| |
|
Suzanne Cory said...
When getting a large group of friends together for an occasion (20 + people) I will always chose a BYO restaurant as it gives everyone an option to BYO wine or still buy from the restaurant bar. Not everyone is equal, nor do we all have the same pay packets, so at least this way we can still all get together and celebrate but those on a budget can come along too!
14-11-2007
|
|
Milena Secivanovic said...
BYO always seems more attractive especially because my partner and I often like to go out for dinner, so it's anywhere from the local to a cute little place with lots of atmosphere and fantastic food. Ofcourse fine dinning is completely different, selecting a nice bottle of wine from the wine list is part of the experience, but often it's marked up so high that you just order a glass each.However I am a big beliver that all restaurants should have a BYO opportunity for wine only. Afterall you are there to enjoy the food and atmosphere. Whether you take your favourite bottle of wine along shouldn't be a problem. There will be plently of people who will order wine of the list and pay the big bucks regardless!
14-11-2007
|
|
Jackie McMillan said...
We're not great at planning ahead, so I like BYO when there is a good bottleshop near by, and licensed when there isn't! Dining in Pyrmont NSW for example, I always enjoy a browse at Porters Liquor (because they stock my two favourite wines - Shaw & Smith M3 Chardonnay and the Crawford River Young Vines Riesling).
Recently I dined at Blancmange in Petersham NSW, and their wine list impressed me. The markups were very reasonable, and the selections were great. We had a wonderful glass of Grosset Champagne, followed by a lovely bottle from the Cote du Rhone.
One thing that influences my decision to dine is a wide range of interesting wines by the glass - particularly new varietals, because I may not have tried them, but might not want to risk a whole bottle.
14-11-2007
|
|
Malcolm Brothers said...
I can understand the idea behind a licensed restaurant but if you just wanted to pop out to your local semi-reasonably priced restaurant and want a drink, you end up paying $30-$40 for a half decent bottle of wine! I know that restaurants must recoup their license fees by increasing the margins of their wines etc but being able to wander in with a great $20 bottle of wine that you picked is much more my style.
12-03-2008
|
|
Darlene MacDonald said...
We don't mind whether it's licensed or BYO, provided the corkage isn't too high for BYO and licensed restaurants don't charge absurd amounts for their wines. If they're too high we just won't drink.
12-03-2008
|
|
Sitwell and Eat said...
I love both...! You can't go wrong with a cosey restuarant, a good group of friends and lots of conversation in your local restaurant with the knowledge that there is plenty of wine stashed in bags under the table all for a small corkage fee.
The enjoyment of sharing your favourite wines with special friends and acting as a true sommelier as you decide which Hunter favourite to open next is hard to beat.
Whilst at the same time, licensed restaurants are also special, the range of wine often far exceeds your personal collection and isn't it always nice to try and broaden your taste? Afterall, surely you need to know there are licensed restaurants out there incase you run out of your BYO?!
15-05-2008
|
|
www.1001dinners.blogspot.com said...
Few people have any really superior wines and although there are usually plenty of extravagantly priced wines one can generally get something quite drinkable for a quite modest price. On the other hand if you have something very special most "fully licenced" restaurants will come to an arrangement with you. They may like you to drop the wine in early so other diners do not see you bringing your own. Do beware of corkage though. I ate at the French Laundry, a world renowned Thomas Keller restaurant, in California last year. We brought a 3 litre bottle of our own wine which they happily served us (6 of us). The corkage was an astonishing $200 + Tax + tip!!! Ultimately I am not influenced by licenced or BYO
15-05-2008
|
|
Melissa Baillie said...
Generally I dont bother to find out if the restaurant is BYO or not, as we normally just buy wine from the restaurant. I like to try different wines and if I bring my own I have the same ones. The only time we really bring our own is when the restaurant doesnt sell alcohol.. So Im not bothered either way!
10-06-2008
|
