Bring your wine and drink it too

Hey there, time traveller!
This article was published 16/11/2011 (5097 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

To wine or not to wine?

That’s the question facing restaurateurs in Winnipeg and across the province as new liquor laws came into effect Nov. 1, allowing consumers to bring their own wine into restaurants.

That is, of course, if restaurants choose to opt into the voluntary bring-your-own-wine policy.

Across west Winnipeg, many popular local eateries say they’ll allow it.

“If someone wants to bring in a wine they’re very fond of and I don’t have it on my menu, why not?” said Steve Hrousalas, owner of Rae and Jerry’s in the West End.

The policy was part of a list of liquor law amendments introduced in May. Ontario, Quebec, Alberta and Nova Scotia already had similar policies in place.

However, doing so in Manitoba is likely to come with an added cost — up to $25 a bottle in corkage fees at fine dining establishments. That’s to make up for lost revenue, restaurant operators say.

“We want the customers to be happy. But I would rather they tell me so I can try to bring in their wine,” said Steve Kandilakis, owner of Steve’s Bistro in St. James, which carries 30 different kinds of wine.
“Obviously we’re making some profit off wines.”

Kandilakis will allow customers to bring their own wine — none have so far — but how the public warms up to the new law remains to be seen, he said.

“Obviously you’re going to get some people who are going to do it, but I’m not sure how many, unless it’s a real specialty wine,” he said.

“With cheaper bottles, I can’t see it. It’s not worth it going to buy it and us charging you to open it. We provide the establishment, atmosphere and service.

“If you’re going to go out in a nice place like this, it’s for a good time, the whole package. Not to save $10 on a bottle of wine,” he said.

Only one customer has brought in their own wine since the law came into effect, Hrousalas added.

George Katsabanis, owner of Homer’s on Ellice Avenue in the West End, anticipates his customers will bring their own wine when celebrating special occasions.

“If they’re going to be buying a nice $100 wine… to celebrate a special occasion, let them do that,” he said.

However, the province still lags behind other provinces and countries when it comes to liquor regulation, Kandilakis said.

More needs to be done to remove the red tape involved in licensing, he said. Kandilakis said he had to spend extra money configuring the design of his restaurant to be in compliance with the law.

“You cannot walk through a lounge to go to the washroom,” he said.

“They should be trying to get some of those archaic laws out of the way before they (allow customers to bring their own wine).”

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matt.preprost@canstarnews.com