If you're looking for style, luxury, and elegance, yet still want to stay plugged into the energy of downtown, this San Diego landmark built in 1910 makes an ideal choice. The palatial Beaux Arts building, the brainchild of Ulysses Grant, Jr. and named after his Presidential pop, retains a sense of history and Old World glamour, especially in the spacious, high-ceilinged lobby with its twinkling crystal chandeliers, white marble floors, grand piano, and clutches of plush sofas creating multiple spaces for an intimate drink or casual meeting. The wood-paneled, Art Deco-tinged Grant Grill offers seasonal California cuisine and boasts a decades-long tradition of power lunching, while the lively Grant Grill Lounge serves up handcrafted cocktails and small plates, with a daily happy hour and live music on weekends. Guest rooms are both classic (crown moldings, Empire-style furnishings) and contemporary (sleek marble bathrooms; abstract, black-and-white drip paintings). Operated by the Starwood Hotel & Resorts' Luxury Collection, the hotel is owned by the Sycuan Band of the Kumeyaay Nation, part of a Native American tribe with roots in San Diego going back 10,000 years.