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BYOB in Greater Boston area (legal)
Here's the scoop: BYOB is ILLEGAL in MA, unless the restaurant does NOT have a liquor license. In the latter case, the legality defaults to the laws of the town (for example, Needham permits it). In Boston proper, BYOB is illegal except in certain outlying neighborhoods thanks to a recently passed city ordinance (read the links in my Seven Star Bistro reviews for details). So here's my list of LEGAL BYOB in the Boston area. Admittedly, I define "Boston area" quite liberally lol. Need to update this wrt who survived COVID...
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BostonBestEats’s 5-star review: A fun little place for LEGAL BYOB! For Saturday lunch, after the monthly wine tasting at Ansonia (and before Gordon's), my favorite thing is the braised pork belly bao with cilantro & cucumber (but where are the sugared peanuts on this traditional Taiwanese dish?). Also enjoy the various dumplings, bao and chicken wings (must be either pressure cooked or sous vide before frying). However, the Dan Dan noodles are completely un-spicy (zero mala). Wines: 2016 P. Dubreuil-Fontaine Père & Fils Pernand-Vergelesses Blanc 2019 Domaine Chataignier Durand Vieilles Vignes Juliénas Jean-Marc Monnet 2014 P. Dubreuil-Fontaine Père & Fils Savigny-lès-Beaune 1er Cru Les Vergelesses Rouge -
You can bring 1 bottle per person. -
On the way to Portsmouth NH. $30 corkage. -
BYOB bar, requires advanced tickets. https://boston.eater.com/2023/4/26/23697768/barlette-brookline-bar-openingBostonBestEats’s 5-star review: A microscopically tiny BYOB bar. Yes, you read that right: a bar that is BYOB! Requires advance tickets, which are hard to get (they go on sale 1st of each month for that month). Bring a bottle of something and they provide the cocktail mixers, mini shakers, glassware, ice, etc. You can also do non-alcoholic drinks. And a four course snack menu. For legal reasons, you have to do the work yourself, so it's definitely a unique, fun experience. Sibling of upstairs Cobble, one of the few legal BYOB restaurants in the Boston area. More of the backstory: https://boston.eater.com/2023/4/26/23697768/barlette-brookline-bar-opening https://www.bostonmagazine.com/restaurants/2023/01/06/barlette-byob-bar-brookline/
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Visited 3/30/23 for takeout and it is now legal BYOB. Limit of 1 bottle per 1-2 people (see photo of regulations I posted on Yelp). -
Legal BYOB starting 3/2/22 according to their website.BostonBestEats’s 5-star review: UPDATE: Definitely one of my favorite restaurants in the Boston area. I just wish Boston's BYOB regulations, which they enforce in every detail here, were not written by someone who hates wine and doesn't know anything about the restaurant business (thank you, Michelle Wu). They have switched from al la carte to a $98 5-course tasting menu, which changes periodically, with either omnivore or vegetarian versions (some dishes in common between the two), and two choices for the omnivore 4th course (fish vs chicken). We ordered both, and both were sensational and worth every penny (see photos). The tomato/gooseberry 1st course was an unexpected brilliant match for the 2010 Va La Mahogany (the best winery in the eastern half of the US that you've never heard of). Service is pleasant. Go early, since it fills up and gets too loud for me in that small space. Easy parking nearby at the Channel Center Garage. -
BYOB according to Yelp reviews. -
BYOB? -
BYOB? -
Supposedly BYOB according to Yelp reviews. -
BYOB according to this 2018 webpage: https://theculturetrip.com/north-america/usa/massachusetts/boston/articles/the-coolest-byob-restaurants-around-boston/ -
Used to be Asahi on Market Street in Brighton Center, which was legal BYOB, but moved here and renamed in 2019. Not sure if it is still legal BYOB. -
No liquor license, so reportedly BYOB (which would be legal in Wellesley), but I haven't confirmed in person. -
Took over this location when Sam's moved down the street.
