A Little Bit of France in San Francisco
We stayed in the Cornell Hotel de France for two nights in late September 2012. I had requested a quiet room, and we were assigned room 301, which looks out onto Bush Street. Based on other Tripadvisor reviews of this hotel, I believe there are quieter rooms located in the "back." Having no way to make a comparison with those, I can advise that room 301 served us well. One can hear some street noise, but it wasn't anything that upset us.
The hotel is very quaint, not unlike what one would expect to find in France. It is beautifully decorated, and it comes off as a shrine to Joan of Arc. It has an antique elevator, the kind that has two sliding doors that must be operated one after the other. It is about as far from a cookie-cutter, sterile, corporate chain hotel as you can get. Free internet is included, as is a complete breakfast, which is great value for money. There is a pay-as-you-go computer in the downstairs lounge if you need to go online ($1 for 15 minutes.) The dining room where breakfast is served is truly beautiful. It is apparent a great deal of restoration has taken place throughout the hotel, but none more so than in the dining room. I told my wife it looks like the owners hired the same people that created the buildings and scenery in Disneyland, as faux stonework, wooden beams, and other period details abound throughout the property.
The hotel is centrally located downtown, and is steps from the Powell Street cable car line. A walk to the Powell Street BART station will take you about 12 minutes going down the hill (we used BART to get to SFO for our return flight home). There are plenty of restaurants in the neighborhood, and Chinatown is only a couple of blocks away. Great shopping is located steps from the door.
All in all, we would stay here again, as the hotel certainly met our expectations, and the people who work there are very outgoing and friendly.