House Beautiful Returns to San Francisco With 10th Annual Must-See ‘Kitchen of the Year’

Acclaimed Designer Jon de la Cruz Tapped to Showcase Extraordinary Design for Anniversary Project

SAN FRANCISCO, April 6, 2016 - House Beautiful’s Kitchen of the Year—the must-see destination for state-of-the-art kitchen design and innovative culinary happenings—is returning to San Francisco to celebrate its tenth year and will be open to the public from Saturday, April 29, through Monday, May 29, at the 2017 San Francisco Decorator Showcase (2698 Pacific Avenue).

This year’s Kitchen is being designed by Jon de la Cruz of San Francisco’s DLC-ID, who will bring his expert ability for creating modern, timeless and inventive interiors to the showcase. His design will honor a love of food and entertaining, and celebrates the kitchen as the new American living room.

“We had such success in the Bay Area three years ago, we jumped at the chance to partner again with San Francisco University High School,” said Kate Kelly Smith, SVP, group publishing director, Hearst Design Group. “San Francisco is a design-proud city, and with 2017 also marking the 40^th Anniversary of the San Francisco Decorator Showcase, the stars were aligned. Working with designer Jon de la Cruz is a return of sorts as well; Jon worked with Ken Fulk on our fabulous New Orleans Kitchen of the Year in 2015. We have a lot to celebrate!”

The 2017 San Francisco Decorator Showcase belongs to a large family with eight school-aged children, including two sets of twins, so de la Cruz will create a kitchen that accommodates their busy lifestyle. Case in point: de la Cruz is using Thermador’s 60” Combination Steam Oven (the largest in the market) as well as debuting Thermador’s new 36” wide refrigerator and freezer columns, perfect for this extra-large family. Known for creating fresh, impressive interiors that are truly unique to each client, de la Cruz will incorporate novel ideas for the kitchen and the entire family. The kitchen is to feature a dramatic three-part design, integrating a main breakfast area, a baking area, and a scullery. An adjacent mail/mudroom and dining area are also incorporated into the kitchen design.

“Designing an organized and functional space to accommodate a large, active family drove my vision—inevitably this is where they will all gather,” said de la Cruz. “I wanted to create a sense of timelessness in the kitchen with custom casework and top-quality finishes so it will remain vibrant and relevant as the family grows over the years, and of course it features top-of-the-line modern appliances. The finished kitchen is beautiful and unique, just like the family that will use it every day.”

De la Cruz elevates the project to much more than a simple kitchen renovation by drawing inspiration from his work over the past 20 years working with the Bay Area’s top design firms, successfully leading projects for buildings including The Battery SF, The Cavalier, Marlowe, Carbone in Las Vegas, Sadelle’s in New York, and private residences around the country.

“Most people, and I'd estimate all House Beautiful readers, consider the kitchen the heart of the home, but it's also a space for artful living, which is why we're excited to have Jon at the helm this year," said Sophie Donelson, editor in chief of House Beautiful. “Jon has a sophisticated design sensibility and a taste for flair but also an innate understanding of how people want to live today—comfortably and easily. He masterfully blends splendor and function, so we’re enormously excited to see his vision realized.”

Thermador appliances is returning to Kitchen of the Year, having made their debut last year at KOTY in Atlanta; Caesarstone returns for the tenth time, having been the countertop sponsor from the very start in 2008. Corbett Lighting, DXV by American Standard, Farrow & Ball, Ferguson Bath, Kitchen & Lighting Gallery, GROHE, Grothouse, Hudson Valley Lighting, Kate Spade New York, Lee Industries, Lenox, Leviton, Matthew Quinn Collection, The Mine, Troy Lighting, and Woodard are all returning sponsors as well.  New this year are Blisshaus pantry products, Fireclay Tile, Haussmann Stone, and JWH Design & Cabinetry.

The Kitchen of the Year, located inside the San Francisco Decorator Showcase at 2698 Pacific Avenue, will be open to the public from April 29 – May 29. Tickets are $40 for general admission, $35 for seniors, and are available at the door or online at www.decoratorshowcase.org/tickets. For the past 38 years, the annual San Francisco Decorator Showcase has benefited San Francisco University High School's financial aid program, raising over $15 million and benefiting hundreds of students.

For design enthusiasts outside of the Bay Area, the project will be featured in the October 2017 issue of House Beautiful, on newsstands September 19. For more information about House Beautiful’s Kitchen of the Year, visit housebeautiful.com/KOTY or follow the hashtag #HBKOTY on Instagram and Twitter.

ABOUT HOUSE BEAUTIFUL
House Beautiful, published by Hearst Magazines, is the leading authority on American decorating and design, with an audience of 8 million (MPA January 2017). Since 1896, House Beautiful has inspired readers to believe that from a beautiful home comes a beautiful life. With alluring photography, candid conversations with top designers and original decorating ideas, House Beautiful invites readers to dream and do. Follow @housebeautiful on Facebook, Instagram, Pinterest and Twitter.

ABOUT HEARST MAGAZINES
Hearst Magazines, a unit of Hearst, is one of the nation’s largest diversified media and information companies. Hearst Magazines’ print and digital assets collectively reach more than 128 million readers and site visitors each month, or 53 percent of all adults in the U.S.; nearly two-thirds of all women and 69 percent of all millennial women. (source: comScore/MRI 9-16/S16).

Media Contact:
Jillian Sanders, Senior Manager of PR
jilliansanders@hearst.com

Allie Haake, Senior Manager of PR
ahaake@hearst.com