If you remove the cranky woman at the front desk (whom we only dealt with briefly) from the equation, Andrews Hotel was the perfect home base for our 4-night vacation in San Francisco, and exceeded our expectations.
I would have preferred to stay in one of the fancy boutique hotels, but my boyfriend is a penny pincher, so we compromised and decided we just needed a safe, clean, affordable place with available coffee and in close proximity to fun sites in the city. This hotel delivered all of the above!
It's small -- maybe 5 or 6 rooms per floor -- so it never felt crowded or noisy. We had a Bay King, and yes, the rooms and bathroom are small, but we didn't spend much time there. Well appointed, very clean and cheerful, not pretentious or tacky, big windows, very comfortable bed and bedding with loads of pillows; the water pressure is great and the water is nice and hot, so while the shower nozzle was low for us (I'm 5'10" and he's 6'), showers were enjoyable and satisfying.
A refrigerator in the room that had 3 sodas in it already; coffee and tea always available in the little lobby; room service is available from Fino, but we never took advantage. Interesting historical photographs of San Francisco adorn the walls on each floor's hallway.
Pastries, fruit and cereal in the mornings on each floor, along with coffee, tea and juice -- all we needed each morning.
And it's great to have a nice restaurant on the premises, too, with excellent service! Went to Fino for our complimentary glass of wine and ended up staying for supper -- we had ceasar salads and pasta, along with dessert and cappucino -- very nice, casual but elegant dining, and then it was a short walk upstairs to our room.
We'll definitely be back. But I'll do my best to avoid that not-so-nice lady at the desk. All other desk folks were terrific -- approachable and helpful and pleasant -- but this one woman fancies herself a new Leona Helmsley, and she takes turns being passive-aggressive or just downright rude and nasty to the guests. I witnessed her behavior with several guests and coworkers, and began to feel bad not just for the guests and employees, but for her, as well. I wish she'd take a vacation in San Francisco for a few days!
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