Hello from San Francisco: Downtown Luxury
at
The Handlery Hotel and Exotic Entertainment at Asia SF
After our interesting introduction to local history as part of
the Victorian
Homes Walking Tour we had to switch hotels for one night and
grabbed our overnight bags to move to The
Handlery Union Square Hotel in downtown Geary Street, just next
to Union Square. It was now late afternoon, it was drizzling and
the streets downtown were packed with revelers participating in
the Chinese New Years Celebrations.
We settled into our elegant suite, and I then located Karen Dominguez
from the hotel’s marketing department to find out a little
more about this venerable institution. The Handlery is family owned
and operated, and in 2008 the Handlery family is celebrating 80
years of hotel ownership and operation in California.
The Handlery Union Square Hotel
Composed of two earlier hotels, The Handlery today is an upscale
hotel that is located right in the heart of San Francisco, just
minutes away from the cable cars, the theatres, the Museum of Modern
Art, the Financial District and the Moscone Convention Center. Union
Square, the 2.6 acre large plaza, is just steps away and features
a variety of upscale boutiques, souvenir shops, art galleries and
salons. The entire area is a mecca for shoppers and features department
stores such as Macy’s, Bloomingdales, Neiman Marcus, Nordstrom
and Saks Fifth Avenue. High-end fashion is represented by Dior,
Gucci, Chanel, Giorgio Armani, Lacoste, Bulgari, Hermes and many
more.
Front desk at the Handlery Union Square Hotel
Two famous cable car lines (the Powell-Mason and Powell-Hyde lines)
are a stone’s throw from the Handlery Hotel. Public transportation
is also easily accessible through the Muni Metro and BART subway
system at the Powell Street Station on Market Street.
Another view of the lobby
Immediately to the northeast of this area is Chinatown and just
one block north of Union Street is San Francisco’s French
Quarter, an area that is populated by many out-door cafes and French
restaurants. Two major theatres are represented in this central
area just a few steps west of The Handlery: San Francisco’s
Theatre District is anchored by the Geary and Curran Theatres, built
in 1909 and 1922 respectively. The Tenderloin, an area that is still
a little rough around the edges, is located west of the hotel; Nob
Hill, an upscale residential neighbourhood, is located to the northeast
of the area. The Yerba Buena Gardens and the Financial District
are within easy walking distance. Leisure and business travelers
alike appreciate the location and amenities of this central hotel.
Our gorgeous hotel room
Karen took me on a tour of the hotel which underwent a $10 million
renovation in 2003. We started our walk from the Daily Grill restaurant
which is located on the main floor and offers New York-based cuisine.
She filled me in on some of the amenities and special services,
which include an outdoor heated pool, a rarity in downtown San Francisco.
The Handlery Union Square
Hotel features wireless Internet, a sauna, access to fitness
facilities as well as a barber shop that has been here since 1928.
We thoroughly enjoyed the location, right in the heart of downtown
San Francisco.
A historic letter box
Our evening was promising a lot of excitement: we were planning
to visit Asia SF, a restaurant/
night club that is a popular venue for birthday celebrations and
bachelorette parties. This restaurant features upscale Cal Asian
cuisine and a prize-winning wine list. What makes Asia SF unique
is its catwalk, the domain of the beautiful and talented Ladies
of Asia SF, all world famous gender illusionists.
Chip Young (right) and his bartender at Asia SF
Skip Young, one of the co-owners gave us an overview of this unique
entertainment venue and indicated that several additional locations
are planned throughout North America, including Hollywood and Toronto.
He mentioned that this establishment was founded 14 years ago as
a true celebration of diversity. Today 60% of the customers are
women who truly adore the concept of gender illusion performances,
without an ounce of jealousy.
Beauty at Asia SF
Interestingly, Skip said that since he has been working with these
gender illusionists, his understanding of women has improved. The
transgender experience is very complex and still entails hardships
for many individuals dealing with issues of gender identity. Concepts
such as openness and tolerance are consciously practiced at Asia
SF, and Skip concluded that social change often comes from women.