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Brand new BYOB (legal) in Brookline MA that offers private and semi-private dining for 2-12. Even offers mixers so you can bring your own liquor to mix cocktails at the table (they can't do it it for you). Chef/owner is ex-La Morra. Just be aware that the food (~5 course Italian prix fix) is prepared off-site and then reheated. One seating every Friday and Saturday from 6:30 pm to 9:30 pm. Also 1PM brunch. Reservations by Resy.BostonBestEats’s 5-star review: Brand new BYOB (legal) in Brookline MA that offers private and semi-private dining for 2-12. Even offers mixers so you can bring your own liquor to mix cocktails at the table (they can't do it it for you). Chef/owner is ex-La Morra. Just be aware that the food (~5 course Italian prix fix) is prepared off-site and then reheated. One seating every Friday and Saturday from 6:30 pm to 9:30 pm. Also 1PM brunch. Reservations by Resy. Recent writeup in Boston Globe: https://www.bostonglobe.com/2020/12/01/lifestyle/emily-vena-creates-covid-safe-dinner-parties-those-who-sorely-miss-them/
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I heard this is BYOB, but I haven't called to confirm. -
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BostonBestEats’s 5-star review: Japanese cuisine and sushi. Legal BYOB. -
BostonBestEats’s 5-star review: Gluten-free, vegan Asian cuisine. And legal BYOB. -
According to Boston.com: "James Beard Award winner Colleen Suhanosky is at the helm of Rifrullo, a Brookline cafe open for breakfast and lunch. That means day drinking is the move here — bring in beer to accompany your Italian tuna sandwich or lamb burger, or even a bottle of bubbly to enjoy with the restaurant’s all-day brunch served on the weekends. Sparkling wine with huevos rancheros? We’re in. (147 Cypress St., Brookline) Corkage fee: None" https://www.boston.com/food/restaurants/2019/02/08/10-restaurants-where-you-can-byob-in-the-boston-area/BostonBestEats’s 5-star review: According to the Boston Globe, this is a BYOB (no corkage): "James Beard Award winner Colleen Suhanosky is at the helm of Rifrullo, a Brookline cafe open for breakfast and lunch. That means day drinking is the move here -- bring in beer to accompany your Italian tuna sandwich or lamb burger, or even a bottle of bubbly to enjoy with the restaurant's all-day brunch served on the weekends. Sparkling wine with huevos rancheros? We're in."
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Awful food IMHO. According to Boston.com: "Part fish market, part restaurant, part food truck, Captain Marden’s is dishing out fish, bivalves, and everything in between from their Wellesley home base. At the restaurant — dubbed Captain Marden’s Table & Takeaway — diners can dig into fish and chips, lobster quesadillas, sea scallops, and stuffed haddock. Bring a bottle of white wine or your favorite craft beer to wash it all down. (279 Linden St., Wellesley) Corkage fee: None" https://www.boston.com/food/restaurants/2019/02/08/10-restaurants-where-you-can-byob-in-the-boston-area/BostonBestEats’s 3-star review: 3 STARS: (2 for the food, 1 for byob) A seafood restaurant attached to a seafood market sounds like a great idea. Like eating fish on an island of fisherman. Surely they know the best way to serve it? Apparently not. Although the interior is relatively attractive, with a not terribly over-the-top nautical theme, the food at Captain Marden's is like a time warp back to the 1970's. Whether fried, baked or sautéed, it was uniformly flavorless and over-cooked. Totally uninspired, tiny crab cakes. Mealy garlic & herb shrimp, lacked any of the promised flavors. A daily special of swordfish steak, apparently cooked in margarine. National Park cafeteria French fries, coleslaw and steamed vegetables. Complementary cornbread was fine. The worst thing we had was Captain Roy's mussels (steamed PEI's, garlic-wine-caper sauce, garlic bread), the flavor of which was completely unappealing and the mussels decidedly on the fishy side. The best thing we tried were the little fried pollack nuggets, served with tartar sauce, which had an appealing crispiness. Captain Marden's one redeeming feature is that BYOB is totally legal, a rarity in MA. Unfortunately, our two wines didn't perform all that well either! Service is good, prices are cheap (~$25 counting tip/pp for dinner with no dessert), and you have a fair-to-middling chance of finding a parking space in the lot out front. But be ready to wait for a table (no reservations) since it appears to be very popular with fans of the 1970s. -
