Bringing your own drinks?

[SantiSuk]

Compared to the UK and US and probably a lot of other first world countries restaurants here charge a remarkably small mark up on alcohol.

I would sometimes go to BYOB places in London of which there are quite a few good ethnic ones in the inner suburbs eg Tooting. Wouldn't dream of it here but I don't typically drink wine here. Save it up for a treat when back in Europe - dislike feeing ripped off by high customs barriers. Yes a bit of nose - cutting I agree!

[D3030]

If a farang brings in a bottle of Whisky to save $$.. He's a cheap bastard!

If a Thai does it for the same reason, he's saving money to buy more whisky..

If a farang bar owner allows Thais to bring in their own bottle of whisky, and not a farang??

That's just common business sense by the bar owner, in so many ways.

No loss in denying a farang that brings on his own liquor.. He's cheap anyway..

[Skeptic7]

Most places that allow it charge what is called a "corkage" fee. Usually from B100 in snaller bars and restaurants to B300+ in the larger establishments.

Edited June 5, 2016 by Skeptic7

[recom273]

What do the negative posters not understand ? It's certainly not being cheap.

From a business point of view, it makes sense. Refusing BYO customers ? Before you had a full table and now you have an empty table.

The buckets of ice that you would have sold at 300%+ profit are just water at the end of the night, the Coke and soda are still sitting on the shelf would have been sold at a 150% markup and the service girl could have been doing her job topping up and selling more mixers rather than 'playing facebook' on her smartphone.

The only times I see a BYO is when a business party or family celebration comes in. Then it's gloves off and wallets open as food is still coming out of the kitchen even after the main dinner has been eaten. As long as that bottle is on the table, the guy who brought it in will be spending.

650B for a sang som set .. Not quite the same is it ?

It wouldn't take long to do the math on that 150B in 7-11, 20B worth of mixers, 2B of ice and 450 for the seat ... Hmmm.

A good analogy would be the two cows on top of a mountain with a herd of heffers below ..

Edited June 5, 2016 by recom273

[wabothai]

They do it with beer too. Total disrespect and can be put under the umbrella of "thainess" and me , me.

Called in ahead of time no problem.

[MadMuhummad]

I know of very few other countries where you could do this at all,they would look at you as if you had just stepped out of a lunatic asylum if you asked this in Aussie,or Uk.

On my numerous visits to Australia, I noticed loads of b.y.o. restaurants.

Restaurants sure. But a very large percentage of these will be wine only.

I worked in hospitality for 17 years metro and country and I'm still yet to see a pub, bar or club allow B.Y.O. I d go as far to say it would be against a majority of liquor licenses to allow this.

[Khon Kaen Dave]

We were not a restaurant,nor were we a club or any such thing. We were a boozer! simple as that.We sold booze to guys(and ladies )who wanted to get pissed and have a good time,and we most certainly did.Under no account were there any drinks sold to anybody that we did own.Anyway,you never buy booze,you only rent it.i dont care about corkage,or any reason being stated here for bringing your own stuff.We were a hugely successful .bar for 5 years.

It was a case of "its my bar,their my rules,if you dont like it,you can ####.### and find another bar that will let you cheap bastards do it."

We were happy to be of service.

[jippytum]

I always thought it incorrect to take your own drink to a bar .However buying a bottle of spirit from the bar and leaving the unfinished bottle and contents to be consumed on another occasion is common place

For medical reasons i am prohibited from drinking alcohol however i do still visit bars to see my friends and watch the football .In some bars i am charged 50 to 65 baht for a soda which is more on occasion than my friends beer during happy hour so there is a good mark up on soft drinks and mixers. However i do not drink as many soft drinks as i used to have beers so i am happy to pay whatever and leave a decent tip.

[sanukjim]

Well this is plain wrong, all customers should be treated and charged the same. That's one sure way to lose a paying customer.

There should be a standard corkage fee on bottles brought into the establishment by any customer.

