Grand Euro-style Manon Brasserie opens in the Queen Victoria Building

Sydneysiders finally get their first peek at one of the city's most ambitious restaurant openings of 2022.

Manon Brasserie, which pitches itself as a grand Euro-style example of the genre, doesn't shirk expectation.

With its mix of seasoned operators, a chef with Michelin-starred restaurants on his CV and a street-level position in Sydney's historic Queen Victoria Building, Manon has all the ingredients in place to justify those lofty ambitions.

It's the second collaboration between Marco Ambrosino, the Fratelli Paradiso co-founder who recently departed the Potts Point stalwart, and Manny Spinola, who owns a number of venues, including The Tea Room QVB.

The restaurateurs teamed up to open Lola's Level 1 at Bondi Beach last October.

Manon has been built to feel like a seamless addition to one of Sydney's most historic buildings, with a luxe fitout heavy in timber and brass.

"The tiles were supposed to arrive from Europe in February," says Spinola. He is keen to bring a piazza feel to a landmark city corner bookended by a statue of Queen Victoria.

They've lured chef Thomas Boisselier, fresh from a stint as head chef at Oscar in Lyon. Before that, he worked in Provence with three-Michelin-starred chef Christophe Bacquie, and the Frenchman is keen to import a slice of his homeland.

"The inspiration is a bit of the bouchons of Lyon and places like Bistrot Paul Bert in Paris," says Boisselier. "But there still has to be some touches of Australia."

So the all-day venue slides avocado with crab toast onto its breakfast menu, alongside traditional dishes such as eggs Florentine, and duck breast with an orange sauce might appear on the opening dinner menu.

The gig marks a return to Australia for Boisselier, who had a spell cooking in Brisbane. "I loved Australia and always said I wanted to come back," he says.

Spinola heard Boisselier was keen to relocate Down Under so he and Ambrosino phoned the chef in France. Next thing, he was cooking a trial menu for them in Sydney.

"We've really focused on quality in everything we do, whether it is a croque monsieur or something from the raw bar," Spinola says.

"It's feels like a great time to launch. There's a real energy back in in the city."

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Open daily 6am-late.

Shop 55, Queen Victoria Building, 455 George Street, Sydney, 02 9051 2008, manonbrasserie.com.au