THE RESTAURANT AT MEADOWOOD

At no other four-star restaurant will diners be served field peas, used as a winter ground cover, as the initial offering of a $225 menu. The peas are wrapped in a tiny crepe with their roots coming out one end and a flower sprouting out of the other. The entire menu is informed by the 3-acre garden, even during dessert, when diners may find beet caramels, parsnip tarts and preserved peaches dusted with dried mustard. Christopher Kostow takes seemingly rustic ingredients and gives them a magical transformation. Every dish is brilliant in execution, presentation and flavor. His goal is to not repeat dishes, and he pushes himself to be creative: making “caviar” out of okra seeds, or surrounding whelk, a sea snail that’s a bycatch of the Maine lobster fishery, with pearl onion petals that mimic its shell. The setting is just as magical, overlooking the bucolic resort. If you don’t want to go all in for the tasting menu, consider fireside snacks in the lounge ($90) or a three-course dinner served only in the bar ($90). Want to really splurge? Sit at the kitchen counter for the $500 20-course menu.

Cuisine Northern Californian | Specialties The tasting menu changes regularly | Seats 34 (plus four at kitchen counter; 25 in the lounge); private room for up to 10 | Prices $225 for about 14 courses (plus 20% surcharge); $500 for 20 or more courses in the kitchen (gratuity included) | Noise rating A | Parking Free valet

Vitals 900 Meadowood Lane, St. Helena. (707) 967-1205. www.therestaurantatmea dowood.com Dinner Tuesday-Saturday. Full bar. Reservations and credit cards accepted.

The elegant dining room at the Restaurant at Meadowood in St. Helena.