There is a corkage fee in most bars of from 200 baht to 300 baht on what you bring in.If you are into drinking a good semi expensive whiskey then it pays well in the money saved..I keep a bottle on the shelf in three bars. I as most Americans tip well anyway but with the money saved with the bottle on the shelf it equals out.If I normally would have spent 600 baht in a couple of hours then with the cost of the water 40 baht for two bottles and the ice at 20 baht a small bucket .leaving a tip of 50 baht is 110 baht friggering my whiskey is about 40 baht cost to me(good to fair whiskey) for eight tall drinks I save 170 baht while leaving a damn good tip.you can save even more when bring a full litter bottle instead of a 750 mil..Same fee

Edited June 5, 2016 by sanukjim

[Patanawet]

I always thought it a little rude bringing your own drinks to a bar.

Indeed! Would you bring your own food into a restaurant? (Not you Malcolm --- it was a rhetorical question).

[sandyf]

I think the corkage fee for byo wine is pretty much standard all over the world.

As for bringing your own say whiskey or buying one from the bar seems the norm in some places .

However when Thai guys brought their own bottle and were observed many times doing this a farang decided to do the same and then the blue started .

Needless to say he doesn't go back to that bar.

I've been with Thais on many occasions where they bring their own but I've only ever taken wine and paid the corkage no problem for me.

Thanks for all your replies guys?

A lot depends on circumstances and locality, I take whisky with me every time we go out to eat and never been charged.

Bars sell alcohol and I would never dream of taking anything to a bar, you drink what they have or go somewhere else.

Restaurants however sell food and the alcohol side is quite often just a service to the customer. Many around here only sell beer and if they do sell spirits it is usually by the bottle. I am the only one that drinks in the family and I do not want a new bottle every time. Although I take my own it is either scotch or Captain Morgans, never a Thai spirit just in case the restaurant sold the same brand.

In my travels around Thailand I have seen that farang owners appear to be the worst when it comes to house rules.

[ericthai]

There is one restaurant near our house that my wife and family really like. To me it's ok but they only have Singha or Leo which I dont really care for either.

The first time we went there and found this out I wanted to eat someone else, but the waitress said we could go across the street to 7 and buy Heineken.

We have been to this place many times since then and never a problem going across the street for Heineken, I do leave the girls a good tip.

For a restaurant I don't see an issue if you are bringing in wine or a fine whiskey, or as in my case a better beer if they don't have it. However bringing

anything into a bar I see as being rude.

[thehelmsman]

There is one restaurant near our house that my wife and family really like. To me it's ok but they only have Singha or Leo which I dont really care for either.

The first time we went there and found this out I wanted to eat someone else, but the waitress said we could go across the street to 7 and buy Heineken.

We have been to this place many times since then and never a problem going across the street for Heineken, I do leave the girls a good tip.

For a restaurant I don't see an issue if you are bringing in wine or a fine whiskey, or as in my case a better beer if they don't have it. However bringing

anything into a bar I see as being rude.

Quite different going into a regular bar vs. going to a Disco, Nightclub. having your own bottle is very normal, allows us to pour our own, 8 of went out to a disco and charge for ice, soda, snacks was well over 2000baht. We got our server snockered, left a nice tip. It's simply the way it is.

[spidermike007]

When visiting a restaurant, I always bring my own water. It is not about saving money, as much as it is about not consuming the extra bottle of plastic, which I feel strongly about. So, I refill my bottles at home, and bring them to restaurants. Rarely has this ever been an issue. Only one time on Samui was I told I could not do that. I told them to bug off, and get my food.

Sometimes, when visiting bars, I will bring my own tequila. I do it discreetly. It is the only way I can drink high end tequila, as all but the five star hotels serve utter crap here, that you cannot find even in Tijuana, where they know what good tequila looks like. I will order a soda, or a tonic water, and mix my own. I end up saving alot of money, and have a very nice drink. I don't make a show of it. I just discreetly pour some tequila from my small listerine bottle, into the mixer.

If the bars were interested enough to serve higher quality tequila, I would buy it from them. But, I am not going to subject myself to their low end swill, just to be polite.

[spidermike007]

I know of very few other countries where you could do this at all,they would look at you as if you had just stepped out of a lunatic asylum if you asked this in Aussie,or Uk.

On my numerous visits to Australia, I noticed loads of b.y.o. restaurants.

