What are your top five BYOB places?

Don't know if I have ever seen a topic like this (search is not always the most functional).

But I htought it would be interesting to see people's top five BYOB places in Chicago.

A couple of mine (trying to think of 5)

Coast
Tango Sur
Irazu
Smoque

Those are good. Add two Italian places to your list, Think and Cucina di Donatella.

Think
2235 N. Western Ave., Chicago
(773) 394-0537.

La Cucina di Donatella
2221 W. Howard St., Chicago
(773) 262-6533.

Do TAC Quick, Spoon Thai, Sticky Rice, Aroy Thai count as four?

In addition, I might add Terragusto, Glenn's Diner, Semiramis, and Schwa.

Using the google technique, I can't find a thread focused on BYOB since 2004
(Here's another longish but not-too-recent thread on BYOB etiquette)

Seems like its time to get new opinions -- and updates on who's even still in business.

In addition to those mentioned above, I'd have to add Caro Mio located on Wilson and Winchester in the Ravenswood 'hood.

On the southside, I'd nominate Gio's Cafe for best BYO. Great specialty grocery store with excellent Italian entrees for lunch and dinner.

Caro Mio
1825 W. Wilson Avenue

Gio's Cafe
2724 S. Lowe

Aaron Deacon wrote:In addition, I might add Terragusto, Glenn's Diner, Semiramis, and Schwa.

Glen's now offers beer and wine.

Best,
Michael

Don't know about 'my favorite,' but in the last few weeks I've had nice BYOB meals at Big Buns and Pita, Hoanh Long, Honey 1 and Elephant Thai

Tango Sur remains a BYOB favorite with my wife and I.

Enjoy,
Gary

If I had a list of 5 favorites, it would probably change on a monthly basis, many of my favorites have already been listed, and I'd probably have to add Mysore Woodlands to the list.

Best,
Michael

Cafe Suron is at the top of my list for BYOB. They charge $4 corkage.

Cafe Suron
1146 W Pratt Blvd
Chicago, IL 60626
(773) 465-6500
http://www.cafesuron.com

Schwa is BYOB, if you're looking for creative fine dining. It's probably the most expensive BYOB place in town, but the fact that it's BYOB can make it the least expensive creative fine dining place in town (particularly if the quality and/or quantity of your B is on the high side).

Still haven't gotten the liquor license, so still BYOB.

Mundial Cocina Mestiza
1640 W 18th St
312.491.9908

I like:

Terragusto
1851 W. Addison

Rudy's Taste
1024 N. Ashland

Lucia's
1825 W. North

Rinconcito Sudamericano
1954 W. Armitage

Two I've been meaning to get to are Los Noaples and Habana Libre.

On the topic of BYOB, today's At Play section in the Chicago Tribune has a article entitled "Baffled by BYOB" that presents the opinions of chefs at Schwa, Think and elsewhere regarding pairings of specific dishes with specific wines. Kind of an interesting approach to the BYOB question.

SMOQUE is great BUT success makes it almost impossible to dine there. Keep them on your list but hold off for a few weeks. The brisket is unbelieveable!
DHARMA GARDEN (on Irving Pk) is a fabulous Thai spot. It ain't pretty but the food and the very attentive owners make it a must-try. The menu does not include any beef, chicken or pork but don't let that keep u away. The fish specialities are fab and the curries w/ tofu are amazing.
TAGINE (on Rockwell @ Foster) is wonderful. It's even better during the summer when u can sit outside. The dining room gets a little toasty otherwise.
RIQUE'S REGIONAL MEXICAN (on Sheridan @ Argyle) is filled with wonderfully fresh, all homemade regional treats. It's small, convivial and cheap. Bring some Negro Modelo's and feast!
COAST SUSHI (on Damen @ Dickens) is one of those places that you either love or hate. There's no middle ground. I love it for being a cheap and reliable sushi restaurant (don't worry, cheap doens't = yesterday's fish). They aren't the most creative spot in town or the most romantic (it can get LOUD but what do u expect when u can bring your own?) but the maki choices are solid and your wallet will thank u.

lfw1031 wrote:DHARMA GARDEN (on Irving Pk) is a fabulous Thai spot. It ain't pretty but the food and the very attentive owners make it a must-try. The menu does not include any beef, chicken or pork but don't let that keep u away. The fish specialities are fab and the curries w/ tofu are amazing.

