Chef hits his stride at Applewood Inn and Restaurant in Guerneville

Are we witnessing the deification of Jamil Peden since he became executive chef at Applewood Inn and Restaurant in Guerneville?

If you taste his heavenly cooking, you might believe it.

His last gig was at Woodfour Brewing Co. at The Barlow in Sebastopol, where he showed how innovative he could be. I still remember the sashimi-grade yellowtail sparkling with sky blue borage flowers, tiny white diamonds of cilantro flowers and the sweet-sour taste of yuzu, the hybrid citrus.

After working in Santa Cruz, Seattle and Napa, he came to Sonoma County as a sous chef at Madrona Manor. He moved to Las Vegas as a sous chef with the Wolfgang Puck group, then returned to Sonoma as chef de cuisine at the former Syrah in Santa Rosa. Jobs followed in the blissful kitchens at Scopa and Campo Fina in Healdsburg.

So he’s been climbing the ladder of success and now has reached some kind of new height at Applewood, where it appears he has taken everything he learned on the way up and has focused his knowledge, not just on being innovative but on thrilling the palates in his dining room.

He’s a down-to-earth fellow, social media savvy and very engaged with what he does. On Twitter he exults on bringing in the first eggplant of the season. When he was featured on the cover of The Bohemian, he posted an Instagram pic (#sickofseeingmyface) with the caption, “This is getting silly.”

His engagement with Instagram is all to the good, though. He likes to post pics of dishes he’s proud of, like a photo of braised pork belly with pickled corn, lime curd, coriander blossoms, heirloom tomatoes, purslane and fermented radish pods. So you can take a look before you bite into the actual food.

The first dish to hit our party’s table was a Duck Liver Mousse ($16 ????) that put every other duck liver mousse I’ve ever tasted to perfect shame. It was barely tinged with the flavor of duck liver, smooth and sweet, with a touch of salt and so sinfully seductive that its pleasures still dance in my memory.

With it were perfectly toasted slices of baguette, pieces of poached rhubarb and cabochons of vincotto: red wine cooked down to a thickened syrup with sugar and spices like ginger, cinnamon and cardamom.

The mousse is a hard act to follow, but Peden’s Grilled Spanish Octopus ($18 ???½) comes close. The chunks of octopus are sweet and tender, accompanied by an aioli flavored with Old Bay spice mix - the one they use on Maryland’s Eastern Shore to cook blue crabs.

A summer vegetable medley of fingerling potatoes, corn kernels, cherry tomato halves, parsley and green beans is given some oomph by dry chorizo.

Ah, and here’s a favorite that Peden’s been making for years and should continue to make for years to come: White Corn Soup ($12 ???½). Sweet kernels are cut off the cob and pureed, sprinkled with a few whole kernels, a dollop of goat cheese, anise-flavored tarragon and shaved radish.

The restaurant’s wine list is chiefly focused on wines from the Russian River Valley and Sonoma Coast, especially pinot noirs and chardonnays.

You’ll find something you’ll like in a wide range of prices, and wines by the glass can help keep the check within reason.

A great chardonnay like Tom Dehlinger’s, tasting oh-so-Meursault-like, is $16 a glass.

Corkage is $25 if you bring your own bottle.

An airline cut of Petaluma Chicken Breast ($27 ????) couldn’t have been more perfectly done, with a crispy surface but a moist and tender interior.

It was paired with soft grits a la the Louisiana bayou. All the dishes, including this one, were nicely presented, with little pools of sauces dotted here and there that help pull the flavors together.

In this case, Mirabelle plum, mustard, an pickled mustard seed. Fennel and smoked carrots completed the plate.

Roasted Alaskan Halibut ($34 ????) tasted like it was just hauled out of the boat on Homer Spit, it was that sweet and fresh. Whole wheat couscous, pecans and dill finished the plate.

Three Layer Mocha Mousse Cake ($12 ????) was even better than it sounds and came with a scoop of espresso gelato, toasted hazelnuts and two kinds of chocolate mousse on a praline base.

To sum up: Jamil Peden hits his stride at Applewood, and his step is sure.

Jeff Cox can be reached at jeffcox@sonic.net.