House San José
By Fernanda Noriega
On the corner of Nuñez and Mesones you will find Casa San José. It is one of the most spectacular houses in the city, and perhaps the grandest of them all. The house can be seen very well along its great length on the outside, however, this is nothing compared to the interior. One never knows what can be found behind a typical and innocent-looking wooden door in San Miguel de Allende. The owner, Stacey Kleinsmith, told us that Netflix recently released a documentary about her house, as one of the most impressive properties in the city.
The property was completely rebuilt by the architect Alan Wilkinson. This was done in order to maintain it in optimal conditions while still keeping vestiges of previous times. The original materials such as the quarry stone were reused, so although it has been more than a decade and a half we can be sure that each stone that supports the house has a story to tell.
Passing the hall you enter a patio full of vegetation where you can see a stone fountain in the center. Surrounding the patio are four bedrooms: the red or master suite, the green, the orange and the sienna. Each of them has its own bathroom and gas fireplace.
Jorge Martínez has been in charge of the Casa San José staff for more than 13 years. He explained that each room was named with a color because of the finish each one has. All the paints are a mixture of lime, water, and maguey slime—the traditional method used in San Miguel.
Following our tour of the bedrooms, the living room, the game room and the television room, we reached the kitchen. Here Martinez excitedly opened a door at ground level to show a tunnel dating back to the time of the Mexican Revolution. Although the previous owner blocked the passage, it has been remodeled to maintain the vestiges of history that are kept in the house.
As we continued along, Martínez showed us the pool, the sauna, and the outdoor dining room where weddings and many special events including some of some prominent personalities have been held.
On the second floor there are the Sky and Sun rooms as well as another terrace ideal for an afternoon of reading, or a meeting by the light of the moon with friends and family. The house opens its doors regularly for weddings, birthdays, or family events for guests who are looking for a quiet, colonial, and private place.