We are only using jerky in one item at the moment...and it's alcoholic, of course. I garnish my Bloody Bull with a Slim Jim. And it's fabulous. Now I'll step aside to let the other chefs speak about the innovative things they're doing with dried meats.

I'm a big fan of jerky made with grass fed beef or venison. Sometimes we make it at the restaurant to add texture and flavorful salt to a dish. The main difference between ours and typical jerky is that our house worcestershire serves as the base.

We've done it at vie for a bloody Mary garnish and as a passed item for a beer dinner.
The jerky is made from dietzler beef and dehydrated in our Excalibur!

I think the crispy, chewy, caramelized flavor of jerky is a great addition to salads and have actually used salmon skin to make a jerky of sorts to add a crisp, smokey flavor to a salad of arugula, blueberries and bits of fresh goat cheese.
I use jerky more for textural contrast and sharp bits of flavor than as a stand-alone of focus item.