Sonoma

Fine dining in Princeton, and it's worth every penny

Post Office Place
206 Worcester Road (Route 31)
Princeton
464-5775
Wed.-Sat. 5-10 p.m.
Sunday Brunch 11 a.m.-2 p.m.
Reservations recommended
Major credit cards
Full bar and extensive wine list
Handicap accessible

by Jim Johnson

On a recent Friday evening, a friend and I visited Sonoma to de-stress, talk, and linger. Our server sensed this and paced our dinner perfectly. Nearly three hours later, we left relaxed, satisfied, and impressed.

I'm not sure I've ever called a dining experience flawless, but our evening at Sonoma tempts hyperbole. The setting is elegant yet accessible, with gentle lighting, exquisite artwork, and live background music. Service is impeccable, a sincere sharing of knowledge, attention, and conversation. And the food excites with flavor, whispers with subtlety, challenges the imagination, and impresses the eye.

We were seated in an alcove off the main dining area, and the waitstaff came by quickly with menus and fresh, warm sourdough rolls. One server filled our water glasses and kept them filled throughout dinner.

Our primary server advised us about menu choices with confidence and interest. We decided quite immediately that we liked her. While cordial and conversant, she never became overly familiar; we were her guests, not her customers. When a neighboring party turned boisterous, she apologized quietly and sincerely; she was truly concerned that the noise was disturbing our evening. (We tuned it out and focused on the soothing strains of Pachelbel's Kanon.)

Chef/owner Bill Brady describes his menu as "global cuisine," and it's indeed a wonderful fusion of cultures and cuisines. For example, carpaccio is most often thought of as an Italian dish, thin shavings of raw or rare beef served with olive oil, capers, and cheese. Brady's Duo of Carpaccio appetizer ($9) adds tuna, each slice rolled in spices and seared. Instead of the more more Continental raspberry and orange glaze, the Breast of Duckling Montpelier substitutes a local maple-herb and duck stock reduction. Swordfish, so familiar to New Englanders, takes on a French flavor with Grilled Swordfish Steak Framboise ($22), served with a sauce of raspberries and black currants.

Brady also puts a special focus on cuisine from the California wine region after which the restaurant is named. I can easily imagine a warm spring evening in the Sonoma Valley, dining on Grilled Manchester Farms Quail ($9), an appetizer served atop wilted spinach and roasted dried figs, followed by Pan Roasted Fillet of Mahi-Mahi ($22) served with a spicy pineapple-herb salsa.

Our server later called our choices "the perfect dinner." We couldn't have agreed more.

For appetizers, the Roasted Onion and Niçoise Olive Tart ($7) consisted of a fluffy, buttery, melt-in-your-mouth crust of flaky phyllo dough topped with nearly caramelized sweet Vidalia onions and tart olives. The Sautéed Medallions of Farm Goat Cheese were mellow, almost sensuous chunks of cheese served warm atop grilled portabella mushrooms and surrounded by field greens tossed with roasted spiced pecans and cranberry vinaigrette.

Brady takes equal care with Sonoma's dinner salads. Mine came with mixed greens wrapped in a length of cucumber and doused with a richly apple-flavored dressing.

Our entrées were superb. My friend's Grilled Tuna Steak Kyoto ($23) was beautiful, a thick cut of fish bordered by sliced ginger and wasabi. A variety of colorful vegetables brightened the plate: carrots, butternut squash with nutmeg and maple syrup, red bliss potato skins stuffed with mashed potatoes, lightly sautéed Swiss chard, and fiddlehead ferns -- picked at their peak of perfection, which in these parts last about 10 days. The flavors mingled and complemented each other, adding even more intrigue to the flavorful, tender, and slightly rare tuna.

The Rack of Venison Montmorency ($28) was both exciting and exquisite. Five chops offered a hint of gaminess offset by a sweet stuffing of dried apples, raisins, apricots, plums, and walnuts. An imposing glaze of sundried sour-cherry sauce enlivened the smoky bacon wrapping.

A New Hampshire chef prepares desserts especially for Sonoma. We savored a fruit tart topped with strawberry, kiwi, and mandarin orange, and Raspberry Charlotte, a pastry with alternating layers of cake and raspberry mousse.

Excluding the wine we chose from Sonoma's extensive list, our dinner came to $45 per person, worth every penny.