The Check-In

Cool hotels, an impressive arts scene and—of course—food galore await in Berkeley.

If Berkeley evokes only memories of Alice Waters and outtakes from

The Graduate, it might be time to revisit. These days, there’s more to the city than Frisco-fleeing hippies. Updone historic hotels, mid-century architecture aplenty, achingly local restaurants (and cheese shops, and butchers, and candlestick makers), a revitalized downtown arts scene, craft breweries and distilleries, the second-densest botanical garden in America—this ain’t your Aunt Alice’s Berkeley.