BostonBestEats’s 5-star review: According to the Boston Globe, Caffe Paolina is BYOB (beer/wine): https://www.bostonglobe.com/metro/globelocal/2019/05/22/caffe-paolina-husband-wife-team-makes-everything-with-love/xcBgI3HKGbBAj3iL7N6g5M/story.html#bgmp-comments -
BostonBestEats’s 5-star review: 3/19/22: Just called to confirm that they are still legal BYOB (very rare in Boston, see my earlier review for the legalities). Mayor Michelle Wu, given your BYOB law was an abject failure at promoting the restaurant business in Boston, please revise it (Philly is the proper model to go by). -
I've been here a few times, and the food is decent. According to Boton.com: "Open for almost 20 years, Cafe Mangal in Wellesley serves a melting pot of Mediterranean cuisine, though its dishes are largely influenced by Turkey. The lunch menu largely offers sandwiches, while dinner includes flavorful lamb with Medjool dates, Turkish kebab with yogurt, and Mediterranean-style duck breast. Bring a bottle of wine or beer to enjoy in Mangal’s charming dining room, where a narrow hallway is filled with dozens of framed photos and white tablecloths. (555 Washington St., Wellesley) Corkage fee: $7 per bottle" https://www.boston.com/food/restaurants/2019/02/08/10-restaurants-where-you-can-byob-in-the-boston-area/ -
According to Boston.com: "At Cafe Rossetti’s, comfort food arrives in the form of chicken romano, linguini with mussels, and shrimp alfredo with broccoli. The cozy Italian restaurant in Winthrop is located just steps from the shore — take that view up a notch with a bottle of Peroni or a classic Italian wine to enjoy with decadent mushroom ravioli. (115 Winthrop Shore Drive, Winthrop) Corkage fee: None" https://www.boston.com/food/restaurants/2019/02/08/10-restaurants-where-you-can-byob-in-the-boston-area/ -
According to Boston.com: "While D’Parma has three locations — Winthrop, East Boston, and Revere — diners are only allowed to bring beer and wine to the Winthrop outpost. The Italian restaurant has plenty of dishes that almost demand a great bottle of wine, like a chicken piccata with lemon, capers, and white wine sauce; or ziti with meatballs in alfredo sauce. Twinkling lights suspended from the ceiling above add a playful vibe to the space, whether you’re here for a much-needed date night or a family meal. (467 Shirley St., Winthrop) Corkage fee: None" https://www.boston.com/food/restaurants/2019/02/08/10-restaurants-where-you-can-byob-in-the-boston-area/BostonBestEats’s 3-star review: LEGAL BYOB AT D'PARMA IN WINTHROP To make a long story short, I'm going to give D'Parma 2 Stars for their food plus 1 star extra for being one of those rare, almost mythical creatures, a LEGAL BYOB in Massachusetts. If you know me, then you know that I appreciate a great wine list. And the very best wine list of all is the one that I have at home! So if a restaurant will let me BYOB my own wine for dinner, then they immediately shoot to the top in my book. The only problem is that BYOB is ILLEGAL in ***most*** of Massachusetts. Grrrr, yes, we are still living in the 19th Century in MA! But wait, why did I say "most?" Well here is where, in typical MA fashion, it gets a bit complicated: 1) Massachusetts law states that BYOB is illegal in any restaurant that has a liquor license. 2) If a restaurant doesn't have a liquor license, then the legality of BYOB depends on the laws of the city or town in which the restaurant operates. 3) But only some towns permit BYOB for restaurants without liquor licenses. To the best of my knowledge, these include: Brookline, Lowell, Needham, Watertown (requires a BYOB license), Wellesley, Winthrop, and Worcester. Arlington and Belmont may also be in this category, but I'm still researching that. If you know of any others, please let me know! 4) However, thanks to a newly passed law in Boston, BYOB is only legal for restaurants without liquor licenses in some but not all Boston neighborhoods, namely: Allston-Brighton, Charlestown, Dorchester, East Boston, Hyde Park, Jamaica Plain, Mattapan, Mission Hill, Roslindale, Roxbury and West Roxbury. Such restaurants must be sit-down with waiter service and 30 or fewer seats, and they must have a BYOB license (which only Seven Star Bistro in Rosindale does as of April 2017). 