Unexpectedly BYO: We pop the cork(age) on 13 Sydney restaurants for all budgets

It’s rare for restaurants in Sydney to loudly advertise their BYO policy. Often it will be scrawled at the bottom of a blackboard in the dining room, 40 posts deep in their Instagram feed, or simply shared via word of mouth.

If you’ve scoured the internet and kept coming up with the same old options, here are some new, updated and downright unexpected places to savour your favourite bottle of wine (or beer, in some cases) over a solid meal.

Viand

On the first Monday of every month, this hatted Thai restaurant offers two sittings (6pm and 8pm) of an $85 four-course tasting menu. The price is inclusive of corkage, allowing diners to bring along one bottle of wine per person to pair with an evolving menu created by The Sydney Morning Herald Good Food Guide Chef of the Year Annita Potter. Last month it featured grilled scallops with golden shallots, makrut lime leaves and chilli jam; spatchcock and peanut red curry; and Gregory Island tiger prawns. Be sure to book ahead − these nights frequently reach capacity.

41 Crown Street, Woolloomooloo, viand.club

Lil Sis, The Abercrombie and Casa Rosa

Hot tip: If you buy a bottle of wine from the large selection of minimal-intervention wines at the Lil Sis bottle shop, you can take it upstairs to the late-night wine bar or next door to The Abercrombie (and Casa Rosa) for a corkage fee of $30 per bottle. The Lil Sis wine bar is an intimate, European-style space with a selection of casual snacks and share plates from $4 (think Ortiz anchovies, roasted peppers and burrata with charred peach). Plus, if you decide you’d prefer to try a few before settling on a bottle, the bar offers its entire wine list (minus the champagne) by the glass.

100 Broadway, Chippendale, abercrombie.sydney

Porcine

This classic French bistro (particularly cosy in winter thanks to its working fireplace) welcomes diners to BYO wine-only for $35 per bottle and $50 per magnum. In the past, the BYO policy was limited to bottles purchased at P&V Wine and Liquor Merchants downstairs, but the rules have since been relaxed (though P&V remains a convenient and well-stocked choice). The hatted restaurant is helmed by chef Nicholas Hill, who offers an ever-changing a la carte menu of seasonal and often meaty dishes such as game and raisin pie, wild roast pigeon and cauliflower gratin.

268 Oxford Street, Paddington, porcine.com.au

Busta

Every Tuesday and Wednesday night this vibey Italian restaurant encourages diners to BYO wine from Winona, its affiliated bottle shop next door. It boasts a large selection of natural and biodynamic drops, easily paired with Busta’s menu of modern Italian classics. There’s whipped parmesan butter with freshly baked focaccia; burrata with heirloom tomatoes and basil oil; and cannoli filled with house-made lemon ricotta; with mains priced around the $30 mark and a set menu from $70 per person. Corkage is just $6 per person.

10 Pittwater Rd, Manly, goodgoodcompany.com

Otto Ristorante

You and up to 10 of your closest friends can pull up a harbourside table for a cruisy, bougie BYO lunch at hatted Italian restaurant Otto on Wednesdays, Thursdays or Fridays (also available on Wednesday and Thursday evenings). The three-course choice menu is $150 per person, inclusive of corkage, and features dishes such as braised wild boar and pancetta gnocchi or risotto. Limited BYO tables are available for each service and the special expires at the end of August.

Area 8, 6 Cowper Wharf Roadway, Woolloomooloo, ottoristorante.com.au

Two Chaps

This one is well known, but it really is good value. Behind the garage door of a converted warehouse, the team from Two Chaps is serving a multi-course Italian tasting menu for $70 per person with the option to BYO wine or beer for an additional $10 per bottle. Dishes might include handmade agnolotti pasta filled with Dutch cream potato, beer-onion broth and smoked scamorza; baked Milawa camembert cheese; and mafaldine with mushroom XO sauce and roast mushrooms. It’s a great Friday or Saturday night option for groups with different dietary concerns, as the menu can be adapted (with prior notice) to accommodate vegans, gluten intolerance and nut allergies.