Asia SF’s female customers have certainly embraced the concept.
My Baby Bok Choy
We sat down for a nice meal at the bar that also acts as a catwalk,
and enjoyed delicious Tamarind Chicken Satays, Baby Bok Choy and
Shiitake Mushrooms and a generous portion of Truffled Soba Noodles
which include grilled portobello mushroom and asparagus slices,
tossed with sesame soba noodles, white truffle oil and sweet tomatoes.
Truffled Soba Noodles
Then finally the performance started. One after another we saw
the Ladies of Asia SF come out on the catwalk and perform their
craft. Dressed up in tight-fitting sexy costumes and stunningly
beautiful, they danced rhythmically on the stage and lip-synched
to popular dance tunes. The crowd was cheering and loved it.
In between dance performances the ladies worked the crowd, chatted
with customers and served drinks. They seemed to thoroughly enjoy
interacting with the audience. I wanted to find out a little more
about these graceful performers at Asia SF and was able to catch
a few of them in between their performances. Most of them were very
willing to talk with me and shared a bit of their life stories with
me.
Action at Asia SF
Darna, for example, arrived in San Francisco 11 years ago from
the Philippines. She just graduated with a major in sociology and
social welfare from Cal State University and now works with a non-profit
organization that helps Asians and Pacific Islanders suffering from
HIV. She feels that working at Asia SF empowers her and added that
her work environment here is more like a family than a workplace.
Arianna, an African-American performer from Chicago, is a professional
ballet dancer and started transitioning in July of 2007. People
had always thought she was a girl since she was small. Her work
at Asia SF is a conscious choice and her family supports her. In
addition, San Francisco’s transgendered community is very
welcoming and made her transition easier. Although Arianna does
not feel fully at home here yet, she loves living in Berkeley and
enjoys coming to work at Asia SF.
Sharon and the security guard at Asia SF
Also hailing from the Philippines, Sharon has been working at Asia
SF since 1999. She works full-time as a nurse and has a Master of
Nursing degree. Today she works as an educator on infection control
and teaches her coworkers and patients at the hospital about infection
prevention. Despite the fact that her mother is a strict Catholic,
she is very open-minded, and accept Sharon’s gender transition
which happened in 1999. Sharon loves the environment at Asia SF
which allows her to interact with people of all different walks
of life in a safe, accepting environment. She also views her role
as educational and wants to open people’s minds.
Lima, Peru, is Branny’s home town. She moved to New York
City 15 years ago and arrived in the Bay Area two years ago. She
finished a diploma in design and is now studying psychology at San
Francisco State University. Branny made her transition at age 15
and added that her parents were cool about it. They always knew
that making the gender transition in Peru would be difficult and
were there to help her. She added that she finds people in San Francisco
more open than in New York City and loves living here. Even when
she was a child she did not fit in and children picked on her. But
strangely enough she loved the attention, and performing on stage
at Asia SF gives her a chance to soak up the adoration of the audience.
Branny loves fashion design, and when she is finished with her psychology
degree she wants to give something back to society.
Branny from Peru
What stunned me the most was the diverse backgrounds of these
talented performers: they hail from places such as the Philippines,
Mexico, Peru and many others. The Ladies at Asia
SF are not only beautiful, but also intelligent and caring individuals.
I truly enjoyed the opportunity to get to know a little bit about
some of the performers and their interesting backgrounds. These
conversations really showed me what talented, multi-dimensional
individuals these dancers are.
The crowd thoroughly enjoyed the performance and the audience interaction
with the performers. Some special dance moves elicited exuberant
whistles and cheers from the audience, and the atmosphere was very
boisterous. Many of the tables were big groups celebrating birthdays
or other special events. In addition to serving drinks and chatting
with the audience, many of the dancers also get their pictures taken
with various customers. For the finale, six Ladies of Asia SF got
up on the catwalk and surprised the enthusiastic crowd with a final
group performance of the day.
The beautiful ladies of Asia SF
We had a great evening at Asia SF: delicious food, excellent entertainment,
and a bit of an insight into the open-minded mindset and diversity
that is San Francisco.