5) By the way, many restaurants will let you BYOB under the table if you ask them (with or without a corkage fee). However, it is definitely poor form to post about this online since we don't want to get them in trouble for doing us a favor (which occasionally happens, although rarely in my experience). OK, with that background out of the way, you will have noticed that Winthrop is one of those towns that permits legal BYOB. And from perusing Yelp, I was able to find 3 restaurants in Winthrop that do not have liquor licenses and allow BYOB (all Italian). None of which are very well known, so I decided to do some reconnoitering first before I invited my somewhat snobby wine group (don't tell them I said that)... First up was D'Parma, mostly because it was the only one that is open on Mondays. I should also note that their second location in East Boston has a liquor license and is therefore not a BYOB. Inside, D'Parma is a surprisingly attractive, wood paneled, two room space. It was perhaps half-full on a Monday evening, and not terribly loud. Service was prompt and generally friendly. However, as I noted above, I'm only giving them a mediocre 2 stars for their food. Why? I and my two dining companions ordered 3 appetizers to share, and then since we were drinking California cabernets, steaks. D'Parmis is not really "red sauce", but it's not fancy fine Italian dining either. The appetizers were the best part of the meal. They were good sized and generally tasty, but a bit sloppily presented and not actually very exciting. But I would eat them again. Unfortunately, the steaks were a disappointment. 8 oz sirloins (not stated on the menu), 1/2 inch thick. I ordered mine medium rare, but it came out medium to medium-well. Certainly a OK piece of meat, but not steakhouse quality. However, the real sin was the accompanying mushroom risotto, which was a disaster. In fact, I wouldn't call the huge pile of rice with mushrooms and onions a risotto. Short grain rather than risotto rice, and not at all creamy. No detectable Parmigiano flavor. The large slices of portabella mushrooms were in fact the only good part and I did finish those. The worst "risotto" I've ever had. However, despite the average food, this still is a legal BYOB and so gets an extra star from me for that reason alone. Wine glasses were serviceable, but of the typical style found in "red sauce" restaurants, so I would recommend bringing your own if you care about this. We opened and poured our own wines, which we prefer (although no one offered to do it for us). Parking is fairly easy at a city lot located a block further down Shirley St (free after 5PM). Otherwise be careful about parking on the streets without a permit, and do not park in the lot next to the front door of D'Parma or you will be towed. [Update: according to owner's reply below, parking is now permitted next door.] Would I come back? Maybe I'll give them a second shot and try more of their pastas and bring a few more casual bottles of pasta-friendly wine (no more serious cabernets!). But it's not the sort of place I'm going to rush to invite my wine group to drink SQNs! -
BostonBestEats’s 5-star review: CHAUNCEY CREEK: We've got the (lobstah) meats! I'm sure lots of people already know about it, but I only recently heard about this casual restaurant on a dock from Phantom Gourmet (which I DVR but actually rarely ever watch). The sides are nothing to go crazy over (the onion rings were pretty decent, but mussels and steamer clams are just so-so), but pick your own super-fresh (and super-active!) lobster for them to boil for you, and BYO anything you want that they don't sell (I brought a plum tart I made for dessert), while sitting on a comfortable dock as the sun goes down, is one version of heaven. My 2.7 pound hardshell female was maybe the best boiled lobstah I've evah had! Mid-week, post-Labor Day, it wasn't very crowded and we had no trouble parking in their small lot (maybe a dozen or so spaces). It looks like you can also park on the street on the opposite side as well. There were a few mosquitos, so you might want to bring some bug spray. And don't forget to toss some scraps to the crabs! BYOB: ~NV Dosnon Champagne Recolte Noire ~2006 Claude Dugat Gevrey-Chambertin 1er Cru Lavaux St. Jacques ~2011 Dom. Lucien Boillot Puligny-Montrachet 1er Cru Les Perrières ~2013 Domaine des Comtes Lafon Meursault Clos de la Barre ~2014 Domaine Pattes Loup Chablis 1er Cru Beauregard ~2015 Domaine Feuillat-Juillot Montagny 1er Cru Les Coères ~2016 Château Simone Palette Rosé ~2015 Domaine Yves Cuilleron Condrieu Ayguets ~NV Pride Mountain Vineyards Mistelle de Viognier (got from Bob Foley about 10 years ago...lovely!) -
