have any experience with any of these? Anything I should be aware of?

This is my favorite hotel in SF.

You can even get a goldfish in your room.

My dad stayed at the Argent last year. I'll check with him about what he thought.

My friends stayed here in the Joe Boxer Room. I've seen the Jerry Garcia room too. Pretty cool.

Triton

No crazy rooms for me, I am going with whatever the conference has reserved. My understanding is that those rooms are reasonably nice. I somehow doubt work would spot for me to get a penthouse or anything

W hotels are my favorite hotels. They are just designed so well. I have stayed at the Grand Hyatt Embarcadero before. It is a very cool hotel. It is kind of in a pyramid shape with an atrium in the middle similar to the Luxor in Las Vegas. The rooms are nice and the view of fishermans wharf and the bay is beautiful.

Your choice of hotel should hinge on what you look for in a hotel experience. (Do I sound like a travel agent, or what? )

The W should be fine as it's conveniently located and is a good hotel.

What you should really be asking yourself is "Where should I eat?" That area has some great food. If you're feeling brave and want a unique dining experience, the food at AsiaSF is amazing. (Click the link to see why some bravery is necessary.)

So I made reservations for the W. The where to eat question will be posed closer to the trip. I get a per diem while on the trip and intend to make the most of it I'm not entirely sure what the "gender illusionist" comment is supposed to mean, but it is highly suggestive of "transgender". My general opinion about restaurants is, if the food and beer is good, I don't much care how it gets to my table and long as it's timely and the dishes are clean.

And then there's House of Prime Rib

Or Thirsty Bear (tapas and brewery).

But about AsiaSF, yeah, most of the wait staff are (former) males dressed as women. It's a really fun atmosphere, though, and they all do a dance/lipsync number on the bar once an hour.

In reply to:

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But about AsiaSF, yeah, most of the wait staff are (former) males dressed as women. It's a really fun atmosphere, though, and they all do a dance/lipsync number on the bar once an hour

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OK, thats just a little to 'big-city' for me. point me to a good steak house, and i will be on my way!

although, there is a curiosity factor here, cause thats just not something you see everyday round here..

bigjohn

My personal favorite is Osaka Grill. They have fantastic food at (mostly reasonable prices). When Kobe beef was available in the US they had it there. They now have the (not as good) American version. However, their chateaubriand is amazing and their shrimp fried rice is holy how crack good.
Also, if you have a few hundred to spend you could check out Masas. I went on someone else's dime and it was the best meal I have ever had in my life. The head Chef is Ron Seigal (first American to win on Iron Chef!!) and the man is a culinary genius.
If you like Indian food I HIGHLY recommend Naan N' Curry. I'm not a fan of curry for the most part, but their food is great. If you can handle the heat their Chicken Vindaloo will blow you away (and cause a ring of fire)...
For delicious general 'American' food with great service I would also recommend Postrio.
If you have specific styles or types of food you like let us know.
And I would highly recommend AsiaSF. I've never heard anything but good about it and it sounds like a blast (not been though). Of course take that with a grain of salt. I walk up Polk St to go home at night so seeing trannies is anything but new for me.
There are a LOT of amazing restaurants in SF. Ask away.

jr

Damn, you're making me hungry. And all I brought for lunch was a frozen Trader Joe's lasagna.

on a similar funky-places-to-eat hijacking note, here's a little treasure, though a bit out of the way Hobbit House. It's turned into one of the most popular bars/restaurants in Manila.

Hehe. Masas has a foie gras dish that was and still is the best thing I have ever eaten in my life... Regardless of cruelty to animals or eating gross organs. It was just amazingly perfect.

drool

jr

hey, i like the props to the philippines!

yes, SF has some GREAT restaurants, spanning different tastes. some of my favorites.

North Beach - Michaelangleo's. Great, cheap Italian food right in the middle of Little Italy. They have the big community table in the middle which makes it more friendly. This is MUCH better than the Stinking Rose tourist trap.

Downtown: Slanted Door. Unbelieveable Vietnamese food, done somewhat w/ California flair. Their old place was almost impossible to get into.

Mission District:
Limon. Peruvian tapas. Awesome
Firecracker. Eclectic Chinese
Tokyo Go Go. Interesting sushi, VERY good.