FYI, beef, chicken, and pork (among other animals) are available at DG, and quite tasty.

Check it out.

Best,
Michael

In the month of March, I have enjoyed fine meals at Ed's Potsticker House and Turkish Cuisine.

At Ed's, I have witnessed many individuals drink heartily of the canned Budweiser. There is a CVS in the shopping center at 31st and Halsted. As much as I detest CVS, I do love its proximity to Ed's. It takes maybe five minutes to run around the corner, acquire a package of over-aged commercial-grade beer, and sit down for a delightful lunch or dinner. There is a liquor/video store across from the CVS, which has a virtually identical selection. Don't bother with the Jewel further to the north -- very little of their beer is kept cold. They do have a fair selection of common cheap wines. Should you have an appetite for better-quality beverages, you will have to plan in advance, and smuggle them in from Hyde Park or something. When I moved here, I never thought I would miss the Co-op Markets...

As for Turkish Cuisine, I'm not too familiar with the Bryn Mawr area, and so I have no recommendations for nearby liquor stores. They have some narrow little wine stems on hand. Bring a bottle of perky red and enjoy. Just don't be tempted by the combo platter, which is plate of grilled meats on rice. This was much too dry. Go for something on the oily-saucy tip, and don't forget the lahmacun!

Ed's Potsticker House
3139 S. Halsted
312-326-6898

Turkish Cuisine
5605 N. Clark
773-878-8930

FYI, beef, chicken, and pork (among other animals) are available at DG, and quite tasty.

Sweet! Thanks for the tip. I'm already addicted to their vegetarian curries...now I'll become a slave to the bbq pork!

I was given this book/guide recently," BYOB Chicago" that lists places by Cuisine and by neighborhood with maps.

http://www.byob-chicago.com/

AMW wrote:
Rinconcito Sudamericano
1954 W. Armitage

Are you sure they are BYO? Their new place across Damen, Rio's d'Sudamerica is but I thought Rinconcito had a license.

1. El Dorado
2. Coast
3. Think

My three contributions have no corkage fee:

1. Wholly Frijoles
2. Tango Sur
3. Taste of Peru

Our top 5 would be:

1. Yum Thai (Forest Park)
2. Spoon Thai (Western Avenue)
3. Couscous (Taylor Street)
4. Luong Loi (Wheaton)
5. Butterfly Sushi & Thai (on Grand)

leek wrote:

AMW wrote:
Rinconcito Sudamericano
1954 W. Armitage

Are you sure they are BYO? Their new place across Damen, Rio's d'Sudamerica is but I thought Rinconcito had a license.

Admittedly my last visit was last summer, but I did BYOB with a larger group and it was not a problem. My first visit there a couple years ago, my dining companion ordered a glass of wine and a busboy was immediately sent out (to the store on the corner of damen and armitage I'm guessing) to pick up a bottle. Ever since then we have gone prepared. But, things may have changed. Sounds like it is time for another visit to find out for sure.

Can somebody please explain why Coast has received multiple mentions in this thread?

I have only been there once, and I must have missed something...

For me, I have been there maybe 4-5 times and all but one of those visits I enjoyed the sushi tremendously. I am not a sushi snob by any means, but it is good food, good scenery and decent pricing.

My top 5 in no particular order.

1. Ay Ay Picante
2. Sweet Tamirand
3. Rudy's Taste
4. Blue Nile Ethiopian
5. Caliente

Whenever there is a thread like this, I have to weigh in with the same question - what makes a place without a liquor license special?

