Described by critics as a "Wonderland for the Jet Set," the CLIFT Hotel is yet another collaboration between hotelier Ian Schrager and designer Philippe Starck. So we're talking a mix of tradition and surrealism, a fusion of old-world elegance and modern glamour two blocks from Union Square's great shopping and a half- mile from the Asian Art Museum and the Museum of Modern Art. With several prominent theaters a block away, guests can buy half-priced, day-of-performance tickets at the TIX booth two blocks away for Broadway musicals and small, local productions.

After a $50 million renovation, this 1915 Italian Renaissance-style hotel is a glamorous, cutting-edge hotel with stylish and surreal Stark furniture, Jean Bapiste Mondino photographs and sculptures by Gerald Garouste. Featuring walls made of old redwood trees, the CLIFT's Redwood Room, a San Francisco landmark bar since 1933, adds to the surrealism with changing displays of avant-garde digital art flashing on flat-screen TVs. Fusion is commonplace at the CLIFT. Even the Asia de Cuba tempts tastebuds by fusing Latin and Asian cuisines to produce such funky dishes as oxtail spring rolls, Chinese five- spiced sirloin, and Hunan whole wok-crispy fish stuffed with crab escabeche.

The 373 guest rooms feature contemporary décors, soft colors, silks, leathers and velvets. The rooms have city views, sleigh beds with 400-thread-count sheets, and modern amenities like CD and DVD players and high-speed Internet access.

For those who seek high style and uniqueness in an upscale hotel, the CLIFT Hotel is a great option. The hotel attracts a wide range of international players, from business execs to glamorous globetrotters, jet- setting families to fashion designers - and just plain folks looking for the decidedly off beat.