The minute you walk into 59 Lake (59 Lake Avenue) you know you’re in for a special evening. The entryway is a stunning combination of soft lighting and eye pleasing décor, topped off by a gorgeous gold-toned barrel vaulted ceiling. Take a few more steps into the bar and you could swear you’ve entered a Manhattan club. All warm oranges with sleek banquettes and bar stools, it’s the perfect spot to have a pre-dinner drink or to just hang out with friends. Make your selection from an extensive wine list, with over 21 wines by the glass, or perhaps a Single Barrel Bourbon or a top shelf Tequila, or give in to the temptation of one of the eight varieties of Martinis.

In its second season, 59 Lake continues to grow into a place for fine dining and to expand its role as a great place to go for an evening of fun and celebration. Co-owners Ronnie and Bob Sokolove have turned this 100-year-old building into a venue where you can enjoy an excellent dinner, then hang around for dancing and entertainment. Or, make this your destination for clubbing on its own merit. Thursday through Sunday nights there’s a late night happy hour from 9 to 11, with a variety of DJs or live music to lure you onto the dance floor. Thursday evenings will be spotlighted as a special "Ladies Night" featuring singer, performer Viki Dee. Oh, and did I mention that Rehoboth Rarity—free parking in their adjoining lot!

Ronnie and Bob are Rehoboth transplants. Both left the legal field to settle here at the beach and have transferred all their energy and dedication to 59 Lake. Lucky for us! They proudly showed us around the place, and pointed with particular pleasure to the banquet facilities room which can hold 60 to 150 people.

Susan and I were offered menus by Noel, our wait staff for the evening, and reminded by her that it’s a seasonal menu so there will be changes from time to time. Also, we were handed, along with the wine list, a listing of two choices of wine flights: a Pinot Noir Flight or Chardonnay Flight. Each is three glasses of wine containing 2 ounces each, the equivalent of one regular glass of wine. A thoughtful touch that is not often found.

The menu at 59 Lake is as elegant as the surroundings, with daily specials, and diverse entrees. Before we selected our appetizers, Noel brought us an amuse bouche. (don’t you just love the translation—amuse the mouth?) of fresh made gazpacho topped off with a pecan pastry bread stick. Yummy.

Giving the menu our attention, I elected to start off with the Cream of Crab Soup, a creamy bowl of soup dotted with crab and topped of with a crab and scallion fritter that added a touch of crispness. I was scraping the bottom of my bowl while Susan finished off her salad, made of organic greens, granny smith vinaigrette dressed leaves, shredded apple, blue cheese crumbles and sugared walnuts—crispy and fresh with a not-too-tart finish. There was another listed appetizer that I found mighty tempting but didn’t order: house smoked fish and English pea risotto, tempura shrimp with wasabi cream. Noel put a sampling of this in front of us, and I couldn’t rave enough about this dish. Imaginative and very tasty. The risotto was studded with the peas and pieces of smoky fish and topped off with a perfectly cooked piece of shrimp tempura.

Michelin rated chef Ross Fraser, formerly the executive chef for the Duke and Duchess of Roxborough, has put together a menu that is interesting and diverse without overwhelming you with choices. Each entrée is well thought out and tempting.

I decided on the sautéed black sea bass fillet, which arrived in an eye-pleasing stack atop pineapple and crab egg fried rice, accompanied by a vegetable spring roll and cider butter cream. A world class dish from a world class chef. Susan’s selection of stuffed chicken breast was just as delectable. The chicken was cornmeal dusted and stuffed with a pate of shellfish served on sweet corn, lima bean, and bacon succotash and was garnished with a sweet corn and butter stock reduction. Chicken breast never had it so good! Not believing you can ever have enough of a good thing we also ordered a side dish of parmesan polenta, a smooth combination of tastes that made the polenta we recently had in Italy seem dull by comparison.

To get us in the mood for dessert (ha! As if there was a need for that!), Noel brought us out a sampling of pastry chef Cynthia Riccio’s deconstructed lemon and key lime pie, on a shortbread biscuit, with a burst of Italian meringue. Tart, sweet and most delicious, it spurred us on to order more sweet endings. Susan opted for the terrine of homemade sorbet, a refreshing pyramid of blackberry, strawberry and raspberry sorbets surrounded by fresh berries and lapped with a mint peach consommé. When I heard the words, "banana split" my decision was made. A tower of frozen parfait, chocolate and vanilla, drizzled with chocolate sauce, heaped with strawberries and caramelized bananas put me in dessert heaven.