Somebody pinch me. My memories of dining at Bonne Soiree are so fresh I can still vividly recall the sensation of a plump, barely warm oyster liquefying in my mouth as I savor an ambrosial soup of oysters in chervil-scented cream. But I'm having a hard time believing it wasn't all just a dream.

And it isn't just the food, sublime as it is, that has me so bewitched. Bonne Soiree has achieved the restaurant trifecta -- rare anywhere, and practically unheard of in the Triangle -- of absolutely topnotch food, service and atmosphere. When you consider the fact that the restaurant has been open just six months, it seems too good to be true.

Granted, decor is largely a matter of personal taste. And I'll admit that Bonne Soiree's dining room -- an intimate, Wedgwood-blue-and-ivory jewel box of a space whose gilt-framed artwork, floor length curtains and French provincial chairs at crisp linen-draped tables recall the days when "fine dining" and "continental" were synonymous -- happens to be my cup of tea. But even those whose taste runs to more modern settings will acknowledge that the decor is well-matched to the menu.

Not that the atmosphere is in the least bit stuffy, or that the bill of fare, for all its classic French influence, is tradition-bound. That's just not the style of owners Chip Smith and Tina Vaughn. Just ask anyone who had the good fortune to dine at Carolina Blues, the Outer Banks restaurant the couple operated for six years before moving to the Triangle.

If there's anything old-fashioned about Bonne Soiree, it's the gracious hospitality of Vaughn, who runs the front of the house. It's no cliche to say that she treats patrons as if they were guests in her home, and she has assembled a first-rate wait staff to back her up. The fact that she's the most enthusiastic, gracious and downright helpful wine steward I've ever come across is icing on the cake. Her wine pairing service, at $25 per person, is an offer you don't want to pass up.

Smith's culinary pedigree includes work in some of the most highly acclaimed restaurants in America, including An American Place in New York, The Inn at Little Washington and Jean-Louis at the Watergate in Washington, DC. At Bonne Soiree, that experience combines with the chef's own considerable talent to produce a seasonally evolving menu whose offerings are among the most consistently rewarding in the Triangle. In this case, "consistently" doesn't imply sameness, but refers to that rare dining experience in which you begin to count on each dish being more impressive than the last. And Smith doesn't disappoint.

No sooner do I pronounce his duck terrine appetizer the epitome of liver creations than along comes his pan-seared foie gras with black pepper brioche to raise the ante. By the time entrees arrive, I'm not surprised that flounder a la meuniere is irreproachable, the fish sweetly succulent against a rustic backdrop of brown butter, capers, lemon and honshimiji mushrooms. Or that a brace of bronze-skinned quail, stuffed with chestnuts and country pate and served over creamy lentils, is flawless. The meal concludes with a textbook Sachertorte and an apple financier garnished with a lustrous Calvados sabayon.

Based on that first visit, I theorize that Smith is at his best when he's working in his comfort zone of French cuisine and costly ingredients. But when I return, the meal begins with house-made ravioli, filled with Carolina sweet potatoes and floating in an elixir of Virginia ham, collard greens and pot liquor, and my theory goes out the window. Then I taste the oyster soup, which trumps everything -- that is, until the next course is served. Both entrees feature dual presentations: lamb chop and braised shoulder of lamb with French flageolets, broccoli raab and a cumin-fragrant carrot pave; and grilled loin and braised thigh of rabbit with apples, prunes and spaetzle in brown butter. Both dishes are superb.

Desserts, an ethereally light coconut cake and a milk chocolate hazelnut tart, are delightful, though they don't actually raise the standard of culinary excellence above what has preceded them. Truth is, it's hard to imagine that standard getting any higher. Not that it will stop me from returning to Bonne Soiree -- time and again -- to find out.

On second thought, If I am dreaming, I'd just as soon nobody wake me.