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BostonBestEats’s 5-star review: ***To my knowledge, this is currently one of only three legal BYOBs within Boston city limits.*** A tiny ~25 seat restaurant hidden on a busy block of other restaurants and businesses in Jamaica Plain. But well worth seeking out for eat-with-your-fingers, tasty, filling and inexpensive Ethiopian cuisine that goes well with a variety of wines or beers. And I'm sure they'll give you a fork if you insist, but what's the fun in that? The spartan interior features a sink in back where you can wash your hands before eating with your fingers. This is of course done with the traditional spongy injera flatbread made from teff grain, which you break into pieces so you can scoop up various vegetable and meat stews (lamb, beef, chicken, never any pork no matter your religion in Ethiopia). Apparently it is traditional to do this with your right hand only (sorry lefties lol). We started with a couple of the spinach-stuffed sambosa (sambusa?), which were very much like the ubiquitous deep-fried spanakopita triangles you see at Greek restaurants and did not seem very authentic from what I can read online. But tasty. Also available with lentil (and possibly meat?) fillings. We followed this up with a meat and vegetable combination plate (or you can order individual dishes), which can be customized for any number of people to share and arrives on top of several large injera (more injera on a side plate to rip up). Each meat and veggie was delicious, but very different from each other (a pleasant surprise), particularly the modestly spicy chicken stew, which was almost American BBQ in flavor and featured a couple of legs as well as pulled meat. Our combo featured all 6 of the available vegetable dishes, the 1 chicken, 1 of the 5 beef and 1 of 2 lamb dishes, plus a salad. With so many vegetable dishes on the menu, this would probably be a good restaurant for vegetarians, and they offer a vegetable combo plate as well. Ethiopian meat dishes are traditionally spicy, and can be extremely spicy. But since this is a BYOB, don't worry, none of the dishes were spicy enough to be wine destroying or requiring only the traditional spicy food wines like Riesling or Gewürztraminer. We went with an Italianate orange wine from Pennsylvania (my favorite wine from the East Coast) and a Cali cabernet, both of which worked well. Bring your own if you want to use real wine stems as they just have tumblers. 2011 Va La Vineyards La Prima Donna 2014 Daou Vineyards Cabernet Sauvignon Paso Robles They also serve traditional, made at the table Ethiopian coffee, which smelled wonderful, although we didn't try it. No dessert offered. Service was friendly and well-meaning, but we did have to ask for explanations when they were not forthcoming. $51 + tax for a filling meal for 3 people. And the free parking on the street was fairly easy at 5:30PM on a Saturday. Although small, at no time during our visit was the restaurant more than half full (we had a phone reservation, but you probably don't need one unless you have more than 4 people so they can pull some tables together). They also have a couple of traditional mesob woven round wicker basket tables, although the seating around them didn't look as comfortable. MORE ABOUT BYOB: If you are interested, I have created a Yelp "Collection" of legal BYOBs in the Boston area (I define Boston pretty liberally lol): https://www.yelp.com/collection/RL6TtTE-DzBofaIDxyGJeQ In case you don't know, Boston's rules for byob are as follows: Permitted Types/Sizes of Alcohol: A. Patrons may only bring wine and malt beverages into the licensed premise. B. Patrons are prohibited from bringing distilled spirits and/or liqueurs/cordials into the licensed premise. C. Patrons may only bring malt beverages in containers no larger than 64 oz., and may bring in no more than a total of 64 oz. per person. D. Patrons may only bring wine in containers no larger than 750 ml., and may bring in no more than a total of 750 ml. per person. E. Patrons are prohibited from re-entering the premise with additional alcohol. Miscellaneous: A. Licensees shall not charge a "corkage"or any other fee or surcharge for permitting BYOB or providing any service or amenity relative to BYOB. B. Licensees are not prohibited from providing glassware and/or a bottle opener. C. Nothing in this section shall prohibit a licensee from discarding an empty or abandoned alcoholic beverage container or its content. Hours of Operation: Licensees shall only allow BYOB between the hours of 5:00 P.M. and 11:00 P.M. https://www.boston.gov/sites/default/files/rules_and_regs_amended.pdf
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