Rehoboth Foodie

The primary thing that used to annoy me about the old Cafe Solé (since revamped and renamed Solé in 2011) was that the portions always seemed small for the price, especially at dinner. And I wasn't the only customer who left there hungry. That's one of the reasons why you're just now seeing my review of this Baltimore Avenue staple, though they've been there for over 14 years.

When Ed and Lauren Cox-Ristenbatt announced their plans to reinvent the food, the room and the concept, I decided to wait and see. And I'm glad I did. (Goodness knows there was enough in 2011 to keep me busy over on Wilmington Avenue!) Along with an open kitchen, new decor with a classy austerity, and a rustic 100 year-old heart-pine bar, comes generous portions (especially at lunch) and a creative and tantalizing Small Plates dinner menu that's guaranteed to fill you up and make you smile. Solé is back. And with a vengeance.

Their "Island" concept quickly fell by the wayside, and if website visitor comments are to be believed, we're all the better for it. Lauren and Ed are not amateurs, however, and they adapted and regrouped almost overnight. And it looks like they have a winner.

Without any further ado, I'll just say it: The lunch sandwiches are huge and delicious. My favorite veggie-head had the Warm Veggie Sandwich [pictured, right], stuffed to bursting with mushrooms, zucchini, onions and spinach. Boursin cheese tops it off. Of course I would have added bacon (for $2).

On that same visit, I had the Cuban Mix Sandwich [pictured, left], alternating savory and tangy with layers of pork, ham, pickles, mustard, cheese, tomato and mayo, lovingly caressed by Cuban bread (like ciabatta but softer and not as puffy) served panini-style.

That was also when we first experienced their signature Carrot Poblano Soup [pictured, right]. With its gentle back-of-the-mouth heat and a soft sweetness of carrots, it was so good that on our most recent visit (with a party of 6) everyone (except one scofflaw) ordered it. Ooohs and Ahhhs all around.

The Grilled Shrimp BLT [pictured, left] sports plump, lightly jerk-seasoned decapods joining the BLT party (they do not skimp on the bacon) with your choice of Key Lime Mayo or Habanero Tartar Sauce. Get the hot stuff. Life is short.

Another star of the lunch show is the Chicken Salad Cordon Bleu Sandwich [pictured, right]. Do not plan to eat anything else on the day you order this for lunch. Swiss cheese is quickly melted overtop of spicy ham perched above Sole's almost snow-white chicken salad, leaving the salad still deliciously cool. Though the menu promised a French Roll, it arrived with that soft and yeasty Cuban Bread (and a dollop of Dijon). This was definitely not a bad thing.

Some of the popular sandwiches from the old Cafe Sole menu remain (like the Brie BLT and the Fried Oyster BLT) but their new creations deserve your attention.

The Small Plates dinner menu urges you to "...order several items & pass plates around the table." Nothing if not obedient, that's exactly what we did. In fact, we ordered 18 dishes total! In order to prepare for the onslaught, we first fortified ourselves with Thai Chili Margaritas [pictured, below right] and White Peach Sangrias [pictured, below left], and a glass or two of the velvety Layer Cake Primitivo red. And then it began:

Five bowls of that Poblano Carrot Soup arrived simultaneously, along with 1 bowl (always the holdout, she is) of Shrimp Bisque. The bowls were barely cleared before the Melange of Mushroom Saute in Cream Sauce [pictured, below right], accompanied by balsamic-drizzled crostini made its debut. It was simply wonderful, and we held on to the plate during the whole meal, sopping crostini and/or whatever in that wonderful cream sauce.

Fried Chicken Livers [pictured, below left] lounged in a pool of bright red/orange hot pepper relish. It wasn't all that spicy hot, but was very bright and acidic; the perfect foil for the liver and crispy breading. A great match. A duo of Veal Meatball plates [pictured, right] were coated in a very bright and sweet sauce (I suspect hoisin and rice wine vinegar, but it's only a guess). Each one was like a little exclamation mark in your mouth.

