Project Info

Architect: Kristin Hefty / Dado Group, San Antonio
Contractor: Clay Hefty / Dado Group

Priorities

• Adaptive reuse of a 1906 residence to create a restaurant/brewery • Maintain historical details
• Add a kitchen and outdoor dining

Solutions

This house is one of the few single-family homes located on the historical Pearl Brewery campus, an area that is becoming a culinary and cultural destination in San Antonio. The existing structure, built by the Pearl Brewery’s chief cooper as a family home, was outdated, had a worn interior, and lacked working utilities. The chefs wanted to transform the home into a barbecue restaurant, albeit an upscale one, and charged architect Kristin Hefty with balancing historical details with modern elements. The 1,600-square-foot building had to be expanded to include a kitchen, a screened porch for the smoker, and a dining porch.

The kitchen addition is clad in reclaimed brick to match the existing chimney and the original metal roof was in good shape, so contractor Clay Hefty was able to preserve it simply by making a few repairs. Instead of replacing or removing the home’s existing siding, Kristin says, the crew used a protective coating system to create a weather barrier.

Kristin retained the interior wood-slat walls and wood flooring. “We wanted to expose it all and clean it up—but not too much,” she says, noting that she wanted the rawness of the wood to contrast with contemporary materials. She played up the wood’s golden tint with amber lighting, creating “golden boxes” of the dining and living rooms. She says that using older, reclaimed materials in a more modern way, with simplified forms, helps balance and blend the historical and new elements.

Judges’ Comments

The judges noted that the “sensitive conversion” maintained the character of the house both on the exterior and the interior. They especially liked how the modern metal railings on the new porch meld with the original curved wood railings.

Products

Entry doors: Vision Openings
Brick: reclaimed
Lighting: custom, Jake Harper
Paints/stains: Penetrol, Flood; Sherwin-Williams
Exterior sealant: Liquid Siding

Related article: Kristin and Clay Hefty also won a 2011 Remodeling Design Award for converting a gas station into a restaurant.