More restaurants adopting BYO wine options

A fine dining Indian restaurant in Melbourne has forgone the wine list and is encouraging patrons to BYO.

Jessi Singh’s Aanya is set to open in July at the base of a Collingwood apartment block, with Michelin star chefs and a 16-seat kitchen counter.

It will feature ultra-refined cocktails and mocktails, all made from scratch but will be missing a wine list.

“It’s my observation that most Australians who come to my venues have good wine knowledge and often good wine collections, especially if they’re going to a fine-dining restaurant,” Singh told the AFR.

“Our policy works well for them, and it works well for us, too.”

While diners are encouraged to bring their own wines, corkage will be between $25-$35 a bottle.

Singh sees big costs benefits in the move.

“This is a massive saving for my business,” he told the AFR. “I don’t have to install a wine cellar that would cost hundreds of thousands of dollars, and I don’t have to hire a sommelier to sell the list.”

Singh operates six restaurants, with other venues in Sydney and Adelaide and is looking to introduce the BYO policy throughout his venues.

Singh isn’t the only one encouraging BYO. Sydney’s The Charles Brasserie & Bar has introduced BYO Mondays with corkage at $35 per bottle.

Wine director Paolo Saccone told the AFR of a couple who brought in a bottle of Grand Cru Burgundy (a 2015 Domaine de la Romanée-Conti La Tâche), with an estimated value between $12,000 and $15,000 to celebrate their anniversary.

“Obviously, you don’t want to take a bottle like that to your local cheap-and-cheerful BYO joint,” Saccone said.

“You want somewhere with great glassware, the right environment, a sommelier you can trust.”
Sister restaurant Loulou Bistro in Sydney’s Milsons Point has BYO Mondays and Tuesdays.

“We’d been getting feedback from many of our customers that they have large collections of wine, and they’d love to drink them at our restaurants,” Saccone says.

“Also, the [hospitality] industry people love a Monday night BYO, and we like to keep our local clientele happy.”

Saccone said around 30 per cent of diners choose to BYO at The Charles on a Monday, and 25% at Loulou on BYO days.

“So that represents massive value to us because that’s extra business we wouldn’t have had on those days otherwise.”

Japanese-French bistro Bansho in Melbourne’s affluent Armadale offers a BYO option three nights a week with corkage at $25 a bottle).

“As a wine lover myself, I’m always looking for BYO options that have elevated food – that is, food at a level equivalent to the quality of the wine,” owner Larry Xie said.

“I would hate to think that what we’re doing at Bansho is excluding anyone. My customers are educated, they understand the business side of things and are often happy to order off our wine list.

“At the same time, many of them have private cellars, and they really appreciate the fact we’re giving them options.”

Saccone told the AFR that with bottle sales diminishing and people drinking less, the BYO option suits all needs.

“It’s a tough market right now,” Saccone said. “People are more knowledgeable about wine – and the value of wine – than they used to be, and it’s vital for us to stay competitive.”

Shane Delia launched BYO nights on Tuesdays and Wednesdays with a corkage of $25 a bottle at Maha East, in 2017.

“At first we were scared people would just go to the bottle shop across the road and buy a $12 cheapie,” he told the AFR. “But it didn’t turn out like that at all.

“It’s actually a really lovely way to engage and connect with our customers, who will often BYO when they want to celebrate something – an anniversary, a graduation, a business deal. “We make it special for them.”

He recommends doing it on nights when venues need to fill seats.

Jonathan Jackson, 13^th June 2024