One of the stars of the evening was the Crispy Risotto Cakes [pictured, left], accompanied by a lobster-speckled aioli (we ordered a second one). A black-bean hummus was attractively presented with little silver-dollar size pita rounds. Hummus is like the "beige" of food, and it's hard to make it all that interesting. Like tofu, it relies on other ingredients to make it exciting. The specks of black beans were not enough to pull that off, however, but we dutifully finished it off nonetheless.

Another shining star in the plate parade was a Mushroom Special [pictured, below right]. Peppery, voluptuous and lightly sauteed Maitake (Hen of the Woods) mushrooms nested happily in buttery polenta. Once you get past the slightly intimidating tentacular nature of these tree-borne 'shrooms, the rest is smooth (and delicious) sailing. I'd order them again in a second.

A Baltimore Avenue favorite is the Boursin-stuffed dates {pictured, below left], wrapped in bacon and baked. Regulars here will remember these as an amuse bouche from another place (very) nearby, and Solé's version certainly lived up to the legend.

Parmesan Cheese Puffs were surrounded by what was described as a "fiery tomato sauce." I'm sad to say that they were somewhat ordinary, with not nearly enough parmesan taste. Perhaps a sharper, aged version of the cheese would work better. Green Beans with Pine Nuts and Gruyere were quite good. The beans were still firm, and the combination of pignolis and cheese made for a nutty, toothy bite.

Another contender for star of the show (we ordered two plates) were the 50/50 Sliders crowned with melted Blue on a garlic mayo-slathered brioche [pictured, below right]. What's 50/50, you might ask? Well, half ground beef and half bacon, of course! All mixed together. There is no way this marriage could turn out badly.

We were advised as kids to not judge a book by its cover, and we were all a bit taken aback when the Veggie Flan (zucchini, roasted garlic and parmesan) arrived [pictured, below left]. There it sat, kind of shiny and green. Well, it was absolutely wonderful. Remember the feeding-frenzy scene from Jaws? That's what happened after we all got a taste (minus the boat, the cello riff and Richard Dreyfuss).

Grilled Jerk Chicken was charred with a bracing jerk seasoning and sliced into tasty white-meat slabs. A Mango ginger chutney shared the spotlight. Mushroom Caps arrived, wrapped in basil and bacon. They resembled the bacon-wrapped dates, of course, but they were totally different. Garlic aioli served as a nice lubricant. Last and certainly not least was a plate of Roasted Tricolor Potatoes [pictured, bottom right]. Polite little fingerlings were roasted to a firm tooth and topped with marble-sized tricolors. The skin was perfectly firm, breaking to reveal a creamy and not-cooked to death interior. That garlic aioli (it sure gets a workout, doesn't it?), lemon and tarragon added the finishing touches.

In a last-ditch effort to have ourselves written-up in "Myocardial Infarction Monthly" magazine, we ordered one of each of the homemade desserts. The award for star of the show was evenly split between the Chocolate-Chocolate Chip Cake and the Peanut Butter Pie. The cake was not refrigerated (hallelujah! It was moist and not dried out!), and was speckled with crushed Oreos.

The pie sat squarely on an Oreo crust and was topped with little chocolate morsels. The coconut custard Pie was not as coconutty as I had hoped, though it was fresh and creamy. The Key Lime Pie was tart and cool, a very light yellow/green that suggested actual Key Limes. The Chocolate Silk Torte was like a block of cool fudge on a toasted walnut-pecan praline crust. Get this one too.

Solé is where they've always been, in the middle of the second block of the south side at 44 Baltimore Avenue in Rehoboth Beach. In the summer they have a cute fountain-cooled patio that affords a nice view of the endless parade of eclectic passersby. I must say I was impressed with the new incarnation of Solé, and the small army of people who accompanied me over a several month period agreed. There are ups and downs, but even the downs are higher than some places in town.

By the way, even in the off-season, Solé has a Sunday Brunch from 10-2 with an unlimited Bloody Mary Bar. They have no online menu to which I can link you, but I suggest you just drop in and let the small plates take you where they may. (L., D., Bar). Price range: Moderate.