Wingtip

Wingtip is a modern members’ club based in the TransAmerica Tower in the heart of San Francisco’s Financial District. Billed as a ’21st Century interpretation of the classic social club’ it’s an unusual institution, part retail business, part bar, part club; the name is a reference to the menswear firm that also owns the club and the money spent on membership fees can be fully redeemed with purchases in the store itself. Members tend to be in their thirties to fifties with men slightly (but only slightly) outnumbering the women. There’s a small 11th floor bar, (with a larger one planned to open later in 2013), a whiskey room, a games room, a parlour and a ‘wine cave’. The whiskey corner boasts one of the city’s best collections of single malts and small batch bourbons and the wine room boasts an incredibly well-stocked cellar. There’s a short but smart cocktail list and a similar amount of care and attention has gone into the food programme and the whole venue has been handsomely decorated, the various rooms exuding a suitably clubby and sophisticated vibe: lots of dark wood and warm yet masculine colours. There’s even a roof terrace with superb views of the city if all that wasn’t quite enough. And if you need to buy a natty pair of wingtips, well, you’ll know just where to go.