One of San Francisco’s most celebrated holiday installations is the two-story gingerbread house at the Fairmont Hotel. The fascinating creation is 22 feet tall, composed of thousands of gingerbread bricks and gallons of royal icing.
The gingerbread house, holiday tree, and other seasonal décor in the lobby will be on public display through January 2, 2023. Don’t forget to pay a visit before it’s too late!
A team of engineers, builders, and of course pastry chefs began planning this year’s gingerbread house back in July. Each year, the life-size Victorian structure takes 520 hours to build, light, and outfit with thousands of pieces of candy. It’s created using over 8,000 baked 12×4 inch gingerbread cookie bricks, cemented together and decorated with a mountain of royal icing which requires 150 gallons of egg whites and 1,000 pounds of powdered sugar to make. It’s adorned with nearly 2,000 pounds of colorful candy, including Nerds, Peeps, gumdrops, candy canes, and much more.
But did you know that you can actually reserve a private dining space within the structure? Groups of 8 are welcome to enjoy afternoon tea, dinner, and more inside of the famed sugary walls, if they’re willing to pay a pretty penny.
The private dining room is available to rent for groups of up to 8 people for a $300 rental fee covering 2 hours. There is a $1,200 minimum required for food and beverage, plus tax and gratuity. If you want to dine in sugary style, you’ve gotta pull out the big bucks!
For those of us who can’t commit to a swanky gingerbread tea, the house is on display for public viewing within the Fairmont Hotel’s lobby. It’s worth seeing alongside a beautiful 23-foot Christmas tree, a holiday train, and countless other decorations.
Additional holiday activities at the Fairmont include a hotel stay in Santa’s Suite, a recurring Holiday Tea, holiday dining in Laurel Court, and a fabulous New Year’s Eve celebration. Learn about all of these and more at the Fairmont Hotel’s website.
Find the Fairmont Hotel at 950 Mason Street in San Francisco.