A birthday dinner with a bottle from the vintage of the person celebrating.
What is BYOB?
BYOB stands for Bring Your Own Bottle. It means taking your own wine to a restaurant, which opens it and serves it at your table as if it were on the wine list.
In return, the restaurant may charge a corkage fee (in Portuguese, taxa de rolha): a fixed amount per bottle that pays for the service — opening, pouring, proper glasses, temperature and washing up.
It is common practice in Australia, New Zealand, the UK, the USA and France (droit de bouchon). In Portugal it is growing — and BYOB.pt shows you where.
In short
- 🍷 You bring your wine
- 🍽️ You order food from the menu
- 🧾 You pay for the meal + the corkage fee
- 📞 Always call ahead
Why you'll love it
🍾 The wine you wantThat special bottle — aged, from a producer you love — next to a dish that does it justice.
🎁 The bottle you were givenAt last, an occasion to open the wine you were given and kept for the right moment.
🔎 No surprisesThe corkage fee is shown before you leave home: you know what the service of your wine will cost.
🥂 Professional serviceThe right glasses, temperature, decanting when it makes sense. Your wine served as it deserves.
👥 Great for groupsWine societies, wine clubs and friends who want to share bottles at the table.
🗺️ New restaurantsDiscover places that love wine as much as we do — from Lisbon to Porto, from Coimbra to the Algarve.
BYOB experiences
A few ideas to make the most of your wine at the table.
Several vintages of the same wine side by side, to see how it evolves.
Producers and winemakers presenting their wines at a paired dinner.
Each member brings a bottle; the restaurant prepares a tailored menu.
Tell the restaurant which wine you are bringing — many chefs will suggest the ideal dish.
The wine you brought back from that trip, finally shared at the table.
How much does it cost?
You pay for the meal as usual. For the wine, only the corkage fee is added.
| What | How it usually works |
|---|---|
| Corkage fee | A fixed amount per 75 cl bottle, VAT included. Some restaurants charge nothing, or only on certain days. |
| Large bottles | A magnum (1.5 L) may count as two bottles. Ask when booking. |
| Bottle limit | Some restaurants limit the number of bottles per table or per person. |
| Wine on the list | The BYOB rule is to bring a wine that is not on the restaurant's list. If it is, the restaurant may refuse it or charge more. |
| Extras | Decanting, special glasses or ice are rarely charged separately, but check for anything unusual. |
Each restaurant sets its own fee. BYOB.pt shows the amount indicated — please confirm it when booking.
BYOB etiquette
- Call ahead and say you are bringing wine — and how many bottles.
- Bring a wine that is not on the list. That's the golden rule.
- Bring it at the right temperature or arrive in time for the restaurant to prepare it.
- Order something from the house too — a sparkling wine to start or a digestif.
- Offer a glass to the chef or the sommelier: it is a much appreciated gesture.
- Pay the fee without arguing — it pays for a service.
- Drink responsibly and never drink and drive.
Take part
BYOB.pt grows with people who love wine. Tell us how it went — or show us a restaurant that is not on the map yet.
Restaurant reviews
Your opinion helps other wine lovers — and helps restaurants improve.
Review a restaurant
How we handle reviews
- Every review is read before it is published. We publish both positive and negative reviews.
- We only accept reviews from people who visited the restaurant. We may ask for proof of the visit (bill).
- We do not publish insults, third parties' personal data, advertising, or reviews by the restaurant itself or its competitors.
- Restaurants cannot pay to publish, change or remove reviews. They may reply publicly.
Full rules in the Terms and Conditions.
I went to a restaurant that also allows BYOB
Know a restaurant that lets you bring wine and is not on the map yet? Tell us. We check with the restaurant before publishing it — and, if you like, we thank you on its page.