In this sleek kitchen renovation in San Francisco, the kitchen backsplash is an easy-to-clean glass backsplash that mimics the glossy finish of the surrounding white cabinets. Painters accomplished the high-gloss finish on the cabinets of a kitchen in San Francisco by applying a coat of paint, polishing it with very high-grit sandpaper, repeating the process for each layer, then topping it with three coats of clear varnish. "It’s like an auto body," says builder Jeff King. "It’s incredibly beautiful." The island provides shelving space and storage as well as a second sink, an is topped with pietra grigio marble.

Russell-Clarke tends a small garden.

Designer Jeff Sand’s Universal Chairs combine his love for classic French café chairs with an appreciation for “the beautiful metal casings on an old Moto Guzzi.” Sand Studios also designed the dining table and pendant lamp.

The coffee station features a professional-grade Rocket Espresso machine. Jang and King designed a stainless-steel pullout shelf for a cream and sugar station.

"We had fantastic natural light in the space from the large existing skylights," Dunn says. "That gave us the freedom to think we could just line the walls and floors with a warm, natural material, and let the light take care of most of the 'impact' of being in the space—it led us to be a bit more restrained." Photo by Patricia Chang

Across from the entrance is the main staircase, which leads to the bedrooms.

“Peter and I’ve got shockingly similar and far-reaching design inspirations. Our conversations would move easily from brutalism to driftwood to kachinas and then flow right back to something applicable to architecture. I can’t tell you how many times I will do that with a less-design-literate client and just get a blank stare!” —Architect Craig Steely

"The owner had a great vision of a business focused on an open, interactive exchange between the customer and the barista," Dunn says. "Juggling the practical workflow of coffee-making—and selling—with the desire for a low, obstacle-free counter that would be conducive to that interaction was probably the biggest challenge." The matte white hexagonal tile covering the sides of the counter was purchased from Design and Direct Source. Photo by Patricia Chang

"From a practical standpoint, we organized the space in layers—starting with the sidewalk display function of the window seating and signage, then to the entry space with its merchandise shelves, and next to that is the recessed pastry case and barista station," Dunn says. "Past that point is the serving area, point of sale, and main seating area with service spaces in the back." Photo by Patricia Chang

Saint Frank offers beans by the pound in addition to coffee and espresso-based drinks. Photo by Patricia Chang.

The interior of Saint Frank Coffee, which is located at 2340 Polk street in San Francisco, features oak walls, flooring, and furniture. "There's a warmth and openness to the space," architect Ian Dunn says. "It's the product of some restraint and refinement; perhaps there's a peacefulness that comes through. You're there to enjoy a really great cup of coffee and the cafe was designed for that purpose." Photo by Patricia Chang.

The facade is painted a deep charcoal gray. Click here to read previous Coffee Break stories. Photo by Patricia Chang.

The flooring behind the counter is Daltile's Plaza Nova series in Black Shadow. Photo by Patricia Chang.

Dunn hired Buck O'Neill Builders as the general contractor for the space. Weston Martin designed and built the custom stools, tables, and benches in the cafe. "Our contractor, craftsmen, and fabricators did a great job executing our details for the spots where the steel and wood come together—the wall trim, the seating supports, the stair railings, etc.," Dunn says. "I always enjoy working through those types of connections, and it's satisfying to see them built well." Photo by Patricia Chang

Here's the cafe space, which is set off to the side of the building. The kiln (currently under construction) will be behind the bank of windows in the background. We love how the building hosts a multitude of uses: a social space for the neighborhood, retail, and manufacturing. It's also two local businesses supporting each other—a customer might come in for a coffee and come out with a new place setting, and vice versa.

Coffee and San Francisco!

The once-sloping space now has climbing vines, a slatted fence, and foxtail agaves.

King installed dimmable fluorescent strips by Bartco in the alcoves above the cabinets for ambient lighting.

The public staircase is directly adjacent to the house, though the louvers mitigate the view of passersby in favor of views of San Francisco.

Curtiss describes the floor plan as “super efficient but with gracious moments.” Instead of maximizing room size, she ensured that shared spaces were adequately sized. In the upstairs hallway, that means two or three people can pass each other with relative ease.

The three levels of the house transition from public to private: The ground floor is composed of the kitchen and living-dining area; the bathroom and closet occupy the mezzanine, accessed by a ship’s ladder; and the sleeping loft hovers a couple steps above. The seminal 1970s tome A Pattern Language, written by Christopher Alexander, Sara Ishikawa, and Murray Silverstein, inspired the layout. “I’m a huge proponent of the [book],” says Azevedo. “I like the ideas of a bed as an alcove, natural light on two sides of a room, varying ceiling heights, and different levels of privacy.”

