I'm usually very cynical about hotels and don't typically write to praise a hotel. This hotel breaks the mold and has impressed me to the point of writing a positive review.

The staff was incredibly friendly and professional: from the concierge acknowledgment to us as we walked in to the bellman remembering our names throughout the entire stay...we truly felt important. The rooms were very clean with plenty of room and plenty of amenities.

The staff was incredibly helpful with great food recommendations that were both affordable and close. They also were helpful in general San Francisco information.

This hotel bumps up against the tenderloin area, but I would never have guessed that there was ever any danger. My wife and i never once felt that we were in a threatening or uncomfortable situation concerning our safety.

My only complaint with the hotel is minor in that the toilet seat would not stay up as I tried to use the restroom...my wife found this trick useful :).

The Serrano Hotel was so good that my wife and I decided to call and book another Kimpton hotel when we return to San Francisco...We booked the Prescott Hotel.

Nothing but the highest praises for the Serrano Hotel, the staff, and the Kimpton properties.

I was a little nervous since my husband was convinced the Hotel would be in the Tenderloin and I was trying to point out that it was close to Union Square. When we pulled up in the taxi the Doorman grabbed our suitcase - asked us our name and escorted us to the front desk. The service was delightful and we were 2 little blocks from Union Square - Ha Ha! So it is a perfect location. It has a very European feel to it and the guests were mostly European. They have a "game theme" - there are games to play in the lobby + a check-in game which I missed. And they have toys to play with in the room -- cute. We were very satisfied with our stay and we would stay there again.

On our recent visit to the Bay area, we decided to try a different hotel every night. I'm partially glad we did this but also wish we had our complete stay at this excellent hotel.

We stayed at The Fairmont and upgraded to a Tower Signature Suite, we had a King Executive Room at the Hotel Rex and an upgraded room at Serrano. By far, we enjoyed the Serrano the most. Mr. Antonio Flores and the rest of the excellent staff made our stay much nicer with his personalized service.

Our arrival was early, nonetheless, our room was thankfully available. All requested amenities were honored, such as an upper floor with a view, feather pillows, etc. Mr. Flores made sure that there was a personalized welcome item, based on a discussion I'd had with him via email. Nobody else givers that level of service!

The hotel is on the cusp of the Tenderloin district but we had no issues and quickly learned to avoid walking in that direction. I felt completely safe in the immediate area around and within the hotel and in the direction of Union Square. The hotel is an easy walk to excellent shopping and transportation (giving easy access to the entire city). I was a bit surprised at the relative paucity of fine dining in the entire area, but this is no reflection on the hotel (and maybe I just didn't wander to the right spots).

Our room was large and the bathroom, with jacuzzi, had the best shower of all three hotels. I believe that this was the hotel that had Aveeda bath products, my personal favorite. Our room was clean, had free Internet access, and well lit. Emergency routes were well-marked. The only fault I could come up with is that it's impossible to get to the bathroom if the sofa bed is extended. But, being part acrobat, I was able to get there without waking my family.

The concierge was most helpful in arranging a last minute tour for us and ensured that it all went smoothly. He had great suggestions.

I really can't say too may good things about this facility and, even without considering the most reasonable room rate, Serrano beat out its competitors...hands down, including the upgraded Fairmont room.

I heartily recommend this hotel, regardless of travel budget. A final special thanks again to Mr. Flores.

I often stay at Kimpton Hotels for work, but this week visited the Serrano in San Francisco for fun. What I really like about this chain is that the quality and little perks are consistent. I know they'll have good coffee in the lobby every morning and the New York Times. The wine in the afternoon is such a nice bonus. My room in SF was spotless, as always. The sheets are always crisp and I love the feather pillows of assorted sizes. One quirk that it might be time to address is the cheesy robes that look like they came out of a 70s bachelor pad. Leopard print terry is not tasteful. Let's think about some white waffle weave spa robes. Additionally, I've been pretty impressed with the frequent traveller program. I've been consistently upgraded at almost every stay. Other programs say they'll do that but they never seem to deliver. If I had one gripe it's the astronomical parking fees. $40, even for SF is excessive and seems wrong when directly across the street the garage is charging $10 less. It sends the a nickel-and-diming message to guest and it really stands out since so much is on the mark.