The Bar/Lounge at Kimpton Hotel Enso

"Shabu shabu and other Japanese delights meet California cuisine at Mum’s Restaurant and Bar; for mingling, hit the hotel’s nightly hosted wine and sake reception"

"Rooms are large and functionally unfussy—white walls are boldly unadorned, bedside lamps are intentionally mismatched—with plenty of thoughtful amenities such as umbrellas, yoga mats, minibars, and—you're in Japantown—kimono-style robes"

"Shabu shabu is served in the restaurant and bar, and the hotel has a small fitness room and bicycles for its guests to explore the city"

"Throughout this Kimpton property are smart nods to the Japantown locale: the lobby's main attraction is a sculpture of reclaimed Japanese whisky bottles and barrels, while accents like hand-dyed indigo textiles and Asian earthenware can be found throughout"

"The feature wall of Japanese whiskey barrel staves was created using shousugi-ban, the traditional method that chars wood for exterior siding, while a mural by local artist Kelly Ording recreates Northern Californian landscapes as Japanese-style illustrations"

"The boutique hotel in San Francisco's Japantown neighborhood takes creative hints from its setting, with shibori-print robes and a Japanese whiskey–themed lobby where thousands of empty bottles decorate the ceiling and wood barrels make up one wall; and the hotel shares space with Mum’s, one of the city’s oldest Japanese hot-pot joints"

"It’s a short walk to bars, restaurants and shops, while major tourist attractions are a quick cab ride away"

"Its minimalist design is a tribute to the hotel’s Japanese roots: each of the 131 rooms, which have a stark yet soothing white-and-blue color palette and feature shibori-print accent pillows and kimonos, feels more like a Zen pied-à-terre than an actual hotel room, while the lobby evokes a Mad Men-era lounge with its dark overtones, curved brown leather couch, dangling macrame plant holders, and statement sculpture made from Japanese whiskey bottles"