To BYO or not to BYO
Claudine Earley
SHAKESPEARE never had to worry about whether he could bring his own wine to a restaurant or not.
The bard thought wine was for the court. He preferred ye olde English ale.
As Autolycus sings in The Winter’s Tale:
“The white sheet bleaching on the hedge, with heigh! the sweet birds, O, how they sing!
Doth set my pugging tooth on edge, for a quart of ale is a dish for a king.”
Kiwis, unlike Shakespeare, love to share a bottle of wine with friends over dinner.
As wine lovers, we are often faced with the pros and cons of BYO.
BYO restaurants are usually less posh than their licensed counterparts. What if you feel like some fancy French? Always licensed.
But the key consideration is price. The restaurant mark-up on wine is hefty, with more reasonable eating establishments adding 50%, while others twist the knife with 200%.
Yet before we could even face these BYO dilemmas, New Zealanders had to break the alliance that had been forged between the Temperance Union and the big breweries. Historical liquor licensing laws encouraged binge drinking. The “six o’clock swill” had our fathers and grandfathers sculling beer in that brief hour between the end of the work day and 6pm. The law prevented food from being enjoyed with alcohol anywhere but hotels, and then only until bars closed.
This all changed in 1961. After arriving in NZ to discover our uncultured ways, Dutch-born restaurateur Otto Groen spent seven years wooing politicians from three different administrations before he won the right to serve wine, beer and cocktails with food. Prior to this, he had given diners iced water upon arrival at his Gourmet restaurant in Auckland. Smart customers smuggled booze in and a blind eye was turned should they refill their glasses from their own supplies.
Sadly, Mr Groen passed away recently, while making breakfast for his wife.
In the end, let your mood and wallet dictate dining choice. And if your wallet seldom stretches to licenced restaurants?
This month is Wellington on a Plate – an excellent opportunity to try two-course set lunch menus for $25-$35 including a glass of local wine. I have my eye on a couple of dishes, especially Wagyu skirt steak, red wine onions, celeriac remoulade and parsley salad matched with Ata Rangi Célèbre 2007.
The bard thought wine was for the court. He preferred ye olde English ale.
As Autolycus sings in The Winter’s Tale:
“The white sheet bleaching on the hedge, with heigh! the sweet birds, O, how they sing!
Doth set my pugging tooth on edge, for a quart of ale is a dish for a king.”
Kiwis, unlike Shakespeare, love to share a bottle of wine with friends over dinner.
As wine lovers, we are often faced with the pros and cons of BYO.
BYO restaurants are usually less posh than their licensed counterparts. What if you feel like some fancy French? Always licensed.
But the key consideration is price. The restaurant mark-up on wine is hefty, with more reasonable eating establishments adding 50%, while others twist the knife with 200%.
Yet before we could even face these BYO dilemmas, New Zealanders had to break the alliance that had been forged between the Temperance Union and the big breweries. Historical liquor licensing laws encouraged binge drinking. The “six o’clock swill” had our fathers and grandfathers sculling beer in that brief hour between the end of the work day and 6pm. The law prevented food from being enjoyed with alcohol anywhere but hotels, and then only until bars closed.
This all changed in 1961. After arriving in NZ to discover our uncultured ways, Dutch-born restaurateur Otto Groen spent seven years wooing politicians from three different administrations before he won the right to serve wine, beer and cocktails with food. Prior to this, he had given diners iced water upon arrival at his Gourmet restaurant in Auckland. Smart customers smuggled booze in and a blind eye was turned should they refill their glasses from their own supplies.
Sadly, Mr Groen passed away recently, while making breakfast for his wife.
In the end, let your mood and wallet dictate dining choice. And if your wallet seldom stretches to licenced restaurants?
This month is Wellington on a Plate – an excellent opportunity to try two-course set lunch menus for $25-$35 including a glass of local wine. I have my eye on a couple of dishes, especially Wagyu skirt steak, red wine onions, celeriac remoulade and parsley salad matched with Ata Rangi Célèbre 2007.
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