Inside Sonoma

For a while now, the dust has been flying at the Farmhouse Inn & Restaurant in Forestville, as its owners worked on an expansion and redesign of the circa-1870 hideaway.

There, amid the towering redwoods of the Russian River Valley, crews added eight new guest rooms housed in an elegant new “barn,” refreshed the Inn’s original ten guest rooms, and brightened the Michelin-starred restaurant that fronts the property.

The work was completed in May; just last week, I finally got in for a meal.

Why the delay? It was as much an issue of my crazy schedule as the dinner-only restaurant’s enormous popularity and intimate size. Reservations are required, and the policy is unforgiving for on-the-fly folks like me: a credit card number is taken, and if you cancel less than 24 hours in advance, you get hit with a charge of $25 per person. If you’ve got a group larger than four, meanwhile, Fridays and Saturdays are out, because there are simply just not enough chairs to go around on those packed evenings.

There’s a reason the place is busy. While the Farmhouse has always been a destination restaurant for its luxurious Cal-Mediterranean food, the mood now matches, too. Picture a more contemporary design than before, in a sophisticated mix of antiques and modern farm touches including faux-bois mirrors, oversized wooden chandeliers and rustic accents against a palette of charcoal gray, taupe and white. The best seat may be where my companion and I settled, in the corner of the rear room with big glass windows overlooking newly enhanced lush gardens spreading to the gentle hills beyond.

Besides new décor, there’s a new general manager/wine director on board, Christopher Fohner, and a new pastry chef, Patricia Donaghy, formerly of Dry Creek Kitchen. Yet the chef is still the talented Steve Litke, the master sommelier is still Geoff Kruth, and the food and wine program remains a stunning salute to seasonal Sonoma County.

The menu changes nearly daily, though burrata ($13) is a consistent summer favorite, served on my visit as a silky pillow stabbed with crispy tempura-d herb leaves over a fan of multi-color heirloom tomatoes lined with a stripe of sweet corn kernels. In a winning strategy, the kitchen believes in large portions for all its plates – a single order was an ample appetizer even split with my companion.

For a homemade Maine lobster sausage recipe ($15), Litke fashioned chunky fennel-studded meat into rounds over a potato salad brightened with saffron and preserved lemon aioli – a beautiful warm weather dish. Another starter of Monterey calamari ($14) was anything but typical, either, the curls of squid roasted to tenderness instead of the usual fried, and presented in a delicious complication of shellfish paella stuffing, mildly spicy Spanish chorizo, chickpea puree and arugula glistening in smoked paprika oil.

One of The Farmhouse’s signature dishes is rabbit, and Litke offers it as a trio ($39), for a rich, filling presentation. There’s a roasted rack, so petite it looks like meat with a mini Mohawk of bones. There’s loin, cut into thick coins then wrapped in applewood smoked bacon. And there’s leg confit, draped in velvety whole grain mustard sauce alongside Yukon potato.

Chicken ($35) is equally impressive, labeled poussin but arriving as an impressively big portion of young bird done to a golden brown over a simple but sensational bed of white corn, crisp-soft Tuscan bread salad, juicy chanterelle mushrooms and a bright pile of sungold tomatoes.

Donaghy’s new cheese course is a tempting finish, though be warned, it’s designed for at least two guests. For her other desserts, Sonoma-fresh fruits and berries often star, such as in the lovely Dry Creek peach-lemon verbena semifredo my companion and I greatly enjoyed, the chilly cake decorated with crispy almond streusel and a swath of peach sabayon.

For its polished menu and newly refined ambiance, Farmhouse remains refreshingly unfussy, with staff that’s mastered the art of being attentive without hovering.

All in all, it’s an experience well worth waiting for, and one well worth making that reservation for (and all the better, if you remember to do so as far in advance as possible).

Details: Farmhouse Inn & Restaurant, 7871 River Road, Forestville, 707-887-3300, farmhouseinn.com.