Roslyn, N.Y. - Authenticity means a lot to New York diners. So taking a classic Manhattan steakhouse concept off Broadway to the distant suburbs might be seen as, well, less than intuitive. Nonetheless, just such a move yielded one of Long Island's most enduring culinary landmarks.

Growing up in the restaurant business, brothers Gillis and George Poll learned all about the normal roads to success for a family-run business: long hours, reinvestment, quality management and attention to detail. But the road to their successful steak house also meanders through the "Miracle Mile" some 25 miles east of midtown Manhattan, and the key to its popularity can be summed up in their knowing the community it serves.

When the Polls opened Bryant & Cooper Steak House 15 years ago in Roslyn, they set out to re-create the quintessential New-York-style steak esablishment. Names after the famous 19th century author and poet, William Cullen Bryant, who had lived nearby, and his good friend, inventor and politician Peter Cooper, the restaurant offers Prime beef, chops and seafood in a clubby atmosphere where locals come to see and be seen.

The Poll brothers grew up in nearby Manhasset and understood the dining habits of the denizens of one of New York's most affluent suburbs. The concept of fine dining in this North Shore community is the New York City experience, which sets the standard by which the Long Island eateries are compared.

With the real deal so close yet so far away, "We knew the classic New York-style steak house would work here," Gillis poll said.

Bryant & Cooper "is old New York, very polished with a masculine look, " he added. "It's very service- oriented, with mature waiters in beige jackets and long aprons. Even though this has always been the Gold Coast of Long Island, the community hasn't changed much in the way of sophisticated restaurants."

That point has not been missed by a flock of new competitors. Bryant & Cooper Steak House sits just off Northern Boulevard, the main North Shore thoroughfare, which recently became steak-house central for that area of Long Island. Notable red-meat chains like Morton's of Chicago, which is scheduled to open soon, as well as Peter Luger, Burton & Doyle, local steak concepts Charles Rothmann's and North Shore Steak House, all have opened within a few miles east and west of the Polls' restaurant.

"As more and more of these places opened up, we didn't lose a beat of business, " Gillis Poll said. Bryant & Cooper, which boasts a $55-per-person check average, generates an estimated $7 million from the restaurant portion of the business.

"Guests appreciate it here because it's not manager-run," George Poll said. "There's a consistency of quality, and there's a connection to us as operators. People recognize us. Let's face it; we sort of stand out."

Indeed, heads turned one day recently as the broad-shouldered brothers strolled through their restaurant. At 6-feet-4 and 6-feet-5, respectively, Gillis and George Poll cut a measurable path through the lunchtime buzz, stopping to shake hands, kiss cheeks and wave across the room. Patrons seem to want the brothers to know they were in attendance.

"The secret is we're always here, and we pay attention to all the little things," Gillis Poll said. "It becomes a subconscious thing. This is our flagship, so we have more personal involvement."

That involvement means Gillis personally interviews each prospective employee. "Running a steak house is about the basics and having the best - the best food and the best service. You don't have to be trendy, but you have to have the basics down," he said.

Much of what the brothers learned about running a family restaurant can be attributed to their father, James Poll, who owned a seafood institution, Pappas Restaurant, in Sheepshead Bay, Brooklyn. The Poll brothers, Gillis, George and middle brother, Dean, each started working at Pappas at age 12. After a fire destroyed the legendary eatery in 1972, Gillis and Dean took over a pub, a coffee sho and a brasserie in the concourse at Rockefeller Center, all the time looking for a location on Long Island to re-create the Pappas seafood experience.

In 1979 they bought a restaurant in Williston Park, Long Island, and Pappas was reincarnated, again featuring simple preparations and an extraordinary variety of seafood. Ten years later they renovated the restaurant and, with the new look, changed its name to Riverbay. Today, run by Dean Poll, Riverbay remains one of the highest-rated seafood restaurants on Long Island.

More recently, Gillis and George launched a family-style expansion concept, to operate more as a manager- run operation. The Majors Steak House is a more casual-theme, moderately priced concept that has two locations on Long Island, which George oversees. But Bryant & Cooper always will be the family flagship, they said.

The site in Roslyn was a steak house before the Polls took it over in 1985. Manero's Steak House hadn't offered prime beef, but it was still very popular and featured a small retail shop where patrons could purchase fresh cuts of meat to take home.

The retail shop was retained and expanded as part of Bryant & Cooper, which ages and cuts its own prime beef on the premises. The butcher shop is attached to the retail store. "It's added a great dimension to our place, " Gillis said. "We personally hand pick our meat and handle it all ourselves. People come here on the weekends to pick up steaks for their barbecues, their yachts or their places in the Hamptons."

Another key, according to George Poll, is the balance of the menu. "We have a lot to offer besides steak," he said. In fact, an article in GQ magazine two years ago raved about the restaurant's sesame-crusted tuna. "We get a lot of corporate business, but those customers also bring in their families. A steak house is sometimes a hard pick for large groups or families because someone doesn't feel like steak."

Only seven of the 16 entrées are steak or prime rib. Local favorites include such side dishes as the signature Bryant & Cooper salad, the sautéed mushrooms and the stuffed clams.

What's next for the Poll brothers? As before, any expansion would be done slowly, they indicated. They have no outside investors, and they own their own property. Moreover, they open any new restaurant with intense hands-on supervision.

"We could be looking to expand both Bryant & Coopers and Majors concepts in the region," Gillis Poll said, " but we'll do it one at a time and do it very carefully."