Farm-Forward Fine Dining
In February, Chef Brian Limoges shared a snapshot on Instagram of rack after rack, topped with hundreds of mandarin segments he was preserving in anticipation of opening Enclos restaurant in Sonoma. The citrus could be used throughout the year, potentially rehydrated or accompanied by seafood.
“A razor clam or a scallop lends itself really well to dried fruit,” he says. “It brings out the acidity in that fruit and concentrates the sugar. It’s a nice balance and the texture is amazing.”
His focus on produce—how to use it now and later—makes perfect sense, given that the newly debuted fine-dining establishment is a partnership between Limoges and Stone Edge Farm Estate Vineyards & Winery. The former trained at the New England Culinary Institute and previously cooked at Michelin-starred Atelier Crenn, Birdsong, Quince and Saison. The latter, owned by husband-and-wife Mac and Leslie McQuown, consists of a farm; a vineyard, called Silver Cloud; a winemaking facility; and now, Enclos.
The 30-seat restaurant, housed in a circa-1880 Victorian mere steps from historic Sonoma Plaza, offers a seasonally driven tasting menu comprising eight to 10 courses. “Some of those courses have courses within them,” Limoges says, noting that Dungeness crab might be presented three ways in a single dish. The wine program features Stone Edge Farm’s Bordeaux-style wines, plus vintages from stellar wine regions such as the Pacific Northwest and France.
The mandarins that Limoges posted on social media are grown at Stone Edge Farm’s 16-acre organic farm. “In addition to over 100 vegetables that are seasonally planted in our garden, we also work carefully with Chef Brian to plant specific ingredients that he foresees utilizing for upcoming iterations of the Enclos menu,” Leslie McQuown says.
Prioritizing local products when available, Limoges estimates that 70 percent of the produce on the menu will derive from the farm. Expect ingredients that go from picking to plate within a day or two, as well as those that have been perhaps pickled, salted or fermented.
“Preservation is a huge thing for us,” he says. Lor summer, Limoges intends to “let the freshness of the vegetable speak, with notes of what last season provided. There will always be some preserved [element] in our cooking because it adds a different complexity to it.”
Beyond the produce that, in Limoges’ words, he and the farm’s Director of Gardens Colby Eierman are “intentionally growing”—like peppers, tomatoes and husk cherries—the restaurant takes advantage of the existing arboreal landscape. The olive trees yield olive oil and the closed flower buds from the bay trees become capers.
Although the apiary on the grounds doesn’t generate large quantities of honey, the beeswax can be used (and reused) for various purposes; for example, in baking canelés or combined with tallow, which cuts of beef are then dipped in as a means of preservation. “We’re trying to utilize everything that the farm gives us,” Limoges says.
For the McQuowns, whose wines are made with organically grown grapes, sustainability is at the forefront of their enterprise. The farm’s state- of-the-art electrical microgrid allows it to operate well below net zero. Says Leslie McQuown, “By sourcing produce from our organic gardens and minimizing waste through responsible practices, Enclos reflects our dedication to environmental responsibility.”
This ethos extends to the table settings: Fallen trees from Silver Cloud are given new life as chopsticks by Healdsburg-based Serai Wood & Steel. Limoges tapped Sonoma native and ceramicist Lynn Mahon for plates that incorporate ash from the farm’s prescribed bums underneath the glaze. “There’s a story and a thought behind everything,” Limoges says.
While the chef designed the kitchen, the dining room represents the vision of interior and furnishings designer Jiun Ho, who has a residence in Sonoma. There are parallels between the restaurant’s menu and aesthetic: “My food is delicate, but it has a lot of flavors,” Limoges says. “That goes along with the dining room. There’s subtlety, but it’s also very bold.”
According to Limoges, Enclos could only exist in Sonoma. “There are a lot of cookie-cutter fine- dining restaurants that you could put anywhere in the country, that you could fly everything in from somewhere else and showcase it,” he observes. “But for us, it was important to not be able to plug this in just anywhere. It’s specific to this area—and I wouldn’t want to do it anywhere else.”
McQuown echoes this sentiment. “When we made the decision to open Enclos, our goal was to curate a memorable dining experience that captured and reflected the true essence of Sonoma County,” she says. “We hope the restaurant becomes a beloved fixture in the Sonoma dining scene—a place where guests can gather to enjoy thoughtfully crafted dishes made with locally sourced ingredients, paired with world-class wines in a warm and convivial atmosphere.”
Enclos Restaurant
139 East Napa St., Sonoma
enclos-sonoma.com