Despite their dark color palette, black and white kitchens can still feel bright. This tiny kitchen perfects the art of chiaroscuro with white shiplapped walls, custom-built open shelves and dark concrete floors. The owners selected sleek faucet fixtures by Santec and a sink by Blanco to complement the white laminate countertops. The stainless steel appliances include a Bertazzoni oven, Fisher & Payel refrigerator, and Thermador dishwasher.

"When a customer walks in the door, they're greeted by the barista," Dunn says. "That interaction is the focus of the space. We set up that relationship and designed the cafe around that." At the front of the cafe, custom powder-coated steel shelving by Adrian Burns Design and Fabrication displays coffee and and other merchandise for sale. The floor and wall paneling is an engineered white-oak surface by Berg & Berg. "We felt that running the flooring and the paneling at an angle would lend a bit of dynamism to the space and that it would help it read as a unified surface rather than separate 'flooring' and 'wall paneling' elements," Dunn says. Photo by Patricia Chang.

In the bathroom, a teak live-edge countertop and custom yellow cabinet support a double wash basin by Duravit. A mirror from Restoration Hardware hangs below custom lights, designed by the homeowner for a steampunk look.

The kitchen is marked by its Wolf gas range, white Carrara marble countertop bar, and Cobb Rise & Fall pendants by Original BTC. The architect designed a custom wine glass holder, which hangs nearby.

San Francisco in the 1950s.

Designed by jones | haydu, Coffee Bar's sleek and contemporary second location is built to stand out amongst sprawling high rises. The bold and expansive metal and glass exterior provides an alluring peek into the action inside. Limited by the relatively small space (it is under 500 square feet), Coffee Bar keeps things simple with backlit maple plywood panels and brushed concrete floors. Indoor seating was deliberately excluded from the small space to meet the pace of the bustling demographic; the outdoor teak seating is by Selamat Designs and complements the warm wood interior. 101 Montgomery Street

The master bath incorporates custom cabinets by Bob Clausen, fixtures by Grohe, Hansgrohe, and Kohler, and a sink by Duravit. Plush Lisbon cork carpets the floor.

Lara and Ethan Pagnier have hosted over 40 travelers since joining Airbnb, and it's easy to see what attracts them. Apart from owning a spotless home in San Francisco's coveted Mission district, the pair are natural hosts.

Fabricated by Stocklin Iron Works and designed by Nebolon, the orange staircase features steel railings and treads made from IKEA wood butcher blocks. “We designed the open staircase to make the trip to the second floor fun,” the architect says.

“By creating high ceilings with large windows, the feeling is all about space and light,” says architect Robert Nebolon, principal of Berkeley firm Robert Nebolon Architects. The 2,100-square-foot floating house was built on land in six months before settling into its final location in Mission Creek.

In the second floor master bedroom, a custom captain’s bed designed by the homeowner, features drawers and storage underneath. Its towering height allows for views out the nearby window.

This San Francisco home in the Theatre Lofts building, built in 1926 as a movie palace, was given a sophisticated upgrade by LOCZIdesign for a couple. A new study makes it possible for the husband to read and work late into the night, while the wife sleeps upstairs. The modern fireplace is clad in ceramic tile with a subtle textural pattern.

The Hayes Valley location of local favorite Ritual Coffee is housed in a repurposed shipping container bordering Patricia's Green, an open gathering space anchoring the retail and residential corridor. The compact pod occupies less than 200 square feet, and showcases a sleek marriage of metal and wood, punctuated by Ritual's signature glossy red accents. Designed by envelope Architecture + Design, the space is in good company with other pop-ups that make up PROXY, a temporary cluster of local restaurants and vendors that occupy a freeway-bordering lot that was previously vacant. The PROXY pods will be recycled when a long-term residential development begins construction at the site. 432B Octavia Street

The residents incorporated speed racks into the cabinets. Typically found in restaurants, the racks offer chefs intermediate storage. In this case, the couple places food behind the cabinet until it’s ready to serve. After the meal is over, they can stow dirty dishes out of sight instead of interrupting the party with cleanup. To ensure trays slide in and out without catching the cabinet, King used hinges that allow the door to rotate 270 degrees.

In the master bedroom, the gable roof and balcony foster the illusion of generous space. A free-standing wall divides the sleeping space from the bathroom.