Brasserie 529: French Cuisine Savannah Style

While Savannah is certainly known for its’ cuisine, most of the restaurants’ famous dishes include the words fried or breaded and butter is one of the top ingredients. Paula Deen, made famous for her sweet Southern twang and love of all things butter, is a Savannah native and many of her dishes are in line with those that have made Savannah and the South famous. If you’re looking for delicious fried chicken, frickles (fried pickles), delicious drop biscuits, shrimp and grits, pecan pie, pralines, or greens than we do it better than anyone else.

Unlike Southern cuisine and seafood, French food is one cuisine for which Savannah has never been known. For example, even though I called Savannah home for more than 20 years, I couldn’t name a single French restaurant, until this trip home.  It turns out that the reason behind this is that the three most well known French restaurants in Savannah, Papillote, Circa 1875, and our lunch choice, Brasserie 529 have all opened quite recently.

After my long run on Saturday, my dad figured I’d like a proper meal to refuel. He knows me very well as there is nothing I prefer!

My parents surprised me with lunch at Brasserie 529, their new favorite restaurant. I was surprised to hear the name and realize that a French restaurant, a casual restaurant moreover, had finally called Savannah home.

A casual but modern brasserie, conveniently located within walking distance of historic Savannah’s many tourist attractions, at 529 East Liberty Street,  Brasserie 529 is open Tuesday through Saturday for lunch and dinner. After just one quick glance at the menu’s prices, it was clear that the owners want this restaurant to be accessible for both locals and tourists.

The décor is warm and comfortable with dark wood booths and comfortable chairs against the warm yellow walls. The Parisian influences throughout include paintings, chandeliers, and floral touches.

I was a very happy and hungry lady, growing hungrier by the moment due the restaurant’s rich aromas.

It took us to study the menu as so many items sounded delicious including but not limited to their house specialties which have come to include the Lyndy burger, coq au vin, and mussel frites.

In the end, we all chose very different entrees so we could share the different flavors for which Brasserie is known. My mom chose Saturday’s special, Rabbit Stew, while my dad went with the traditional coq au vin. Deep down, I really wanted both items which they were already sold out of, the duck and the seared fish. I finally decided upon the fish en papillote since I was craving seafood.

Before our main entrees were served, we each shared a delicious salad, each of which were far fancier than we expected.

The Torched Arugula salad is like nothing I’ve ever had before, topped with roasted grapes, blue cheese, nuts orange segments, ladrons, and an orange honey vinaigrette. We were a little disappointed with the salad, hoping it would be a bit larger as this picture is pretty true to size.  In addition, I wish that our waitress had donned our table with a fresh loaf of French bread versus bringing it out with our meal.

Thirty minutes later, our lunch arrived, steaming hot fresh from the oven. While the thirty minute wait flew by due to the great company, I do believe that Brasserie 529 needs to include on their menu details such as cook time if certain dishes take longer than others. Most business people and even tourists often expect lunch to be a meal that is quick versus a dining experience.

However, as soon as we enjoyed our first bite of lunch, our annoyance was replaced with delicious sighs.

We all joined the clean plate club, enjoying every bite of our lunch dishes. The fish and rabbit were petite portions, perfect for a lunch dish. The coq au vin was a far larger portion, similar to what you would expect during dinner. The rich meat and crispy skin was absolutely delicious and the sauce screamed for a hearty, crusty bread for dipping. My mom’s rabbit was the clear winner due to pure uniqueness and the overall flavor profile. The rabbit did not leave a “gamey” taste and the large vegetables and potato topping was a perfect pairing for the rich stew. Unfortunately the fish didn’t meet my expectations as the small portion did not have the strong garlic and lemon flavor I have come to expect in fish en papillote. However, it was still delicious and quickly devoured by our table!

After tasting each dish, I have put the above pictures in order of flavor and uniqueness.  

Overall, our experience was wonderful and I would recommend that both tourists and locals alike visit Brasserie 529 for lunch or dinner. The staff is very friendly, the atmosphere inviting, and the vast majority of their dishes leave you scraping the plate for every last bite. In addition, rumor has it that they’ve recently started a happy hour Tuesday-Saturday from 3-7pm during which time they feature $2 beers, $6 wines, and many appetizer specials!