“Good Morning America” to televise live from San Francisco’s Union Square

“Good Morning America” to televise live from San Francisco’s Union Square beginning at 4 a.m. December 3, 2009
by: ajackson
Residents and visitors encouraged to be part of the national television broadcast
“Good Morning America,” (GMA) which has an estimated television audience of 4.5 million viewers, will televise live from San Francisco’s Union Square as part of the ABC network holiday promotion “Good Morning America Lights Up America.”
When: Thursday, Dec. 3, 2009; 4 – 6 a.m. (the broadcast will air locally at its regularly scheduled time of 7 – 9 a.m. (PST).
Where: San Francisco’s Union Square – next to Macy’s holiday tree and ice rink
What: The public is encouraged to arrive before 4 a.m. and bring “one warm coat” for GMA’s holiday coat drive. Complimentary Ghirardelli hot chocolate will be served, as well as cookies and brownies from Wolfgang Puck Express Restaurant; beignets from Chez Papa Resto; and pastries from Emporio Rulli il Caffe, which will open to the public at 3 a.m.
The program will include GMA weatherman Sam Champion welcoming the live audience from a decorated classic cable car and leading an audience countdown to illuminate the holiday lights in Union Square. The broadcast will also include a performance by Beach Blanket Babylon. Caitlin McGinty, along with fellow cast members, will sing “San Francisco” while wearing the San Francisco Skyline Hat, which is 11′4″ tall, 10′ wide and 4′4″ deep and features the Golden Gate Bridge, Coit Tower, the Ferry Building, SFMOMA, a moving cable car and other city landmarks.
The live remote in Union Square will coincide with the unveiling of San Francisco’s holiday window at GMA’s New York studio in Times Square. Joe D’Alessandro, president and CEO of the SFCVB, will unveil San Francisco’s window design to GMA’s morning anchor team, Diane Sawyer, Robin Roberts and Chris Cuomo. Times Square attracts more than 450,000 visitors per day during the holiday season and GMA’s holiday windows have become a “must-see” visitor attraction.
The “Only in San Francisco” window will portray the essence of San Francisco during the holidays. Designer and sculptor Tom Greenfield has creatively showcased many of San Francisco’s most recognizable attractions and icons, including the Golden Gate Bridge; San Francisco’s famed cable cars; Coit Tower; AT&T Park – home of the San Francisco Giants; the California Academy of Sciences in Golden Gate Park; Macy’s Union Square and holiday ice rink; and San Francisco International Airport. Beach Blanket Babylon, which is celebrating its 35th anniversary, will also be represented, as will Wicked, which is in San Francisco for an extended engagement. The San Francisco CityPass, which provides visitors access to some of San Francisco’s most visited attractions, including SFMOMA; Aquarium of the Bay; Blue & Gold Fleet bay cruise; the de Young Museum in Golden Gate Park, and the Exploratorium will also be represented in the holiday window design. The “Only in San Francisco” banner will be carried by a replica of a Virgin America plane.

Luques Restaurant & Bar Participates in the San Francisco Chamber's Expo After Hours Event

2009 Business After Hours Fall Expo
On Monday, Nov. 16, 2009 from 5:30-8:30 pm
at The Westin St. Francis on Union Square, we participated in the Fall Expo put on by the San Francisco Chamber of Commerce to showcase Luques Restaurant & Bar.

The Expo is one of the largest networking events of the year put on by the Chamber. The exciting event featured over 150 exhibitors including Chamber members, non-profits, small business resource partners, as well as catered hors d’oeuvres from several exceptional local restaurants, including us, with complimentary tastings from 15 wineries and live music.

We served our very popular Thai Shrimp Salad with Chile Lime Dressing and it was a big hit. We received many compliments and hopefully left a lasting impression on hundreds of potential customers. Here are a few shots from the event:

It is starting to look a lot like Christmas...

Macy*s gift to the City, the Christmas Tree in Union Square, is being put up and decorated, the palm trees on each corner of the Square are lit and the Ice Skating Rink is up and running.



We are proud to be one of the sponsors for the Ice Skating Rink and are offering a great skating deal. Our guests can add ice skating for two people to their room bill for only $15 plus tax including skate rental. Regular price for skating is $9-$9.50 per person plus the $4.00 skate rental. That is almost 50% off!

Ice skating is available until January 18, 2010. For more information, see the website: http://www.unionsquareicerink.com/



The Christmas Tree Lighting Ceremony will be November 27th at 6:00pm.