Chinatown: House of Nanking. This is best done w/ a group. Just let the owner/waiter order for you, tell them what you WON'T eat. Great hole in the wall.

cool! I'm gonna have to write all this down - going to be in San Fran and area 07/03-7/11. We're eating at Plumpjack Cafe for my wife's birthday on the 3rd - any suggestions for cool/romantic things to see/do afterward?? Also we're planning to drive north up the coast with friends during the week - no real plans or destinations - suggestions for places to eat/stay would be appreciated. Sorry for tthe hijack ringmir..

cheers,

DL

Not a hijack really, I was going to pose these questions a little closer to my trip is all Given that my hotel and airfare are covered, I'm thinking I'm going to spot for my girlfriend to come along. It looks like I'll be out there June 26th - July 2nd. I may end up asking for bar/restaurant/activity suggestions again before then.

Well, I'll try to offer some info for things to do later, but just so you are prepared june 26th/27th are Gay Pride in SF so the city is going to be very very full. Not counting your reaction to overweight topless hairy women and super buff topless and hairless men...
Me? I'm gonna watch the parade from my home and giggle everytime they don't pixelate breasts or penis' (like a 12yr old!)

jr

ps the nudity will only really occur during the parades not during the touristy about town stuff.

I'm sure (since I won't have to worry about driving at all) that it'll be a great time. It's always more fun to visit a city when they are all revved up about something they like. On the not-driving note, how's the transit system in SF? I'm reasonably transit savvy, so I'm mostly concerned with coverage and signage. Also, are there touristy places that are genuinely interesting? Or are most of them the same kind of hokey touristy things that every city has?

Buses are 'ok'. They are never on time. Just go to the stop and wait for the next one. It might say 7:30, but the bus will be along when it gets there. Muni (street cars or underground) are ok. I would recommend taking cabs. Just try not to get not to get the one that has the bong rolling out from under the seat (no bs) or the one where the guy asks if you know where he can get an 8ball of meth. But to be fair I had a 2 year period where I took a cab once a day (oh i miss the .com expense account) and those are only 2 out of hundreds. Have no fear Most are either quiet or really nice.
As far as the touristy stuff goes. It's hard to say. I have lived here for 8years and not done much of it. Hit the Golden Gate bridge and walk accross. The view is amazing. Fisherman's wharf is the ultimate tourist trap, but interesting and you might get to meet the bush man.
Lombard is pretty if you really want to go you can catch a steetcar to the top.
China town is worth a walk through but also sells a LOT of SF touristy stuff (get your gifts there, cheaper than fisherman's wharf).
I have yet to go to Alcatraz. I'm saving that for when my brother comes to visit next month. Also, Angel island is a good day trip if you are the outdoorsy type (hiking or rent a bike).

Or, you can rent a car and drive up/down Highway 1. That is an amazing thing to do. It's very easy to imagine you are James Dean in your porsche driving into the sunset of a huge hollywood movie.

jr

Definitely do Alcatraz. It's well worth it, and spring for the self-guided audio tour.

Just don't ask to see the tunnels and the furnace room where Sean Connery dodged the spurts of flame.

Well, my problem is that I'll only have evenings to fill with activities, as the conference will occupy most of the daytime. I'm sure that I could walk over the bridge, check out chinatown/fisherman's wharf, and similar things in the evenings. Not sure about alcatraz though, I'd love to check it out if you can take a tour in the evening. My girlfried will need to fill the time I'm at the conference though so regardless she'll probably want to check it out.

Yeah, they have a nighttime tour of Alcatraz now. When i was out there over Spring Break I got to go on it. Maybe I'm just a dork, but I had always found Alcatraz very interesting, so in turn I really enjoyed walking around the place. And definately spring for some headphones. They are only like $5 a person, but definately worth it in my opinion. If I remember correctly the tour left around 7ish. And to make life easier, go ahead and buy tickets before your trip online so you won't have to deal with the swarn of people at Fishermans Wharf trying to buy tickets.

Definately walk across the bridge. Its incredible! Also, if you're into views, eat a meal at The Cliff House Restaurant. It overlooks the Pacific and the views are awesome! The food is pretty decent as well I suppose. Right up the hill from it is Sutro Baths, which was probaly pretty amazing back in the day, but it's more rubble(sp?) than anything now, but if you eat at the Cliff House you may as well walk up the street and see it.

