As a kid growing up in a small town in Northern California, San Francisco was my North Star — the place to be, the landing spot I dreamt of.
Any day in “The City” was a treat. Field trips often brought my friends and me to Union Square, where we’d peruse the aisles of the nearby Tower Records on Market Street and watch the cable cars jangle along Powell Street. If near Pier 39, we’d devour an order of clam chowder in a sourdough bread bowl at Boudin Bakery. And once we were old enough to drive ourselves into the city, we felt an incomparable sense of freedom — there was always more to uncover in San Francisco, and we’d leave no stone unturned.
Flash forward 20 years, and that child-like sense of excitement still rises up when I cross the Bay Bridge and dip into the city’s core. And with my own children in tow this winter, I turned up yet another new-to-me gem in the form of Palace Hotel, located on Montgomery Street and right in the neighborhood I’d frequently traipsed around so many years earlier.
How had I missed it all those years? I’ll never know, but I’m happy to have finally discovered it.
The Pied Piper Bar at Palace Hotel’s lobby level is an ideal place for a night cap.
Credit: 2024 Palace HotelThe History of San Francisco’s Palace Hotel
Now a Luxury Collection Hotel within Marriott International, Palace Hotel opened its doors in 1875; it was the first luxury property in San Francisco and, at the time, the largest hotel in the world, occupying almost an entire city block and offering more than 700 guestrooms. U.S. presidents have spent the night (usually in the Presidential Suite), poet Oscar Wilde stayed and held lectures there, and Mark Twain frequently had lunch at the lobby-level Pied Piper Bar. Destroyed in the 1906 earthquake and subsequent fires, Palace was rebuilt and opened again in 1909, a gem to be treasured in an ever-changing city.
Opulent in the best of ways, the hotel — and its the gilded halls — takes its visitors back in time. The property’s “piece de resistance” is surely The Garden Court Restaurant, a sprawling central space with Italian marble columns and a stunning domed roof comprising more than 80,000 panes of stained glass — all here since 1909. To dine in this venue on a sunny San Francisco day is to feel like royalty, cast in a divine golden glow while enjoying afternoon tea.
Rooms and suites at Palace Hotel feature high ceilings and city views.
Credit: 2024 Palace HotelAccommodations
Although the lower level of the hotel has been kept as close to its 1909 self as possible, guestrooms have been updated to ensure a comfortably modern stay. My family and I had adjoining Deluxe Rooms — one with a king-size bed, the other with two doubles — which made for plenty of space for a “sister sleepover,” a snack party with charcuterie and cupcakes, and a restful night’s sleep after a long drive from Los Angeles. And our 4-year-old loved our window views — from the seventh floor, we watched the winter fog roll in and around the downtown streets and cityscape. (All rooms offer partial views of the city.)
And the luxury from the lobby level continues up here above the Garden Court. Rooms have solid oak doors with monogrammed brass doorknobs, plus 11-foot-high ceilings that add a measurable sense of grandeur. Grey-blue walls with pretty trims and moldings are a nice backdrop for cream and wood decor, and marble bathrooms and Frette linens are among other in-room details.
For clients looking for a few more bells and whistles (or just a few more square feet), the hotel has a number of suite options. The Palace Suite, for example, is a corner accommodation that measures 880 square feet and includes fantastic views, a separate king bedroom, a sofa bed and a chess set for an in-room game night. Then, there’s the aforementioned President’s Suite, which measures 2,000 square feet and has separate living and dining quarters (plus a dining table for eight) and a baby grand piano — accommodations fit for a world leader, surely.
With a historic stained-glass ceiling that dates back to 1909, The Garden Court Restaurant is a central feature of the hotel.
Credit: 2024 Palace HotelOn-Site Amenities
A meal at The Garden Court Restaurant should be every client’s top priority. In December, the venue couldn’t have been more festive, with a dazzling Christmas tree near its center (and even the chance to sit on Santa’s lap just below the tree’s boughs). We had fresh juice and coffee at the weekend buffet (breakfast is available daily), but clients might opt instead for a two-course, prix fixe lunch Monday through Thursday or afternoon tea on Friday and Saturday. (If you’re into origin stories, I’ll also note that green goddess dressing was created here, all the way back in 1923, and you can enjoy it on the restaurant’s signature Green Goddess Crab Salad).
Equally enchanting is the Pied Piper Bar, a dark and glamorous spot for cocktails and bites right off the lobby’s main corridor. A beautiful 16-foot Maxfield Parrish painting has hung here since 1909, and there’s live music every Thursday and Friday in the early evening.
Also on-site is a large indoor pool (not particularly common in San Francisco) with yet another domed glass ceiling, as well as an adjacent gym. Meeting spaces abound, too, including three ballrooms and 23 meeting rooms.
What to Do Around the Palace Hotel
When it’s time to adventure off the property, numerous iconic San Francisco sights are within walking distance. The Ferry Building and its retail and snack stalls are 1 mile away, as is Chinatown. Yerba Buena Gardens is around the corner, and there’s a cable car hub right at Powell and Market streets — a ride on these historic cars will delight clients of all ages. Baseball games and concerts are a blast at Oracle Park (also 1 mile from the Palace), and the Exploratorium is a fantastic, hands-on museum space worthy of a visit. For great Italian eats, try Water and Flour Pizzeria in North Beach.
And if you have the chance, sit down and enjoy a bowl of Boudin’s clam chowder for me.
