MONTRéAL AND BYOW

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Love food? Love wine? Then I’ve got good news: there’s no need for your cup (or wallet) to run dry while in Montréal.

That’s right, feel free to tote your favourite bottle with you to hundreds of Bring-Your-Own-Wine (BYOW) restaurants across the city.

It’s true that the BYOB concept can be found in other North American cities, but nowhere have I seen it as common as here in Montréal. Heck, we even have entire streets dedicated to the practice (Duluth and Prince Arthur Streets, both in the Plateau area, are lined with BYOW restaurants).

The whole process is very civilized. Simply purchase a bottle or two of your favourite wine or beer at the nearest SAQ (government-run liquor store), then bring it in to a BYOW restaurant. Now, you should know that BYOW restaurants often have a bit of a mark-up on their prices (20-30%) to make up for the fact that they don’t have alcohol sales, but you can still end up saving a pretty penny – particularly if you’re the kind of person that enjoys a few glasses of good wine with a meal.

I’ll be posting my favourite BYOW restaurants fairly regularly, but to get the ball rolling, here’s a list of some of my top picks:

Apollo
Fine dining
Expect to spend $130 for two people (before taxes and tip)
6389 St-Laurent Blvd.
514-274-0153
www.apolloglobe.com

A l’os
Fine dining, trendy French cuisine
Expect to spend $140 for two people (before taxes and tip)
5207 St-Laurent Blvd.
514-270-7055

La Colombe
French
Expect to spend $80 for two people (before taxes and tip)
554 Duluth Avenue East
514-849-8844

Khyber pass
Afghan
Expect to spend $55 for two people (before taxes and tip)
506 Duluth Avenue East
514-844-7131
www.restaurantkhyberpass.com

O’thym
French cuisine
Expect to spend $100 for two people (before taxes and tip)
1112 De Maisonneuve Blvd. East
514-525-3443
www.othym.com/index2.html

Au Tarot
Mediterranean, Moroccan
Expect to spend $65 for two people (before taxes and tip)
500 Marianne St East
514-849-6860

Tay Do
Vietnamese
Expect to spend $30 for two people (before taxes and tip)
300 Duluth St East
514-281-6788

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