As they say in real estate lingo “Location, location, location.” Well, in San Francisco Nob Hill is arguably the best location. Perched high on a hill, it has for a long time been the hub of high-end living and travel in the Bay area. The Huntington Hotel has been a standout for many years and appeals to the more sophisticated visitor.

 

The location

The views from Nob Hill are breathtaking. The entire San Francisco Bay is on display. What I find most appealing here is the close proximity to so many things to do. A block below is famed Powell Street and its legendary cable cars. Just four or five blocks south on Powell is Union Square and all of its luxurious shopping.

It you can’t find what you are looking for there, it doesn’t exist. Go north on Powell and you can ride all the way to Fisherman’s Wharf on a cable car. California Street has another cable car running from Nob Hill to the Embarcadero, the financial district and ferry terminals.

Chinatown is a few blocks east on California and is always worth the visit. After a few blocks of this part of town you may feel like you are, indeed, in China. The customs and culture are so authentic and strangely interesting for most Americans.

Strike out in any direction from Nob Hill and a wonderful adventure awaits you.

Make sure to bring comfortable walking shoes, as this is the big time in hill walking. The walk back up California Street from Chinatown along with the walk up Powell from Union Square will give even a tri-athlete a good workout.

 

The hotel

The origins of the Huntington Hotel date back to the Wild West and a group of railroad barons named “The Big Four”: C.P. Huntington, Leland Stanford, Mark Hopkins and Charles Crocker. They built opulent mansions atop Nob Hill. Over the years, the Huntington first became an elegant apartment building before being transformed into a luxury hotel.

These changes were put into play by Newton Cope, whose heirs still run the hotel today. The original room sizes were kept intact making them among the largest in the city. Most of the rooms offer dramatic views of the bay or the city.

This property draws an international crowd, many from Europe. The super-exclusive Pacific Union Club is directly across the street.

The lobby area is finely decorated and leads to the popular Big 4 Restaurant which has been a fixture in San Francisco fine dining for a long time. The restaurant is open daily for breakfast as well as dinner.

Downstairs from the lobby is the Nob Hill Spa and pool area. This elegant indoor pool area has floor-to-ceiling glass windows with city views toward Market Street.

The Huntington has a variety of hotel packages available and even special rates for California residents. For more information visit huntingtonhotel.com.

 

The food

Heading west from the hotel, we passed Grace Cathedral on our way to the locally popular Nob Hill Grille on Hyde Street. Rich Paez and Fabio Stefani — with 20 years of experience — took over the restaurant three years ago and have transformed it into a “grill for all meals.”

We dined on the filet mignon and summer chicken, which were both very good as was the seared duck breast starter. Fabio spent some time explaining the restaurant’s emphasis on getting the finest ingredients from the best local purveyors.

We dined midweek at an off-peak time, and they were busy — something I always like to see. They do very little advertising, and most all of their business has come by word of mouth.

Nob Hill Grille is about a 10-minute walk from The Huntington a bit uphill on the way home. For more information visit nobhillgrille.com.

If your daytime excursion takes you towards the bay, a good spot for lunch is Crab House at Pier 39. This is a lively area with lots to do. The day we were there they had an outdoor concert going on with a big crowd.

Crab House, as you might expect, specializes in Dungeness crab — only big ones. This is the locally caught delicacy that people come from miles to taste.

The servings here are very large so make sure you are hungry. We also tried the shrimp, which was equally mouthwatering. The interior of the restaurant is nautical all the way, and the waterside location offers views of the harbor area.

For more information visit crabhouse39.com.