The Buchanan — San Francisco, USA

San Francisco’s newest boutique hotel The Buchanan, draws décor inspirations from its Japantown location at the crossroads of the gritty Fillmore District and chic Pacific Heights.
Nicole Hollis Interior Design, also behind the interiors for Carmel Valley Ranch, translated the eclectic urban tapestry of the surrounding neighbourhoods into the diverse textures of crisp cotton, billowy linen, and worn leather. Harking to the Fillmore’s storied jazz clubs and Japantown’s Asian heritage, the dark lobby combines such distinct materials as hand-dyed indigo textiles, earth-tone pottery, and empty liquor bottles, which make up the ceiling. 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 Far East references continue in the guest rooms, where you will find kimono-inspired robes and shibori-print pillows among the palette of charcoals, whites, and deep greens. The bathrooms depart from the Asian theme with its black quartz countertops, matte black frames, and fixtures from the all-American plumbing manufacturer Waterworks.
INFORMATION
Website
ADDRESS
1800 Sutter Street
Receive our daily digest of inspiration, escapism and design stories from around the world direct to your inbox.
-
Mediterranean dreams come true at this radiant Puglian hotel
A former convent has been converted into Vista Ostuni, a plush bolthole inspired by the landscape and heritage of the Puglia region
-
The architectural innovation hidden in plain sight at Frieze London 2025
The 2025 Frieze entrance pavilions launch this week alongside the art fair, showcasing a brand-new, modular building system set to shake up the architecture of large-scale events
-
Chantal Joffe paints the truth of memory and motherhood in a new London show
A profound chronicler of the intimacies of the female experience, Chantal Joffe explores the elemental truth of family dynamics for a new exhibition at Victoria Miro
-
A24 just opened a restaurant in New York, and it’s as cinematic as you’d expect
Hidden in the West Village, Wild Cherry pairs a moody, arthouse sensibility with a supper-style menu devised by the team behind Frenchette
-
Seven kitchens, one fire: inside LA’s hottest new food market
At Maydan Market, chef Rose Previte turns global street food and layered design into a vibrant, fire-lit experience
-
The Viceroy Hotel Group wants you to get on your bike
Across properties in Santa Monica, Chicago, Washington DC and the Algarve, Viceroy guests can experience curated cycling routes and community events
-
Big flavours and bold design define La Nena Cantina, Los Angeles's newest Mexican hotspot
From handmade tortillas to 40-ingredient mole, this new Sunset Boulevard restaurant takes Mexican cuisine seriously
-
Aperitivo time is this Los Angeles bar’s ‘ragione di vita’
Located in Echo Park, Bar Bacetti is a welcoming haunt celebrating the great Italian ‘art of snacking’
-
This boisterous cocktail bar in Denver was inspired by Le Corbusier
A 1950s furniture showroom has been reborn as a modernist social hub in the city’s Sunnyside neighbourhood. Its cocktails? Semiprecious
-
In Los Angeles, Darling doesn’t want to be your average dinner spot
Vinyl, live-fire cooking, and California’s finest ingredients come together in this immersive new concept from a celebrated Southern chef
-
The best dinner party in San Francisco is thrown at this bistro and vinyl bar
A new chapter begins in Mission Creek as Side A opens in the former Universal Café space