Occasionally I do pay for a bottle of wine in a restaurant and the bottles they charge $60 for can be gotten at the local liquor store for around $15. I'm sure the restaurants pay less than the $15.
Yup. I know a restaurant where if you bring your own bottle and they have that same vintage on their list they charge a corkage fee equal to their list price.
But I also know a great place with great food that has no liquor license - but plenty of wine screws on the tables for those of us who want to bring our own. I like that place better :-)
Which department contributes the most to the restaurant’s bottom-line?
Well, it is alcohol sales.
Restaurants typically pay wholesale, often less if they buy on discounts (post off). In most states the ‘suggested retail’ price is 150% of wholesale. In some states, there are still legal minimums at retail (usually 10% under suggested retail), but it varies among the 50 states....