You know, there are times – often many times, in fact – when even the finest selection of wines and the world’s greatest sommeliers can’t compete with a bottle of wine that you bought for a tenner and brought along to the restaurant with you.
Somehow it just tastes, well… nicer.
So in celebration of those occasions we’d like to raise a glass in honour of the best BYOB restaurants in London.
Sláinte.
Persepolis | Peckham
It’s a teeny tiny Persian grocery and restaurant serving 100% vegetarian fare. Dishes are to be shared – a mix of vibrant salads, dips, pickles and more – best enjoyed over a couple of BYOB beers, or a bottle or two of wine, thanks to zero corkage.
Details: 28-30 Peckham High Street, Peckham, SE15 5DT | No corkage
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Andu Cafe | Dalston
It’s a low-key, all-vegan Ethiopian joint on Dalston’s Kingsland Road. There’s only one dish on the menu costing just £6, andddd it’s BYOB, making it a cheap and cheerful dinner option that’s pretty impossible to resist.
Details: 528 Kingsland Road, Dalston, London, E8 4AH | No corkage
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Xi’an Impression | Highbury
Authentic Xi’an street food in a stripped back setting. Must-try dishes include their Liangpi (a popular cold noodle dish); their bianbiang noodles (this time warm); and their Chinese burgers.
Details: 117 Benwell Road, London, N7 7BW | £5.50 corkage for wine, £1.70 for a can of beer
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Singburi | Leytonstone
A family-run Thai cafe in Leytonstone with local legend status and regular queues out the door, thanks to dishes like deep fried pork belly and your favourite bottle to match.
NOTE: Singburi has gone on hiatus until the end of 2024 at least. Watch this space…
Details: 593 Leytonstone High Road, London, E11 4PA | No corkage
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Alounak | Kensington
London’s long-standing Persian eatery, serving an Iranian-style feast of garlicky yoghurts, smoked aubergine, grilled kebabs, basmati rice and warm bread from the proudly displayed tandoori oven.
Details: 10 Russell Gardens, W14 8EZ | No corkage
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Hawksmoor | Across London
Some of the best steak, triple cooked chips and cocktails South of the North Pole. And in their never-ending quest to bring you all that is good and joyful, they allow you to bring your own bottle for just £5 corkage on Mondays.
Details: All Hawksmoor locations | BYOB Mondays, corkage £5 per bottle, £25 Tues-Sun
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Anima e Cuore | Kentish Town
A legendary, highly ambitious Italian that far, far surpasses anything you’d expect to find in the spartan back room of an ice cream shop.
Details: 127 Kentish Town Rd, London NW1 8PB | £5 corkage
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Little Georgia | Hackney & Barnsbury
Little Georgia Cafe serves homely yet ambitious Georgian food amid a simple, tasteful decor of vintage portraits and fairy lights. One bite of their cheesy, bean-stuffed lobiani and it’ll somehow taste instantly comforting and familiar, even if you’ve never stepped foot in the motherland. The all-Georgian wine list is well worth exploring, but if you’re strongly wedded to your Casillero del Diablo you can unscrew it here for free.
Details: 87 Goldsmith’s Row, Bethnal Green, E2 8QR | 14 Barnsbury Road, N1 0HB | No corkage if you spend £15+
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Guanabana | Camden
Camden’s always-dependable, geared-towards-good-times Caribbean haunt, serving up mouthwatering classics and inventive twists from oxtail butter bean stew with rice & peas to jerk chicken alfredo. And on Sundays you can come in for their famous Island Roasts with jerk chicken or beef and all the trimmings, even Yorkshire puds.
Details: 83-85 Kentish Town Road, London, NW1 8NY | Free corkage on Mondays, then £3+ Tues-Sun
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Etles | Walthamstow
A fantastic neighbourhood BYOB specialising in the cuisine of the Uyghur people of Xinjiang, north-western China. Expect traditional dishes that fuse the seasonings, ingredients and techniques of both Chinese and Turkish cooking (and further along the Silk Road besides), like leghmen (hand-pulled noodles), offal kebabs and tender lamb served on naan.
Details: 235 Hoe Street, London E17 9PP | No corkage
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Mangal 1 | Dalston
Dalston’s Turkish stalwart has been delighting punters for more than three decades. It’s London’s original ocakbaşı and still turns out impeccable kebabs, pide bread, and hummus with enough garlic to ward off vampires for a good week or two.
Details: 10 Arcola St, London E8 2DN | No corkage
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Tayyabs | Whitechapel
Whitechapel’s famed North Indian restaurant serves starters from £4, mains from £10, charges nothing for corkage and is still vying as one of East London’s best Indian cafe style restaurants.
Details: 83-89 Fieldgate Street, Whitechapel, E1 1JU | No corkage
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The Bonnington Café | Vauxhall
A co-operatively run vegetarian and vegan restaurant maintained by an active collection of member cooks; so you never really know what’s going to be on the menu, except vegetables.
Details: 11 Vauxhall Grove, Vauxhall, London SW8 1TD | Small fee
Like great restaurants? Check out our guide to the best restaurants in every London neighbourhood