With summer just around the corner, it’s been a busy time for catching up with favorite restaurants and checking out some new ones. Click through the above gallery for some of the best things I’ve eaten recently.
What to Eat Right Now in Sonoma County
Dining editor Heather Irwin picks her favorite dishes on restaurant menus right now, from delicious fish tacos to a decadent Baked Alaska.
Most Throwback Dessert: Though its exact origins have been lost to time, chefs generally agree that the ice cream and meringue treat known as Baked Alaska was created as an homage to the 1867 acquisition of the Alaska Territory. Here, chef Jennifer McMurry creates a petite version with peanut butter ice cream and peaks of browned meringue. Bloom Carneros, 22910 Broadway, Sonoma, bloomcarneros.com. (Heather Irwin)
Best Dessert Maybe Ever: Panna cotta rarely even gets a second glance from me, but this visual stunner has sweet, seasonal strawberry granita and chewy nougat. An early summer must-try. Bloom Carneros, 22910 Broadway, Sonoma, bloomcarneros.com. (Heather Irwin)
Best Pork Belly: Pork belly can be too much of a good thing in large portions. This dish features nibbles of smoked and glazed pork belly with "hen of the woods" mushrooms, pistachio pesto, burrata, radicchio salsa verde. Bloom Carneros, 22910 Broadway, Sonoma, bloomcarneros.com. (Heather Irwin)
Best Riff on a Classic: Wedge Salads — usually a chunk of iceberg lettuce floating in a sea of blue cheese dressing — gets a modern makeover. An adorably cute baby iceberg lettuce wedge is garnished with sweet pickled golden beets, bites of crisp bacon, Point Reyes blue cheese and a light drizzle of vinaigrette. Bloom Carneros, 22910 Broadway, Sonoma, bloomcarneros.com. (Heather Irwin)
Best Beets: Not everyone likes beets, and I get that. But when they're done right, they're so right. This version at the newly-opened Goldfinch has roasted beets with caramelized yogurt (think a caramel-flavored yogurt), pistachios and pickled onions. 119 S. Main St., Sebastopol, goldfinchsebastopol.com. (Heather Irwin)
Happy Hour Nourishment: The happy hour menu at Kettle's Vietnamese features a full-sized banh mi that's a perfect accompaniment to their happy hour cocktails. 1202 W. Steele Lane, Santa Rosa, kettlesbistro.com. (Heather Irwin)
There's also a huge jicama salad on the Kettle's happy hour menu that will fill you up. (Heather Irwin)
Best Taste of the Moment: Chef Mark Malicki's creamy corn soup with fried softshell crab captures the moment in time when spring turns to summer and sweet corn ripens. The dishes change up every week at his Tuesday pop-up at The Tea Room (316 Western Ave, Petaluma). More details malle.mal on Instagram. (Heather Irwin)
Best Tacos: Fish tacos are our jam. Fried or grilled. The newly-opened El Fogon does them so right. 623 Fourth St, Santa Rosa, santarosa.elfogognca.com (Heather Irwin)