O.C. Restaurants With No Corkage Fees

I got the following e-mail from a reader named Dorn:

I know you are not an alcohol drinker, but I suspect many of your foodie fans love wine. I would love to see a topic covered on OC restaurants that do not charge a corkage fee.

Considering that most restaurants mark-up their wines 200% – 300%, this would be a HUGE money saver for many who dine out regularly.

My wife and I have discovered that Houston's, Bandera and Gulfstream never charge a corkage fee (all part of the Hillside Group I think). Also, Pacific Whey Cafe allows you to bring in your own wine during dinner. They do not have wine glasses or corkscrews, so you'd have to bring those too, but again the savings is tremendous.

Do you have an open forum on your blog? Perhaps your readers could share their insights on this topic.

What I great idea I thought!

So far, thanks to Dorn, we have the following list of restaurants that charge no corkage:

– Bandera
– Houston's
– Gulfstream
– Pacific Whey Cafe

Any more? Put up a comment with your find, por favor, and I'll update the list!

Update! (Thanks to C, hungrymomma, and Gordon…and also this page from LocalWineEvents.com);

– Scott's Seafood in Costa Mesa (if they feel like it, or if you ask really nicely)
– The Cat N the Custard Cup (every Wednesday)
– Bangkok Taste
– Roman Cucina (Fullerton, Costa Mesa N Sunset Beach)
– Memphis Cafe on Bristol (every Monday)
– Memphis at the Santora (Wednesday thru Saturday nights)
– The Golden Truffle (every Wednesday)
– Motif at St. Regis Monarch Beach (every Tuesday)
– Beach Pit BBQ, Tustin
– Melting Pot (no corkage if they don't carry the wine)
– Charlie Palmer at Bloomingdale's South Coast Plaza (every Monday)

Keep 'em comin'!