Brasserie D: Nyack's Parisian Table for French Classics, a Raw Bar, and Sunday Brunch

You do not have to cross an ocean for a proper French brasserie meal. In the heart of Nyack, at 108 Main Street, Brasserie D lays out the whole repertoire: a raw bar, long-simmered classics, and a Sunday brunch built around poached eggs and hollandaise.

The restaurant describes its aim in plain terms: to create good memories for its customers with an authentic French-style dining experience, built on carefully sourced, fresh and premium ingredients from sustainable and local farmers and suppliers. The menu backs that up with breadth. Lunch and dinner open with French onion soup, escargots au beurre d'ail, country pâté with cornichon and toasted baguette, tarte flambée alsacienne with pork belly and crème fraîche, and charcuterie and cheese plates made for two. Salads run from frisée aux lardon with sautéed pork belly and an organic poached egg to an endive salad with apple, walnut, beets, and blue cheese.

The entrées are the classics, done the slow way. There is beef bourguignon slow-cooked in red wine sauce, coq au vin with free-range chicken in red wine sauce, cassoulet de canard with duck confit and Toulouse sausage, magret de canard, braised lamb shank, steak frites with a 12 oz grilled ribeye, and filet mignon au poivre. Bouillabaisse arrives as fish and shellfish in a tomato saffron broth with rouille toast, and choucroute Colmar piles smoked meats and sausages over sauerkraut. Croque madame and croque monsieur round out the bistro side of the menu, with French ham, gruyere, and béchamel.

Then there is the raw bar, Le Bar à Huîtres: a petit plateau for one to three people and a grand plateau for four to six, plus a selection of East Coast and West Coast oysters, jumbo shrimp cocktail, and little neck clams. And the moules frites come three ways: marinière in white wine, shallots, garlic, parsley, and cream; Catalan with tomato, chorizo sausage, and thyme; and aux curry with cream, curry, and apple.

Sunday brunch has its own page: Benedict, Norwegian with smoked salmon, Florentine with spinach, avocado, omelette, scrambled eggs in puff pastry with asparagus, and brioche French toast with warm berries and maple syrup, alongside mimosas, a Bloody Mary with chipotle horseradish and olive tapenade, and a sparkling rosé cocktail. Desserts close the meal with a crème brûlée trio in Grand Marnier, espresso, and vanilla; chocolat fondant, a molten flourless chocolate cake with vanilla ice cream; fraise melba; and café liégeois.

Reviewers keep coming back to the same notes. A directory listing currently shows 4.5 from 114 reviews, and its review pages praise the French onion soup, the steak tartare, and the lobster mac, and mention chef Alain coming to the tables to chat with guests. That last detail fits the room the restaurant describes: a favorite destination for locals and tourists alike, where the meal is meant to be lingered over.

The practical details are simple. Brasserie D is at 108 Main Street, Nyack, NY 10960, and can be reached at (845) 353-2191. It serves brunch, lunch, and dinner, with dine-in and takeout. Hours listed by the directory are noon to 10pm Wednesday, Thursday, and Monday; noon to 11pm Friday and Saturday; noon to 9pm Sunday; and closed on Tuesdays. For a first visit, the move is easy: start with the escargots or the pâté, order the moules frites or the bourguignon, and save room for the crème brûlée trio.