If the food at a place with a liquor license is as good or better, they permit you to bring your own beverage and the corkage is reasonable, does that make it BYOB? And I almost always take my own wine to dinner, though there are times when I order my beverage from the resto, if it looks interesting, or I want something that matches better with my meal than what I brought.

Clearly there is some perception that the lack of a liquor license makes some special difference, but I still do not get it. Maybe I just never will.

Saw the Trib article and found it interesting. Since it goes to the issue of matching the beverage with the food - how do people do it? I tend to choose a wine to take with me based on what I expect or want to eat, so it restricts my exploration of the menu a bit. The Bride, however, just chooses the wine she would like to drink, and then orders whatever suits her fancy, pairing be damned. I think her approach is probably better, since it opens up a world of possibilities, but I can't quite bring myself to do it.

d,

That's a good question (as it always is ) -- though as restaurants make such a huge profit on booze, some are understandably reluctant to let you bring in your own.

At the risk of repeating my own self, I'd like to throw in another good word for Mundial Cocina Mestiza, which I mentioned above, went to again on Friday night, and found it the best of both types of restuarants: a good place that is also BYOB. I had the short ribs with a Rioja and it was the best pairing I've had in a long time. Totally fortuitous, as I had no idea what I was going to be ordering.

You know, with BYOBs, if you're not sure what you're going to be having for dinner, you could take the GWiv approach and just keep a cooler of various beverages in your trunk.

Hammond

dicksond wrote:Clearly there is some perception that the lack of a liquor license makes some special difference

Not sure if it's all that good a reason, but at least when taking wine to a restaurant that is strictly BYOB (i.e., without a license), there is no chance whatsoever that they will already have the bottle you brought on the list (in which case you would typically be asked to buy what they are selling, correct?). Although honestly, that's not much of a reason -- I've never bumped into it, and how often would that actually happen, assuming you aren't bringing in something so common you could expect to find on every wine list. Plus, a simple call to the restaurant would avoid the problem.

Another reason may be that many BYOs have $0 corkage (e.g., last night I ate at one of those). Again, considering that most places charge only a few dollars for corkage, that in itself is not a very special reason to favor a $0 BYO spot. But I know that many people are very uncomfortable with markups on wine, and some restaurants charge "punitive" corkage ($30 plus) meant to discourage the practice for all but the most special bottles (i.e., soemthing that already cost hundreds of bucks, is particularly rare or special personally, etc.)

As another possible reason for seeking out BYO-only restaurants, there may be a general perception that restaurants with a wine list are more "serious" and more likely, just as a matter of course, to also serve excellent food. Accordingly, if you accept that premise, then it would be a great "find" to locate a BYO restaurant (typically an independent "hole in the wall") that is also serving excellent food. That's kinda crazy, too, as it's premised on a false idea (see, e.g., Olive Garden).

But people have all sorts of irrational (or just non-rational, emotional) reasons for favoring certain restaurants or types of restaurants. Maybe there is just something attractive about the atmosphere of the BYO, or a feeling of doing something transgressive (ooh, it's like we're at a speakeasy)? Or maybe folks do it out of fear of ordering from a wine list? There is more informality, you don't have to be able to pronounce the name of the wine, you won't get looked at funny, or feel bad about ordering a "cheap" wine? Those psychological pressures (which can be eliminated through a little education) could push many people to the "friendlier" BYO restaurants.

These reasons are all speculative and getting less and less convincing as I come up with more. Anybody else care to chime in?

JimInLoganSquare wrote:if you accept that premise, then it would be a great "find" to locate a BYO restaurant (typically an independent "hole in the wall") that is also serving excellent food.

You mean, like Schwa?

Independent, small enough (26 seats) to be considered a "hole in the wall", with food that is creative and good enough to rank it among the top restaurants in the city. However, at $100 for their tasting menu, it's not inexpensive.