San Francisco Blog

In the first several years after Hôtel Biron (45 Rose) opened, I looked in its front window at least a dozen times, and was always puzzled as to why so many people were hanging out in a hotel lobby. Finally, curiosity got the better of me, and I went in, only to find out that it was not a hotel but an eccentrically-named wine bar (the original Hôtel Biron is the Rodin museum in Paris).

My loss--this is one of the the coziest, friendliest bars in the city. Drinking there feels almost like hanging out in a friend's living room. One exception is the first Thursday of the month: the space doubles as an art gallery, and that's when they have their receptions, which are usually packed.

The list includes over 100 wines, about half of which are available by the glass ($9 to $15), plus 20 botled beers ($3 to $10), a couple of sakes, and a few soft drinks. There's no room for a kitchen in the small space, so there's only cold food: cheeses, cold cuts, olives, nuts, and fruit.