This week V+P was lucky enough to attend the opening night of House Beautiful’s Kitchen of the Year project in Rockefeller Center. This year, the designer was Jeff Lewis, Bravo’s lovable and eccentric Flipping Out star. (For those of you who may not be obsessed with reality shows… Flipping Out follows Jeff’s trials and tribulations while “flipping” houses in the Los Angeles area.)

Peering into the Kitchen of the Year at 30 Rock.

Jeff explains his design to us.

Since our client Benjamin Moore provided Aura for the interior and exterior of the kitchen structure as well as Arborcoat stain for the 1,000 square-foot deck, V+P got to hob-knob with Jeff and his entourage, a few “Real Housewives” stars and of course, the gracious staff of House Beautiful, including publisher Kate Kelly Smith and the new Editor-in-Chief Newell Turner.

It's a Party!

Check out the fabulous products: CaesarStone quartz island, Design Within Reach stools, Jeff Soderbergh dining table and Kate Spade tabletop accessories.

In addition to the fantastic design, there will be cooking demonstrations and other fun programs to check out. See the calendar here! The kitchen is open to the public every day from 10:30 a.m.- 4 p.m. this week. The lovely Sonu Mathew, Benjamin Moore’s Senior Interior Designer, will be on hand Friday afternoon to discuss color palettes for different areas of the home. Once the official Kitchen of the Year week has concluded, the structure will turn into fabulous spot for a summer cocktail — Bar 30!  We hope you have a minute to check it out!

The outdoor deck with Benjamin Moore Arborcoat and furnishings from Restoration Hardware.

More than 20 product sponsors came together to make it all happen including; KraftMaid cabinetry, Calvin Klein Home, Kate Spade tabletop, Kohler, Jenn-Air appliances and CaesarStone countertops, which provided my favorite swag bag item!

Best apron EVER!