Restaurants sure. But a very large percentage of these will be wine only.

I worked in hospitality for 17 years metro and country and I'm still yet to see a pub, bar or club allow B.Y.O. I d go as far to say it would be against a majority of liquor licenses to allow this.

This is certainly not the case in the US. In the event of the restaurant not having a license, often you are allowed to bring your own beer or wine. And in the event of them having a full license, most allow you to bring your own wine, as long as it is a wine that is not on the wine list. Only a tiny percentage will not allow you to bring your own wine, at all.

The more conscious, and smarter amongst them, charge no corkage, or something reasonable like $5. The others change, $10, $15 or more. The ones that charge over $10 we will not patronize. I have alot of wine aficionado friends back in the US, and I myself am a minor wine collector, and we have strong preferences. We would rather bring an outstanding bottle of our own, and pay minor corkage, than drink inferior wine, at the same price or more.

The reality, that most good restaurants know, is that they would rather have a small percentage of their clientele, who bring their own wine, and spend alot of money on food, than turn away patrons like that. It is good business acumen.

[Mike West]

On 6/4/2016 at 2:02 PM, ehs818 said:

As for bars, they are in the business of selling drinks. That's how they pay the rent, their staff, and make a living. It's quite incorrect to assume you can just bring in your own drinks. As for how they treat Thais vs Farangs here, well, get over it! Now, separate from the bar scene is the question of bringing drinks into a restaurant. I have had several friends that have owned restaurants here. While the profit margins on food is usually small, the margin for drinks is much better, and well needed to make profits and pay for everything (overhead). But drinks, while the costs are small for us, are significant to the success of the restaurants. I was out years ago to a 99 baht buffet and a man in our group was so angry. He had brought in his own bottle of water, and when he paid the bill they charged him 30 baht for his own water. And he was so upset!! At this restaurant this fat man ate a huge amount of food (a buffet) and complained about them making a little money on drinks, his drinks! If he put a pen and paper to it he'd understand that unless the restaurant makes some money, it won't be there next month for him to be a pig again. A very stupid man indeed. As for me, I don't bring outside food or drink into any bars or restaurants. It's just bad manners and insulting to the restaurant owners. But then, that's just me.........

OMG, there is always one of you white knights around, gosh you guys are so damn annoying. The op asked a reasonable question. Ever heard of corkage fee? Did you not read the own bar owner's comment saying he doesn't mind? <deleted>. Also your stories sound made up to back your comments. 

[dbrenn]

Bring Your Own is a well established custom in Thailand, and Australia. Some places charge corkage, orhers don't. If the establishment allows it, there's no harm in it. Just ask first.

[The manic]

In Issan it's very common to BYOB and the bar provides ice and soda. In most places in Bangkok and Pattaya  it is uncommon but there are exceptions such as the Issan night club in Pattaya.

[ericthai]

On 6/8/2016 at 5:42 AM, thehelmsman said:

Quite different going into a regular bar vs. going to a Disco, Nightclub. having your own bottle is very normal, allows us to pour our own, 8 of went out to a disco and charge for ice, soda, snacks was well over 2000baht. We got our server snockered, left a nice tip. It's simply the way it is.

sure a club or disco you can have your own  bottle, they accept that as they make money off the ice and mixers, done this many times. However going to a bar and bringing you own drink is not ok!

[Kadilo]

In Issan it's very common to BYOB and the bar provides ice and soda. In most places in Bangkok and Pattaya  it is uncommon but there are exceptions such as the Issan night club in Pattaya.

Places like Hollywood’s in Pattaya you buy a bottle of Smirnoff or Whiskey in with the entry and then pay for extras and mixes. Works out a decent night.


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[The manic]

34 minutes ago, Kadilo said:

Places like Hollywood’s in Pattaya you buy a bottle of Smirnoff or Whiskey in with the entry and then pay for extras and mixes. Works out a decent night.


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Thanks for the info. What is the music at hollywoods-Thai?

[Kadilo]

6 hours ago, The manic said:

Thanks for the info. What is the music at hollywoods-Thai?

It’s a mix of Thai cabaret, Thai music and ends up with Western style disco.