Beta_Tester
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im trying to squeeze out time to dine at.. Michelin star restaurant.
Wine
- Thread starter ikileo
- Start date
twtan14
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Me too, my lips get dried easily.
hey guys, time to arrange for our next session:
SPANISH WINES!
Bring any wines (red,white,dessert,rose,sparkling) from Spain. Just make sure its a good bottle!
All are welcome! If you need any input on where you can get a decent selection of Spanish wines, let me know.
SPANISH WINES!
Bring any wines (red,white,dessert,rose,sparkling) from Spain. Just make sure its a good bottle!
All are welcome! If you need any input on where you can get a decent selection of Spanish wines, let me know.
in leading up to the Spanish dinner, i thought i'd upload some information and videos for everyone's enrichment 
Spanish wine - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Spanish Wines Come of Age, Offering Great Summer Bargains - Bloomberg
Spanish wine - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Spanish Wines Come of Age, Offering Great Summer Bargains - Bloomberg
zjllee
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I'll definitely prefer a place with no corkage charges (or some that actually store wines for you) when choosing a place to wine and dine. Not too convinced with the $100 corkage and that "purist" place with the specially selected white wines and no BYOB policy. They usually translate to stuffy places (probably because of the lack of wine flowing at the table).
MuthuCurry
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Yes, i did. in fact, i just had dinner at one of the restaurant with free corkage tt featured in Sunday time. the service is very good, and the captain who served us is very knowledgeable abt wine/food pairing. he looked at the wines tt we brought there and arrange the sequence of dishes and paired with the wines. plus, all the stemware there are Riedel! it is a very pleasant dining experience and the food is good and reasonably priced.
Baggio10
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where's that?
stayhappy21
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Do post it if you got it ikileo!
I just returned from a month trip in the US. Had the opportunity to visit some wineries in California as well as dining at French Laundry. Very enriching experience. Of course, not to mention the constant drinking
I just returned from a month trip in the US. Had the opportunity to visit some wineries in California as well as dining at French Laundry. Very enriching experience. Of course, not to mention the constant drinking
uncharted2000
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Found a related article on Straits Times Online. Good information on the free BYOB.
Diners may find themselves hit with high corkage fees
Diners may find themselves hit with high corkage fees
Well here's my $0.02
I thought this was a sloppy article that sort of updates without covering any new ground. One is likely to learn more about corkage situations by trawling this thread!
Regading corkage for opportunity cost, deterrence (WTF) to diners BYOBing etc., restaurants exist to turn food and drink into profit and in our high rental, shortage of service staff business environment, I think I can accept that beverages and alcohol can be big contributors to profit margins. Just like it's always been with the coffeeshops.
Bigger than 200% markup - check!
No outside drinks allowed - check!
No value add other than providing ice and drinking vessels - check!
Having said that, the days in which restaurants can charge a hefty markup on a no-mark house wine are gone. Diners may be willing to spend on a night out these days, but they're certainly not wine ignoramuses anymore. There's a better sense of what wine is good or bad, and what wine costs $15 a glass and what wine costs $25 a glass, thanks to extensive wine and dine experiences overseas, coverage of wine in the media as well as open forums such as this.
The success of places such as Imperial Treasure, Jumbo, Jade Palace, New Ubin Seafood also proves that BYOB can actually be a policy to attract diners rather than the short-sighted 'drink our wine, or don't drink at all' scheme some places seem to prefer. The number of wine-loving clientele with personal collections is definitely growing and to me this seems a market well worth pursuing. Rather than trying to be yet another hip Wine Bistro or Tapas Bar that ironically, every Tom, Dick and Harry is doing.
Of course it will be good if some Western restaurants can follow suit, but from the business perspective, it will take something quite creative and revolutionary. I think the way the money men look at it, they'll tabulate the cost of the wine collection, the stemware, the wine fridges, the training of sommeliers etc and think, I must mark-up at least 2x or 3x to earn back. But maybe one day we can see a Western restaurant with a basic but respectable wine list, but happy to BYOB and leverage on customers ordering other drinks, or more food, or reward them with return visits!?
It all depends on how much thought goes into these policy decisions by the restaurant, which regrettably, is too little at the moment. I am actually fine with places like Gaia Ristorante at Goodwood (mentioned earlier in the thread) who have quite a low mark-up on their wines, but have a one-for-one policy. I can bring my own wines and at the same time, choose from their impressive range, and be able to reward their efforts in pursuing a wine-friendly approach.
Here are some other BYOB places I've patronised before, not mentioned in the article:
Gattorpardo - BYOB Tue
Keystone - BYOB Mon & Tue, 1 bottle per 2 pax
Otto Ristorante - BYOB first 3 bottles, Mon-Wed
La Barca - Wed, no limit
Some Prive Group restaurants, eg. Roadhouse, University Club
Ola Cucina del Mar - BYOB first 3 bottles
*Please call to verify policy as you make your reservation - These policies can change from time to time.
I thought this was a sloppy article that sort of updates without covering any new ground. One is likely to learn more about corkage situations by trawling this thread!
Regading corkage for opportunity cost, deterrence (WTF) to diners BYOBing etc., restaurants exist to turn food and drink into profit and in our high rental, shortage of service staff business environment, I think I can accept that beverages and alcohol can be big contributors to profit margins. Just like it's always been with the coffeeshops.
Bigger than 200% markup - check!
No outside drinks allowed - check!
No value add other than providing ice and drinking vessels - check!
Having said that, the days in which restaurants can charge a hefty markup on a no-mark house wine are gone. Diners may be willing to spend on a night out these days, but they're certainly not wine ignoramuses anymore. There's a better sense of what wine is good or bad, and what wine costs $15 a glass and what wine costs $25 a glass, thanks to extensive wine and dine experiences overseas, coverage of wine in the media as well as open forums such as this.
The success of places such as Imperial Treasure, Jumbo, Jade Palace, New Ubin Seafood also proves that BYOB can actually be a policy to attract diners rather than the short-sighted 'drink our wine, or don't drink at all' scheme some places seem to prefer. The number of wine-loving clientele with personal collections is definitely growing and to me this seems a market well worth pursuing. Rather than trying to be yet another hip Wine Bistro or Tapas Bar that ironically, every Tom, Dick and Harry is doing.
Of course it will be good if some Western restaurants can follow suit, but from the business perspective, it will take something quite creative and revolutionary. I think the way the money men look at it, they'll tabulate the cost of the wine collection, the stemware, the wine fridges, the training of sommeliers etc and think, I must mark-up at least 2x or 3x to earn back. But maybe one day we can see a Western restaurant with a basic but respectable wine list, but happy to BYOB and leverage on customers ordering other drinks, or more food, or reward them with return visits!?
It all depends on how much thought goes into these policy decisions by the restaurant, which regrettably, is too little at the moment. I am actually fine with places like Gaia Ristorante at Goodwood (mentioned earlier in the thread) who have quite a low mark-up on their wines, but have a one-for-one policy. I can bring my own wines and at the same time, choose from their impressive range, and be able to reward their efforts in pursuing a wine-friendly approach.
Here are some other BYOB places I've patronised before, not mentioned in the article:
Gattorpardo - BYOB Tue
Keystone - BYOB Mon & Tue, 1 bottle per 2 pax
Otto Ristorante - BYOB first 3 bottles, Mon-Wed
La Barca - Wed, no limit
Some Prive Group restaurants, eg. Roadhouse, University Club
Ola Cucina del Mar - BYOB first 3 bottles
*Please call to verify policy as you make your reservation - These policies can change from time to time.
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