Picture from the roof of the Chancellor Hotel

Don't Get Held Up at Hotels - By the USAToday

We are having a heck of time with people complaining about authorization holds on debit cards these days. Using a debit card for travel is a terrible way to go. As I have traveled around, I have noticed very large signs advising guests about the authorization holds at Hilton Hotels, Hyatt Hotels and more. However, we constantly are told that "I have never experienced this before..." I was in the Hotel Rex, part of the JDV Hospitality Hotel Group, right around the corner, the other day and they have a sign right at their front desk. USA Today printed the article below a year ago, but it seems to be taking a long time for the travelling public to get educated on this one. The problem for us is that there is no way to tell a debit card from a credit card unless you read the small print on the card. However, the computer processing does not know the difference. Well, here the article again in my simple attempt to help educate the traveling public:

DON'T GET HELD UP AT HOTELS == To avoid trouble when using cards at hotels:Use a credit card. Unless you're up against your credit limit, a hold won't affect your ability to charge more. A hold on a debit card is like you've written a check; that money isn't available until the hold is lifted, and that could take a week.Know when you will be billed. Some lodgings, particularly in vacation destinations, charge for one or more nights when you make your reservation. You may be paying for the room before you sleep in it.Ask what the hotel plans to do. Will it put a hold for a certain amount for incidentals on the card you present at check-in or merely keep a card imprint until you check out? If you're using a debit card, make sure you have extra money in your account to cover holds.To see when a hold is released, contact the bank that issued your card. Occasionally, you may have to push a hotel to lift a hold as soon as possible.
Source: USA TODAY research

Pre Authorizations can be done by gas stations and car rental agencies as well as others. A weeks vacation going from hotel to hotel could rack up a lot of holds.

They're Baaaaaaaack.........

As I type this, the Blue Angles are practice flying over the bay and City for the big show this weekend as part of Fleet Week. They are so loud and it is just amazing to watch them.
Here is a crude video I took from the roof of the hotel so you can get an idea of the experience. The jets are coming from the noth bay, circling around behind the Westin St. Francis Tower as they get back in formation and head off toward the east bay.

If you can not come visit during Fleet Week, I hope you can see them some time because it is really something!

Here are a few pictures from previous years:

Maiden Lane Block Party

Last Thursday was the 5th Annual Maiden Lane Renaissance Block Party. The first block of the lane between Stockton and Grant is closed off and we have a great party to raise funds for the improvements to Maiden Lane. This year the block party featured the Edna Love Band, pictured below

Catering by Grace Street Catering, Campton Place Hotel showing off their restaurant specialty, Red Stripe Beer, Skyy Vodka and San Pellegrino.

Of course, the Chancellor Hotel could not miss another opportunity to pour wine, thanks to our sales representative at Young's Market, Vito.

Tony and Helen were served the crowd and had a great time as well.

I want to jump off the Golden Gate Bridge sometimes!

Some people make me want to throw up my arms and say "are you kidding me?"

Back in the olden days (10 years ago), people would get out their AAA Book, call a travel agent, call the local visitor's bureau, call hotels and request a brochure and make their choice that way. They were dependent on the information that THE HOTELS put out via their sales department to make their decision. The hotels had more control over the information and sold folks on their particular hotel. Today, people use the Internet and review sites to make their decision. People are relying on the comments and postings, often anonymous and from complete strangers, on review sites such as TripAdvisor to make their decisions on which hotel to stay. That is fine, and it is the new reality, but in my opinion, the responsibility for the selection has shifted from the hotels to the guests. Now, it is buyer beware! People are choosing the hotels, the hotels are not selling themselves to the guest like they used to do. Thus, assuming that the service is good and everything is working, if a guest doesn't like the hotel THEY selected, that is their fault, not the hotel's fault. Case in point: The Chancellor Hotel

We are now, always have been and always will be (as far as I know) a hotel without air conditioning, with small rooms, smaller bathrooms and a hotel with all of the charm and character (quirks) of such built in 1914. That is not going to change. It is on our website and mentioned repeatedly throughout our reviews and postings on the Internet. When considering the Chancellor Hotel, that information can't be missed. Therefore, if someone selects us to stay at when visiting San Francisco and they are unhappy because we are a historic hotel and/or we have small rooms, etc., who's fault is that? Is it fair that we get dinged because we are what we are and people pick us anyways? I don't think so. If I rented an old Model A car, and it served me well, I surely wouldn't complain because it clinked and rattled, and didn't have a cup holder like every other car today does.

Don't get me wrong either. I am not excusing things not working or poor performance. If I rented an antique car for my wedding or whatever, it should do the job. If someone stays with us, they should get a clean room, everything should work and the service should be very good. We are not perfect, things break and stuff happens. However, if the car broke down during my wedding, I would want things made right. The same goes for us. If we drop the ball or fail to deliver, we will make it right. We always have and always will. But again, if I rent an antique car, if is unfair of me to complain because it is not like a new car. If you book a historic 3 star hotel, you will be getting a historic 3 star hotel. Don't knock us for what we are, just accept that we weren't right for you and you know better for the next time when considering a 3 star historic hotel. Thanks!