China Town is pretty interesting. It's basically a bunch of tourists walking around going in all the stores haggling with the people that work in them. Pretty interesting and worth at least a walk through one day. And you have to eat in China Town at least once!

There's lots of otehr stuff to do. I was a pretty big tourist while I was there, and I had a lot of fun!

OK so I have a huge favor to ask from some kindly SF'ite. I plan to attend the Skinny Puppy show at "the Grand" on 07/01 since I'll be out that way. My guess is that a very small percentage of people on this board would find skinny puppy to their liking, so don't take this as a music recommendation of any sort.

Anyway, if I buy 2 tickets on ticketmaster I have to pay:

2*$25 + 2* $6.50 + $14.50 = $77.50!
(that's tickets, service charge, and mailing cost)

However, the tickets are available at some place called "The Independent" for $26 each, only cash purchases. So they can't sell them to me over the phone.

Herein lies the favor. If this "Independent" place is close to someone's home or work, would they be so kind as to pick me up two tickets and mail them to me? I will mail said favor giver a self addressed stamped envelope and a check for $60, so they make $8 for their kindness. Not a fortune I know, but not bad for 5 minutes work either. If willing please PM me.

life shifts up and down everybody knows it's wrong why don't you care? now do it seem fair? it's not in the rhyme or reason so it goes with every season crawl to top fall through bottom first hand love is really rotten slice of life find what's plenty inch towards a sanctuary

A preview! I'm jealous.

Bren R.

If by "a preview" you refer to their upcoming album "Greater Wrong of the Right"...it's supposed to be out the 25th, which is a solid month before I will see them. But you can still be jealous

Nah, meant my lyrical preview.

Bren R.

gotcha....yeah I'm pretty stoked about this trip. Bringing my girlfriend along with me for the ride was probably the best decision I could have made. Otherwise it would be me, alone in SF for a week, trying to find ways of occupying my evenings. Plus it doubles as a birthday present to her

From the sound of it we'll be able to fill our evenings pretty well. So far we've got one night wandering chinatown (the lady loves chinatowns...be it philly/new york/boston/etc...), one night for the alcatraz evening tour (how much is that BTW?), one night for the SP show, one night for general sightseeing/bridge walking, that leaves me with two nights to fill... Thoughts anyone?

ringmir-

pardon me for being blunt.. but, if you got 2 free nights in SF with your girlfriend in a hotel, and you are asking US for advice on what to do..? i think you are in the wrong forum..

of course, at this stage in my life, after a hard day of being a tourist, all i wanna do is sleep!! man, i got problems..

bigjohn

No no no....that's not at all what I mean. Lets just say I don't intend to get much sleep on this trip. It's my *evenings* I'd like to fill, my nights are covered!

GOOD ANSWER!!!

i was about to link you to the DR Phil website for some 'advice'.. i figured you had things under control.

BTW- enjoy your trip, sounds like you are gonna have a good time. we keep seeing pics of the SF skyline from pmbuko's office.. how bout you take a pic of his office building from the bridge... just kidding. if you go to the fish market, try and find some fresh grouper..best fish i have ever had.

bigjohn

Doesn't ticketmaster have a will-call or electronic (printable) ticket option?

Yeah, but it's "convenient" so it costs more!

God, I hate that company.

I think the evening Alcatraz tour was like $15 bucks or something like that. Not much at all in the grand scheme of things.

Here's the link to the official tour/ferry service.

Exellent, thanks, $15 is perfectly reasonable.

So I sucked it up and bought the tickets from ticketmaster..... thanks anyway folks!

Probably should ask this in the beer thread but: Any particularly good SF microbrewed porters or IPAs I should give a taste if I can while I'm out there? It is against the rules to visit a city and not partake of the beer.

I definitely recommend a trip to Healdsburg (in the wine country region) to have some of Bear Republic's fresh offerings. They make some fine beers.

Of course, there's also the famous Anchor Brewing Company right in San Francisco.

Just don't go to that SF Brewery on Columbus. That's HORRIBLE.