Would you BYO instead of ordering off the wine list to save money at restaurants? Photos: Michelle Kroll.
Recent surveys of Canberra businesses have shown a gloomy forecast, especially in the hospitality industry.
To combat the spending downturn and entice people to dine out more often, some of Canberra’s most highly regarded restaurants have revived a trend many thought had been consigned to casual suburban eateries: BYO.
Fine dining restaurant Pilot has reintroduced BYO Thursdays with a charitable twist.
“With the cost of living at the moment, sometimes people just want to bring a nice bottle they already own,” co-owner Dash Rumble told Region.
“We did BYO Thursdays last year, and then we thought, why not bring it back and use the corkage money and give it to charity or other organisations we want to support?”
Patrons can choose how much corkage they pay, and each month, Pilot donates the proceeds to a charity. In February, they will donate to UNICEF. In March, to coincide with International Women’s Day, they’re considering a women’s charity. They are open to suggestions for other organisations to support in the future.
The idea is to encourage patrons back into restaurants as reservations have decreased across the industry in the last year.
Pilot co-owner Dash Rumble will donate corkage funds to charities from BYO Thursdays. Photo: Lean Timms.
Third-culture restaurant Mínima has also added BYO to its menu. Co-owner Benn Ratanakosol told Region before the restaurant’s 2024 opening that they wanted to keep prices approachable.
“There will be a concise wine list [at Mínima], but I’m also excited for people to show off what they have in their cellars at home,” Benn said.
They see it as an opportunity to offer people all the trimmings of a special occasion meal without breaking the bank. This is the first time they’ve had a BYO option, as they didn’t offer it at their previous Kingston restaurant, Morks. The restaurant is also just around the corner from the bottle shop Cork & Glass.
The Italian Place in Braddon started offering BYO to guests in 2023. As a restaurant with strong ties with several local wine clubs, they had regular customers with large cellars who were eager to bring different wines to share with friends. The Italian Place’s own wine list focuses exclusively on Italian and Canberra Region wines, so allowing people to bring their own wine meant that diners could choose something according to their own taste.
Mínima is also offering BYO at their 22-seater restaurant in Yarralumla. Photo: Pewpew Studio.
In addition to offering BYO, Pilot also offers a creative non-alcoholic drink pairing that caters to the growing number of people who want to drink less. This trend has seen alcohol-free brands like Altina and Heaps Normal take off, and well-curated mocktails are becoming more common on drink lists around town, too.
As diners drink less wine in restaurants, those choices then flow onto other parts of the industry.
“When we talk to local winemakers, they say they can tell when we’re not as busy because there’s a snowball effect on their wholesale business,” Dash said.
“We’re all fighting for a piece of the pie at the moment and people are being a bit restrictive about how and where they’re spending their money.”
Offering BYO is a chance for local restaurants to tempt customers who are feeling a little shy about spending their money on a night out. As Canberrans dine out less frequently and spend less when they do, strategies like this could prove to be a winner.
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