Hidden behind a traditional brick house is a party oasis

Whether it’s a party for 100 guests or a few friends over for a backyard cookout, when Dale and Edie Torok entertain, it’s a guaranteed good time.

“You don’t turn down an invitation from the Toroks unless you’re sick, and then you come anyway,” said friend Missy Moody.

The Toroks’ backyard is set up for everyone to have fun. First, there’s Dale’s collection of beautifully restored antique cars to see. Or guests can put on some dress-up clothes that Edie Torok has, such as a poodle skirt or a cowboy hat, and pose for a photo op.

They might play horseshoes, or just stroll around the yard finding all the pretty little hidden nooks, sometimes set with sculpture.

Or they could enjoy a sip from a cool drink near the elaborate, two-tier, 10,000-gallon pond where two dozen koi, some weighing 25 pounds, dash and splash as if they know they’re part of the evening’s entertainment.

In the background, there’s always music. The music system in the house plays in speakers mounted on the patio, in the tree over the pond, and in the pump house. The garage has a separate sound system.

A bluegrass band will play this weekend, when the Toroks have their annual fall party for 150 guests.

“Dale loves big parties,” Edie said. Many guests will be from Jackson in Breathitt County, where Dale is from.

The caterer will work in an outdoor kitchen on the patio, which features a built-in Viking grill and a granite countertop for serving. A sliding window makes it convenient to pass drinks from the bar in the house to the outside area.

The backyard oasis surprises first-time visitors. The Toroks live on a fairly commercial stretch of North Broadway, and “from the front, the house looks like an apartment building,” friend Lucien Moody said. “I walked in the first time and it was like, ‘Holy cow.’”

Dale Torok, who owns a payroll-processing service, and his late wife, Kathleen, moved there on April 1, 1986.

Elmer Sandusky, owner of Savage Lumber Co., now Palumbo Lumber, built the two-story brick house on a one-acre lot in 1951.

“At that time, this was the farthest house out North Broadway,” Dale Torok said. “It was just farmland all around here that Mr. Sandusky owned.”

In addition to parties, the garden has been the setting for weddings including the Toroks’. Dale and Edie Torok were married there Oct. 10, 2015. Edie, the former Edie Maddox, is a retired English teacher in the Fayette County public schools, where she taught for 28 years, 22 of those at Henry Clay High School.

When you walk through the back gate, the first thing you see is the stunning, contemporary addition to the house that resembles the bow of a ship. A house in Altadena, Calif., designed by Frank Lloyd Wright Jr., influenced the design. Local craftsmen built it in 2011.

The garage has a similar addition, built in 2014, with a soaring ceiling and large windows. Used for entertaining and for storing cars, the garage has a wet bar, a wine cooler, a 70-inch wall-mounted TV, a comfortable sofa and chairs, and a dining table. A sliding window opens between the garage and a well-equipped kitchen in the adjoining guest quarters.

Dale Torok’s brother Dwane “Dewey” Torok thought the garage was so grand, he crafted a large plaque that says “Garag Mahal.” It hangs on the wall.

Dale’s collection of antique cars includes a 1949 Triumph sedan, a 1956 Thunderbird, a 1958 Corvette, a 1957 MGA, a 1961 Mercedes 190-SL, a 1959 Mercedes 220-S sedan, a 1965 Shelby Cobra, a 1966 Volvo P-1800 and a 1950 Dodge truck. For photo ops, the yellow Thunderbird convertible is everybody’s favorite, Edie said.

The cars are in mint condition, gassed up and ready to roll at the turn of a key. Dale Torok belongs to several area car clubs, and many of the couple’s friends are car buffs.

“Sometimes on a Sunday morning, Dale will call and get six or eight of us together. We’ll meet here and drive some place like Berea or Wallace Station for lunch,” Richard Potts said.

One evening recently, Potts and his wife, Pat, and the Moodys came over to talk about the trip they and the Toroks will take to Spain and Italy next month.

A highlight for many of the men will be a visit to the Ferrari factory, which Moody was able to arrange because he’s a Ferrari owner.

“To visit the factory, you’ve got to be a Ferrari owner and apply through a Ferrari dealership,” Moody said. “When you’re accepted, you can take two friends.”

While the guys talked cars, the women had drinks near the koi pond. “This has to be one of the most delightful spots ever,” Pat Potts said.

As the koi cavorted in the water, and Jimmy Buffet songs wafted through the tree-mounted speaker, she said, “This is just about as stressful as it ever gets here.”

This story was originally published October 21, 2016 at 9:57 AM with the headline "Hidden behind a traditional brick house is a party oasis."