122 Chapel St, Marrickville, twochaps.com.au

Loulou Bistro

Hatted French bistro Loulou has just announced they’ll be introducing a BYO policy during lunch and dinner service on Monday and Tuesday each week. Corkage is $35 per bottle and the policy is limited to wine only. Pair your favourite bottle with a selection of classic French dishes such as steak frites, gnocchi Parisienne and cote de boeuf, or get even more bang for your buck with the prix fixe two-course lunch menu (perhaps quiche and minute steak with fries) for $60 per person.

61 Lavender St, Milsons Point, loulou.sydney

Infinity

Did you know that the revolving restaurant at the top of the Sydney Tower is considered so romantic that up to six people have proposed marriage on a single night? If you’re planning a date night in the stars, you might as well take advantage of their BYO wine-only policy on Monday nights. Corkage is $30 per bottle, with a one bottle per person limit. And while the restaurant could rely on its stunning views for patrons, the $140 three-course choice menu is sure to satisfy, with standouts including coral trout sashimi, Akoya oysters and bay bugs with norikuro butter.

108 Market St, Sydney, infinitysydneytower.com.au

Sushi Oe

If you are one of the (very, very) lucky diners to score a reservation at this northside omakase, you’re welcome to bring your favourite bottle of wine or sake along with you. Corkage is $40 per bottle of wine and $80 per (“big”) sake bottle, tacked onto the hefty $230 per person price tag. Chef Toshihiko Oe welcomes six guests each night (each of whom competed against hundreds of would-be diners to score a seat), and treats them to the freshest seasonal produce (often with a heavy seafood focus).

476 Miller St, Cammeray, instagram.com/sushieooe

Porkfat

Shortly after Porkfat opened last year, Good Food Guide editor Callan Boys declared it was “quite possibly” Sydney’s best Thai restaurant, awarding it a hat in his review. The family-run 30-seater serves a limited menu of 10 regular dishes, including baked Queensland tiger prawns, grilled pork jowl with chilli nam jim, and papaya salad with salted duck egg. Porkfat’s BYO policy is a corkage of $10 per bottle of wine (maximum two bottles per table).

33 Ultimo Rd, Haymarket, porkfat.com.au

Quay

It’s unusual to hear of a three-hatted restaurant offering BYO wine, but it’s on the table for a limited period of time at Quay. There are conditions: it’s only available to groups of eight or more who book the 10-seat private dining room for an eight-course weekend lunch menu (from $355 per person). Corkage is $60 per 750ml bottle and $120 per magnum. The restaurant advises guests to bring in their bottles before service, so the team can ensure they are poured at the ideal temperature.

Upper Level Overseas Passenger Terminal, The Rocks, quay.com.au

Spice Alley

For a cheap night out, head to Spice Alley at Chippendale where there are currently nine eateries offering everything from char kwai teow at Sedap Malaysian to fried chicken laksa at Alex Lee Kitchen. You can choose to dine in at the casual, undercover courtyard with a bottle or wine or beer, for zero corkage fee. Keep in mind it’s also BYO glasses, unless you’re happy to pay 50 cents for a cup. If you’re heading there after work, there are a few bottle shops on the way, including Lil Sis (see above) and Beer Barrel (with a wide selection of craft beer).

Kensington St, Chippendale, spicealley.com.au

Sean’s

No BYO list is ever truly complete without two-hatted seaside restaurant Sean’s. This Sydney stalwart has long welcomed patrons to BYO wine, and the current corkage fee is $35 per bottle and $60 per magnum. The $120 three-course choice menu is seasonal and ever-evolving, showcasing the best produce from chef-owner Sean Moran’s Bilpin Springs Farm.

270 Campbell Parade, North Bondi, seansbondi.com