San Francisco’s life-sized gingerbread house returns for the holiday season

SAN FRANCISCO (KRON) — A San Francisco holiday staple returns this week.

The Fairmont hotel will unveil its annual gingerbread house Saturday. The two-story confection — built with thousands of gingerbread bricks (baked in-house) and more than a ton of icing and candy decorations — will stand 22 feet high and 23 feet wide.

“Fairmont San Francisco’s talented culinary team, led by Executive Chef Kevin Tanaka, has meticulously planned for construction of this year’s enormous gingerbread house, which will be even larger than in year’s past,” the Fairmont announced Thursday.

The ribbon cutting for this year’s gingerbread house starts at 11 a.m. in the Fairmont lobby. The public event will include live music by the San Francisco Boys Chorus, a towering Christmas tree and an appearance from Santa Claus. Santa will pose for photos from 11:30 a.m. to 3:30 p.m.

“The Gingerbread House takes center stage and fills the halls with its sweet aroma, but the hotel’s holiday trees are also impressive in their own right,” the Fairmont said. “Guests will be enchanted by the 23-foot-tall Christmas tree tickling the ceiling in the Main Lobby.”